Telecommunication companies are proposing a 40 percent increase in the cost of calls, SMS, and data to the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC.

The Telecommunications Companies wrote the letter to the NCC under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria.

According to them, the proposed 40 percent increase in cost of calls and SMS is because of the rising cost of running a business in the nation, according to the telecommunication firms’ proposals.

Based on their proposal, the price floor of calls will increase from N6.4 to N8.95 while the price cap of SMS will increase from N4 to N5.61.

This was revealed in a letter titled, ‘Impact of the Economic and Security Issues on the Telecommunications Sector,’.

The telecom companies said in their letter that the cost of doing business in the nation, had increased by 40%.

According to them, the telecommunications business has been harmed financially as a result of the country’s economic downturn in 2020 and the ongoing Ukraine/Russia issue.

They said this had increased energy costs, increasing their operating expenses by 35 percent.

They went on to say that the recent 5% excise duty on telecom services had added to the industry’s burden of many taxes and levies. All this and more are stated by the Telecommunication companies.

Story: Ralia Adama

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