Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon, a journalist with Legit.ng, has over a decade of experience in business reporting across digital and mainstream media.

A few days ago, news broke that MTN Nigeria had signed a three-year national roaming agreement with Emerging Markets Telecommunications (EMT) Services Limited, the owner of 9mobile.

MTN made the announcement, stating that it would give 9mobile subscribers access to MTN’s network infrastructure across Nigeria and improve operational efficiency for both partners.

9mobile has released a statement to confirm the partnership deal with MTN Nigeria.

This partnership comes as a much-anticipated solution to 9mobile’s many challenges that had threatened its market competitiveness.

Recall that due to its network issues and several other issues, 9mobile reportedly lost the largest number of customers.

The latest Mobile Number Portability (MNP) statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) showed that 9mobile lost the most customers.

9mobile has only 3 inward portings, gaining the least number of customers. MTN had 3,960 inward portings to consolidate its position as industry leader, while Airtel and Globacom had 1,860 and 966, respectively.

The reverse was the case for outward porting as 9mobile lost 5,042 customers, Globacom lost 1,233, Airtel lost 295, and MTN had only 219 customers leave its network.

Several issues have threatened 9mobile's continued play in the telecoms market, and expectations are high that this deal could make the difference.

The chief executive officer (CEO) of 9mobile, Obafemi Banigbe, confirmed the partnership at a press briefing on Thursday.

He also announced that service testing has begun in some regions in Nigeria to confirm seamless connectivity for customers before nationwide deployment.

Banigbe said the rollout would be completed by the weekend, and based on the results, nationwide deployment would commence in July 2025.

The 9mobile CEO described the deal as one that would be equally beneficial to both MTN and 9mobile, while they remain independent players and competitors in Nigeria’s telecom industry, according to The Cable News.

Banigbe assured 9mobile subscribers that with the latest deal, they would enjoy increased network coverage and an enhanced experience.

He said that active subscribers who have recharged within the last 90 days do not need to take any additional actions to enjoy the coverage.

“What the subscriber needs to do when we roll out nationwide is just switch on your phone.”

However, dormant lines would need to be reactivated before they can access the service.

The 9mobile CEO affirmed that the 9mobile brand remains a player in Nigeria’s telecommunications space. He also assured customers that the billings and services remain unchanged.

Banigbe described the partnership as one that promotes industry efficiency by avoiding duplication of infrastructure, and noted that it would ultimately attract more investors in the space.

Also speaking at the press briefing, the CEO of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola, referred to the deal as a shift from competition to co-opetition.

In related news, Legit.ng earlier reported that discussions were ongoing towards a potential roaming deal between MTN Nigeria and 9mobile.

At the time, the NCC was reportedly close to approving the spectrum deal, which started with trials back in 2020.

The deal will allow ailing 9Mobile to leverage MTN Nigeria’s spectrum infrastructure to boost its services to customers.

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Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng