In a development that is quietly reshaping Africa’s telecom economics, MTN Group has found its most valuable customers not in its largest market, Nigeria, but in Ghana. Fresh data from the company’s 2025 financial performance shows a striking contrast in how much revenue each subscriber generates across markets.
At the centre of this shift is Average Revenue Per User, a key metric in telecoms that reflects how much income a company earns from each customer. According to TechCabal, in Ghana, MTN recorded an ARPU of $6.76, nearly double Nigeria’s $3.60, despite Nigeria’s recent tariff adjustments and growth in data usage.
This gap tells a deeper story about the changing dynamics of African telecom markets. While Nigeria continues to dominate in subscriber numbers and total revenue, Ghana is proving that smaller markets can deliver stronger value per user when economic conditions are stable.
The implication is clear. Growth is no longer just about how many users a telecom company has. It is increasingly about how much each user is worth in real terms.
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Nigeria Still Leads in Scale but Faces Value Pressure
There is no question that Nigeria remains MTN’s biggest engine room. With over 87 million subscribers and service revenue hitting ₦5.2 trillion in 2025, the country accounts for more than a quarter of the group’s total revenue.
In fact, MTN Nigeria has overtaken South Africa as the company’s largest profit contributor, driven by aggressive tariff adjustments and a surge in data consumption. Revenue grew by over 55 percent in 2025, while profits rebounded strongly after a challenging previous year.
But beneath these impressive numbers lies a persistent challenge. Nigeria’s macroeconomic environment continues to erode value. Currency volatility and inflation have weakened the real earnings per user, even as nominal revenues rise.
Although the naira showed some recovery in 2025, it still remains far from its earlier stability. Inflation also stayed in double digits, reducing consumers’ purchasing power and limiting how much telecom operators can realistically charge without risking customer churn.
This creates a paradox. Nigeria delivers volume, but not necessarily value. The country brings in millions of users and huge revenue figures, yet the actual worth of each subscriber, especially in dollar terms, remains constrained.
Ghana’s Stability Is Driving Profitability and Efficiency
In contrast, Ghana is demonstrating what happens when macroeconomic stability aligns with telecom strategy. The country’s improving economic conditions in 2025 played a major role in boosting MTN’s performance.
Inflation dropped significantly from over 23 percent at the beginning of the year to just above 5 percent by December. At the same time, the Ghanaian cedi strengthened sharply against the dollar.
This stability allowed MTN to retain more value from its earnings and translate local revenue into stronger dollar returns. The result is a market where each subscriber contributes more meaningfully to the bottom line.
The numbers reflect this efficiency. MTN Ghana’s service revenue rose by over 36 percent, while EBITDA climbed by more than 43 percent, pushing profit margins to about 60 percent. Profit after tax also jumped by nearly 56 percent.
These figures are not just impressive, they are strategic. They show a business that is not only growing but doing so efficiently, converting revenue into profit at a higher rate than larger markets.
Even with a subscriber base of just over 31 million, far smaller than Nigeria’s, Ghana is outperforming in terms of profitability and per-user value.
The Bigger Shift: From Subscriber Growth to Value Optimisation
What is happening between Nigeria and Ghana reflects a broader shift within MTN and the telecom industry across Africa. The focus is gradually moving from expanding subscriber numbers to maximising value from existing users.
For years, telecom growth in Africa was defined by rapid customer acquisition. Markets like Nigeria were prized for their large populations and untapped demand. But as penetration increases and competition intensifies, the next phase of growth is about monetisation.
This includes increasing data usage, expanding digital services, and leveraging fintech platforms such as mobile money. In Ghana, these strategies are already yielding strong results, supported by a more predictable economic environment.
Mobile money, in particular, has become a critical driver. Ghana is one of MTN’s most mature fintech markets, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from mobile money services alone.
The country’s ability to integrate telecom services with financial technology has strengthened customer value, making each user more profitable beyond traditional voice and data services.
What This Means for Nigeria and the Future of Telecom Growth
For Nigeria, the lesson is not that it is underperforming, but that its growth story is incomplete without economic stability. The country remains indispensable to MTN’s overall strategy due to its scale, youthful population, and growing demand for digital services.
However, to match or surpass Ghana in per-user value, improvements in currency stability, inflation control, and consumer purchasing power will be essential.
MTN itself appears to recognise this shift. Its future growth plans are increasingly tied to data expansion, broadband penetration, and fintech services, rather than just subscriber growth.
As more Nigerians come online and consume digital services, the opportunity to increase ARPU exists. But unlocking that value will depend heavily on external economic factors as much as internal business strategy.
In the meantime, Ghana stands as a clear example of how stability can transform a smaller market into a high-value one. It shows that in today’s telecom landscape, the most valuable customers are not always where the numbers are largest, but where the conditions allow value to thrive.
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