ABUJA, Nigeria: The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and telecommunications operators have announced an October 1, 2026 rollout of up to 100 megabytes of free daily data for eligible learners using approved educational platforms.
Okay News reports that the allowance is restricted to designated learning services under an operator-sponsored programme. It does not provide unrestricted internet access to every subscriber.
In a joint announcement, the commission and the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) said the scheme would support studying, research, online courses and other academic activities.
ALTON Chairman Gbenga Adebayo referred to an initial pilot involving 5,000 learners. He said operators would absorb connectivity and network-capacity costs, with other industry participants contributing devices, terminals and related resources.
The release did not name the participating educational platforms or provide detailed eligibility requirements and activation instructions. It also did not establish that access was already working for individual learners.
Under the previously announced framework, Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Education and the NCC jointly approve platforms. The categories include digital libraries, learning-management systems, educational repositories and teacher-training services.
NCC Executive Vice Chairman Aminu Maida said the daily cap was intended to keep the programme sustainable while usage was assessed. Participating platforms were being encouraged to reduce advertisements and other data demands.
The commission said the allowance would be reviewed periodically, with monitoring covering usage, service availability, complaints and network performance.
