MTN Ghana’s active data subscribers rose 11.4 percent to 18.9 million in the third quarter of 2025, underscoring the company’s continued dominance in Ghana’s digital communications space amid rising demand for internet services.
The growth reflects the sustained shift toward mobile connectivity, online payments, and digital entertainment that continue defining Ghana’s evolving consumer habits. The increase translates into roughly two million new data users added over the period, positioning MTN well ahead of competitors in market reach and user engagement.
Data remains one of MTN’s strongest revenue drivers, benefiting from expanding 4G coverage and increased smartphone adoption. The company’s invested heavily in network upgrades and fiber connectivity to enhance service reliability and handle surging traffic volumes, with capital expenditure reaching GHS4.6 billion for the nine months ended September 2025.
Data revenue surged 46.8 percent to GHS9.3 billion, now accounting for more than half of MTN Ghana’s total service revenue. Average data usage climbed 41.3 percent to 14.5 gigabytes per user monthly, demonstrating that subscribers aren’t just connecting, they’re consuming significantly more content than before. That kind of usage growth puts tremendous pressure on network infrastructure, even when capacity planning tries staying ahead of demand.
However, the gains come as many users continue raising concerns about intermittent internet disruptions, slow speeds, and network congestion, particularly in fast-growing urban centers. Throughout 2025, several customers and businesses have reported service interruptions affecting productivity and streaming access, issues MTN’s attributed to maintenance work and high usage spikes.
The most significant disruption occurred in July 2025 when MTN experienced a major technical glitch precisely when implementing enhanced data bundles mandated by the Communications Ministry. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as customers temporarily couldn’t purchase any data bundles on the same day they were supposed to receive 15 percent additional data volume on all purchases.
Stephen Blewett, MTN Ghana’s CEO, acknowledged that while network modernization projects aren’t expected to negatively impact performance, customers may experience intermittent disruption in some services during upgrades. It’s the kind of honest admission that recognizes infrastructure improvements often create short-term inconvenience for long-term benefit.
The company maintained 98.9 percent 4G population coverage, supporting a 57.3 percent increase in data traffic year on year. That coverage figure sounds impressive until you consider that maintaining reliability for 18.9 million active data users across Ghana’s diverse geography, from dense Accra neighborhoods to remote rural communities, represents an enormous technical challenge.
MTN’s broader financial performance reinforced how central data services have become to its business model. Total service revenue grew 36.3 percent to GHS17.3 billion, with profit after tax increasing 45.9 percent to GHS5.5 billion. EBITDA grew 41.6 percent to GHS10.2 billion, achieving a margin of 58.4 percent, which improved 2.2 percentage points over the previous year.
Beyond pure connectivity, digital entertainment services more than doubled to GHS324.4 million, driven by consumer appetite for video streaming, gaming, and digital content. These categories barely existed in MTN’s revenue mix just a few years ago, but they’re now contributing meaningfully while creating additional reasons for users to stay connected and engaged with the platform.
The company acquired additional spectrum during the period and obtained a universal access license from the National Communications Authority, which harmonized expiration dates of most existing licenses. Blewett described this as a positive development that’ll improve MTN’s ability to serve customers with better connectivity and innovative services.
Despite infrastructure investments and expanding coverage, customer complaints about service quality persist across social media platforms and consumer forums. Some users have alleged rapid data depletion that doesn’t match their actual usage, while others complain about failed transactions during peak periods. MTN’s consistently pointed to network transitions between 4G technologies and high concurrent usage as contributing factors.
The telecommunications regulator has taken notice. The National Communications Authority began conducting quarterly billing integrity tests in Q3 2025 to ensure accuracy in data crediting and rollover processes, responding to persistent customer complaints about bundle management. These regulatory interventions signal that growth in subscriber numbers alone won’t satisfy authorities if service quality doesn’t keep pace.
MTN’s reaffirmed its commitment to network modernization and capacity expansion, especially in regional towns and underserved communities. The ongoing rollout of 4G and 4G Plus sites, coupled with digital partnerships across fintech and entertainment, aims to consolidate user loyalty and support Ghana’s broader digital transformation agenda.
The company’s also investing in artificial intelligence tools for customer value management initiatives to improve satisfaction and engagement. Furthermore, scaling of group platforms continues, including ongoing development of the myMTN and MoMo apps by adding innovative services to meet customers’ changing needs.
Looking ahead, MTN projects service revenue growth in the mid to upper thirties percentage range for the final quarter of 2025, with EBITDA margins in the mid fifty percent range. That guidance suggests management expects momentum to continue despite seasonal variations and competitive pressures from Telecel Ghana and AT Ghana, both of which are investing aggressively to capture market share.
The macroeconomic environment has improved compared to previous years, with inflation easing through the third quarter to end at 9.4 percent in September 2025. The year to date average was 17.3 percent, compared with 22.9 percent in the same period of 2024. While the cedi weakened slightly in the third quarter after strengthening in Q2, the overall landscape showed signs of stabilization that support consumer spending on data services.
MTN Ghana contributed significantly to national development beyond its core business, paying GHS7.3 billion in direct and indirect taxes, up from GHS6.1 billion in 2024. Through the MTN Ghana Foundation, the company’s constructing a multipurpose resource center at the University of Development Studies in Tamale that’ll benefit over 30,000 students with training in digital skills, artificial intelligence, robotics, and internet of things technologies.
What these subscriber numbers ultimately represent is Ghana’s digital transformation in action. Nearly 19 million people actively using mobile data services reflects fundamental changes in how Ghanaians work, communicate, entertain themselves, and conduct business. The question isn’t whether this growth will continue, but whether network infrastructure and service quality can keep pace with rising expectations.
For MTN, maintaining market leadership requires more than adding subscribers. It demands consistent service reliability, transparent billing practices, responsive customer support, and continuous infrastructure investment that anticipates rather than merely reacts to demand. The company’s substantial capital expenditure and technology partnerships suggest commitment to these priorities, but execution remains the real test.
As Ghana positions itself within the African Continental Free Trade Area and works to strengthen its digital economy, having robust telecommunications infrastructure becomes increasingly important for competitiveness and inclusion. MTN’s performance affects not just its shareholders but millions of Ghanaians whose economic opportunities increasingly depend on reliable, affordable internet access.
Whether 18.9 million data subscribers represents peak achievement or foundation for sustained growth depends on how effectively MTN addresses persistent service quality concerns while continuing network expansion. For now, the numbers tell a story of dominance, but customer satisfaction will ultimately determine whether that dominance remains sustainable.
Source: newsghana.com.gh
