The Nigerian telecommunications industry remains the fastest growing sector of the economy with a real growth of 32.54 per cent in the first quarter of 2010, a report by the Financial Derivatives Company Limited has said.

According to the monthly economic performance report presented by the Managing Director of the company, Mr. Bismark Rewane, at the Lagos Business School Executive Breakfast Meeting recently, the recorded growth was 0.79 per cent higher than growth in the first quarter of 2009 which was 31.75 per cent.

The National Bureau of Statistics confirmed Q1, 2010 growth of 7.23 per cent, higher than 4.5 per cent recorded in Q1, 2009.

The 2.73 per cent growth, according to Rewane, was linked to vast improvement in oil production made possible by the amnesty deal between the Federal Government and Niger Delta militants. Oil GDP grew by 3.21 per cent in Q1, 2010 compared to 8.08 per cent in Q1, 2009.

Oil contribution to Gross Domestic Product dropped marginally to 18 per cent from 18.70 per cent in Q1, 2009.

In contrast, non-oil sector continued to be the major growth driver, growing from 7.9 per cent in Q1, 2009 to 8.15 per cent in Q1, 2010. The telecoms sector, according to Rewane, was very significant to this growth.

In the same vein, a new report from Pyramid Research had released a forecast that Nigeria remained Africa’s fastest-growing telecoms market till 2014, fuelled by several new entrants, the inauguration of mobile value-added and broadband services, and most recently, the introduction of mobile number portability and mobile termination rate cuts that would drive even more market competition.

A senior analyst at Pyramid Research and author of the report, Mr. Badii Kechiche, said, ”Telecom industry liberalisation has pushed market penetration of telecom services in Nigeria from just 1.2 per cent in 2002 to an estimated 48.9 per cent at the end of 2009, thanks to the entry of new operators, the expansion of CDMA operators into mobile services, the provision of low-cost services, and the expansion of coverage to underserved areas.

”2010 will see the introduction of mobile number portability and mobile termination rate cuts, which we expect to improve competitiveness despite the short-term impact on interconnect revenue and subscription growth.”

Nigeria is one of the most competitive markets in Africa, with more than double the average number of operators than any other African country, according to Kechiche.

”Operators have been investing in and upgrading their networks to meet demand, since they realise that their success will be based on a differentiated service quality, attractive services, and a good value proposition,” he added.

Experts have said that continuous investments in the sector are strong indices that will stimulate growth.

MTN Nigeria, few weeks ago, finalised a N318bn loan deal with 15 Nigerian banks and two foreign banks. The facility, which experts have said is an indication that Nigerian banks are again able to finance big-ticket transactions, is to expand MTN’s network across the country.