MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has reported a 55.3 per cent increase in profit after tax to N1.17tn for the nine months ended September 30, 2026, driven by strong revenue growth, improved operating performance and rising demand for data services.

The telecommunications giant disclosed this in its unaudited financial results released on Friday, showing that profit after tax increased from N750.2bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.

According to the report, service revenue grew by 23.7 per cent to N4.6tn, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 36.8 per cent to N2.6tn.

Earnings per share also increased by 55.3 per cent to N55.60, while free cash flow climbed by 57.5 per cent to N1.17tn.

The impressive performance was accompanied by an expansion in the company’s customer base, which reached 94.7 million subscribers, including 57.2 million active data users.

The figures highlight the growing contribution of internet consumption and digital connectivity to MTN Nigeria’s business operations.

Commenting on the performance, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola, attributed the growth to increasing demand for connectivity and sustained investment in network infrastructure.

He said millions of Nigerians rely on the company’s services daily for work, education, business activities and communication, making continued investment necessary to meet rising demand.

To strengthen its network capacity and expand coverage, MTN Nigeria increased its capital expenditure, excluding leases, by 14.2 per cent to N864.8bn during the nine-month period.

Toriola identified the expansion of fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) services as a major component of the investment, noting that more households were increasingly relying on broadband connectivity.

He explained that the company’s unlimited fibre broadband offerings were designed to support growing household needs, including remote work, online learning and entertainment.

According to him, MTN Nigeria now leads the fibre-to-the-home market, with the service accounting for approximately 13 per cent of its total data traffic.

The development, he added, also helps reduce pressure on the company’s mobile network by freeing up additional capacity.

Despite the positive performance, Toriola acknowledged that fibre cuts and other infrastructure disruptions remained challenges to consistent service delivery.

He said the company would continue investing in network improvements to strengthen reliability and enhance customer experience.

Beyond its operational growth, MTN Nigeria’s financial performance also enabled it to reward shareholders while sustaining investments in infrastructure.

The company’s Chief Financial Officer, Modupe Kadri, disclosed that MTN paid approximately N861bn in dividends during the period, alongside its substantial capital expenditure commitments.

Kadri said the company had continued to pursue growth, strengthen profitability and reward shareholders while maintaining its investment programme.

He further disclosed that MTN Nigeria retained a positive net cash position despite its significant capital expenditure and dividend payments.

According to him, sustainable value creation requires strong earnings, financial discipline, customer confidence and long-term investment.
The latest results underscore MTN Nigeria’s continued growth in the telecommunications sector, with increasing data consumption, broadband expansion and infrastructure investment supporting its financial performance.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed fake, adulterated, expired and banned products valued at more than N8bn seized across North-Central Nigeria, with banned alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small containers accounting for the bulk of the confiscated items.

The destruction exercise took place in Lafia, Nasarawa State, on Thursday, as the agency renewed its campaign against the circulation of unsafe products and the abuse of alcohol, particularly among young people.

Speaking at the event, NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said the confiscated products were recovered from manufacturing facilities, shops, markets and motor parks across the zone.

Adeyeye, who was represented by a Deputy Director of NAFDAC in the zone, Joseph Edor, explained that the ban on alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small containers below 200ml was introduced to curb their misuse, especially among young people and schoolchildren.

According to her, the affordability, availability and portability of such products make them easily accessible and increase the risk of abuse.
She warned that early exposure to alcohol could have serious consequences for brain development, general health and academic performance.

“Research has shown that early exposure to alcohol affects the brain and other vital organs such as the liver and kidneys,” Adeyeye said.

She added that alcohol misuse could contribute to brain damage, poor academic performance, reduced productivity and several illnesses.

The NAFDAC chief said concerns over alcohol abuse, addiction and associated health risks informed the restrictions and subsequent enforcement operations targeting prohibited alcoholic beverages.

She further disclosed that the products destroyed included counterfeit and expired medicines, unwholesome food items and unsafe cosmetics.

“It is in the course of carrying out these activities that this heap of unwholesome, banned, fake and adulterated products worth about eight billion naira was confiscated from manufacturing outfits, sales outlets, markets and motor parks,” she said.

Adeyeye emphasised that most of the destroyed products were banned alcoholic beverages packaged in low-volume containers of less than 200ml.

She commended other law enforcement agencies and stakeholders for supporting NAFDAC’s operations through intelligence sharing and the provision of security assistance.

Also speaking, the Nasarawa State Coordinator of NAFDAC, Dr. Gyani Stephen, said the destruction exercise was primarily intended to protect public health rather than punish businesses or individuals.

He warned traders involved in the sale of counterfeit, expired and banned products to desist from the practice, stressing that the agency would take appropriate action against violators.

In a goodwill message, the Nasarawa State Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Daniel Saidu, represented by Yakubu Awoh, praised NAFDAC for its efforts to remove fake and expired medicines from circulation.

Saidu warned that allowing dangerous and substandard products into the market could expose millions of Nigerians to serious health risks, including adverse effects on their mental well-being.

The exercise forms part of NAFDAC’s enforcement efforts to prevent unsafe products from reaching consumers and to strengthen compliance with regulations governing the manufacture, distribution and sale of food, medicines, alcoholic beverages and other regulated products.

The agency urged traders and manufacturers to comply with applicable regulations, warning that those found dealing in prohibited or counterfeit products risk enforcement action.

A collision involving two high-speed trains in central Spain has killed at least 64 people and injured scores of others, prompting a major emergency response and the suspension of rail services on one of the country’s busiest routes.

The accident occurred on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, near Urda in the province of Toledo, in the Castilla-La Mancha region, approximately 150 kilometres south of Madrid.

The collision involved a Spanish state-operated Renfe AVE train and a high-speed service operated by private railway company Iryo.

Regional authorities confirmed the death toll as rescue teams searched the wreckage for victims and assessed the extent of the damage.

The regional government’s emergency service reported 64 fatalities and 58 injured people in its 2 p.m. update.

AFP separately reported that a regional government spokeswoman put the number of injured above 100, with 58 people taken to hospital, including 15 in critical condition.

The figures may reflect different stages of reporting and assessment as emergency operations continued.

How the Collision Happened

Initial information indicated that the Renfe train struck the rear of an Iryo train that had stopped on the line. The impact caused carriages to derail, with some tumbling down an embankment and others left badly damaged.

Iryo said its train was carrying 147 passengers and five staff members, including the driver. Renfe confirmed that its Madrid-to-Seville service had also been involved in the accident. Together, the two trains were carrying hundreds of passengers.

Photographs and reports from the scene showed overturned carriages, twisted metal and extensive debris.

Emergency workers, including firefighters, police officers and medical teams, were deployed to rescue survivors, recover bodies and transport injured passengers for treatment.

The precise cause of the collision had not been established at the time of reporting. Investigators will need to examine the sequence of events, train movements, signalling information and other technical evidence before determining what led to the crash.

Emergency Services Intensify Rescue Operations

Authorities activated the regional emergency plan and subsequently escalated the response to bring in additional resources, including Spain’s Military Emergency Unit.

The regional emergency service also established a telephone information line for relatives and friends seeking information about people who may have been aboard the trains. Renfe and Iryo activated their own assistance arrangements for affected passengers and families.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed shock over the accident and said he was travelling to the scene to support emergency operations and those affected.

Condolences also came from Spain’s royal household and European Union officials. The European Commission said the bloc was ready to assist Spain if required.

The scale of the destruction and the number of people affected have made the crash one of Europe’s most serious recent rail disasters.

Following the collision, Renfe confirmed that rail traffic was suspended along the affected high-speed corridor connecting Madrid with southern Spain, including services towards Ciudad Real and Andalusia.

The disruption affects an important transport route linking the capital with major cities in the south. Authorities and railway operators are expected to assess infrastructure damage and safety conditions before services can resume.

The accident has also renewed scrutiny of railway safety in Spain, which has invested heavily in its high-speed rail network and operates one of the world’s largest systems of its kind.

Second Major High-Speed Rail Disaster in Spain This Year

The collision is the second major deadly high-speed rail accident to strike Spain in 2026.

In January, a collision involving two high-speed trains near Adamuz, in southern Spain, killed 46 people. That disaster raised questions about rail safety and the reliability of the systems used to operate the network.

Spain also experienced one of its worst rail disasters in 2013, when 80 people died after a train derailed near Santiago de Compostela in the country’s northwest.

Although the latest collision has renewed concerns about railway safety, investigators have not yet established whether the incident resulted from a technical failure, human error, signalling problems or another cause.

Any conclusion about responsibility would be premature until the investigation produces evidence.

The immediate priority remains the treatment of injured passengers, the identification and recovery of victims, and support for affected families.

Investigators will also need to establish why the trains collided, whether all relevant safety procedures were followed and what changes, if any, may be required to prevent similar incidents.

For Spain’s railway authorities, the findings will be important not only for determining the cause of this disaster but also for addressing public confidence in a transport system that plays a central role in the country’s domestic travel network.

As rescue and recovery operations continue, the death toll and injury figures may be revised as authorities reconcile information from hospitals, emergency teams and railway operators.

Nigeria Insight will update this report as further verified information becomes available.