The GSMA recently published an analysis regarding the rollout of 5G in the Middle East and North Africa, including “some of the fastest 5G service in the world.” According to a release, the GSMA’s “Roadmaps for awarding 5G spectrum in the MENA region” provides guidance for 5G development in the Middle East and North Africa. GSMA’s 5G roadmap outlines necessary steps for planning, including identification and clearance of spectrum, technology definitions and restrictions, spectrum valuation, and award design.
The Gulf region was one of the first to assign spectrum for 5G, and its top three carriers – Etisalat, STC, and Ooredoo – competed to become the world’s first 5G operator. Spectrum assignment has continued to support 5G expansion efforts with mobile operators, giving the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and UAE access to more than 1 GHz of licensed spectrum.
“GCC countries such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE have become 5G pioneers, deploying some of the world’s first 5G networks,” said the GSMA’s Head of MENA Jawad Jalal Abbassi. “And countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, and Turkey have started to identify suitable 5G spectrum to launch.” He added that the report outlines the steps governments and regulators should take to enable the most efficient and effective spectrum usage.
Although the pandemic has caused 5G deployment delays in some countries, the GSMA forecasts that Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Turkey will have commercial 5G services between 2022 and 2024. Conversely, Iraq (where 4G was launched in 2020) and Palestine (where there have been no awards for 4G spectrum) will likely not adopt 5G “until well into the 2030s.”
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