Ethio Telecom has launched a 5G wireless service in Ethiopia, making it the third African country to have next-generation wireless. As part of its pre-commercial trial service, 5G will be deployed first in the capital Addis Ababa before eventually spreading to other parts of the country, according to Ethio Telecom CEO Frehiwot Tamru.
Backed by the government, Ethio Telecom will then expand its 5G footprint to include regional cities with up to 150 sites in the coming 12 months. “We shall further roll out 5G sites to more areas based on feasible business demands,” the operator said. Ethio currently covers 97 percent of the country with 3G and 4G technology, according to Total Telecom.
Total Telecom said it is not clear where the demand for 5G will come from. “Funds [are] perhaps better spent on improving existing services, particularly for rural communities, which make up 78 percent of the population,” the publication said. “However, it is exactly the untapped nature of this enormous country that makes it a potential goldmine for incoming telecoms players.”
Africa’s first 5G country was South Africa. In September 2019, Rain, a data-only mobile operator, launched the country’s first commercial 5G network in Johannesburg and Tshwane, according to Techpoint.Africa. Commercial 5G voice service came to Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Pretoria in May 2020.
Mobile network operators in South Africa, such as MTN, Vodacom, Rain, and Telkom, have already deployed 5G networks to meet the country’s broadband demand, according to Telecom Review Middle East. “At the early stages of 5G network deployment and to address South Africa’s bandwidth deficiency, the currently-assigned bandwidth is set to be increased by over 300 MHz through the recent spectrum auction,” Telecom Review reported. South Africa completed a spectrum auction of 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 2.6 GHz and 3.5 GHz bands for 5G services in March, which required winners to cover up to 80 percent to 97 percent of the population within five years.
5G will bring about digital transformation in industry, according to Telecom Review, such as smart mining or 5G live streaming of African penguins for tourism. Kenya became the second 5G country in March of 2021, as Safaricom launched 5G trials for both individual and enterprise customers in Nairobi, Kisumu, Kisii and Kakamega.
As part of its trial, the company planned to expand the number of such 5G sites to more than 150 across nine towns over the course of last year with speeds of up to 700 Mbps and eventually a gig. Safaricom will deploy 5G as an alternative to fiber to the home and fiber for business services.
In August, Nigeria is expected to be the fourth African country to have 5G with services from MTN and Mafab Communications, which were winners of the 3.5 GHz spectrum auction conducted in December 2021.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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