Telecom

Vodafone Group, Ericsson, and A1 Group have successfully established an international standalone (SA) 5G roaming connection—marking a major milestone for seamless cross-border connectivity, especially for business users.

The achievement enabled an A1 Bulgaria customer to access SA 5G data while roaming on Vodafone Germany’s network, using standard devices and commercial 5G core network software based on 3GPP and GSMA standards.

Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core and security edge platforms supported the setup, which enables advanced services like network slicing, AR/VR multi-headset connections at major events, and consistent enterprise connectivity across borders.

Vodafone’s chief network officer, Alberto Ripepi, emphasized the benefits for large-scale events and industrial use cases, while A1’s Todor Tashev called it a “key technological milestone.” Ericsson’s Monica Zethzon noted the significance of the market, with its 5G Core tech now powering over 40 SA 5G networks globally.

The test also confirmed the feasibility of international SA 5G voice roaming.

Source: Mobile World Live

Meta-owned Instagram is ramping up efforts to protect younger users by using AI to verify the ages of teens across the U.S. The new system is designed to detect fake birthdates and ensure that underage users are placed into Teen Accounts, which offer a more secure and age-appropriate online experience.

While Instagram has used AI for age estimation before, this update marks a more proactive approach. If the system suspects a user under 16 is using a false date of birth, it will automatically shift them to a Teen Account with restricted features. These accounts limit interactions with unknown adults, reduce personalized ads, and increase privacy settings by default.

Instagram says it is refining the technology to improve accuracy and avoid misclassifying users, and teens will be able to adjust their settings if an error occurs. The platform also plans to notify parents with tips on how to talk to their teens about using their real age online.

Teen Accounts were first introduced on Instagram in 2024 and have now been rolled out to Facebook and Messenger as of April 8. Meta reports that over 54 million teens have been enrolled so far, with 97% of users aged 13–15 choosing to stay within the protected environment.

Source: Mobile World Live

Cameroon’s Telecommunications Regulatory Board (TRB) is set to recover over $52 million in unpaid license fees and penalties from telecom operators, citing persistent regulatory non-compliance.

The TRB says the move aims to reinforce accountability, ensure adherence to market rules, and promote fair competition. “We are operationalizing the treasury’s preferential right to collect these long-standing debts,” said TRB board chair Justine Diffo after a recent meeting.

While no companies were officially named, industry sources suggest major players like MTN Cameroon, Orange Cameroon, and Camtel could be affected. These operators have previously faced sanctions for issues including poor network quality and incomplete SIM registrations.

The debt recovery initiative aligns with broader government efforts to improve digital sector governance, address consumer concerns over service quality, and attract greater infrastructure investment.

Source: Extensia

Ethio Telecom is driving a large-scale expansion of digital infrastructure, furthering their vision to be a leading provider of telecom and digital solutions. This expansion embraces the citizens’ rapidly growing demand for communication and digital solutions, supports the community’s sustainable growth and economic benefit, and creates a powerful platform to achieve the country’s digital transformation journey.

Beyond infrastructure construction, Ethio Telecom undertook proactive, study-based regional restructuring aimed at serving customers more closely, enhancing service delivery efficiency and customer experience, and increasing access to rapidly growing digital services. Based on this process and the understanding of the exciting potential market demand of the Southeast region, Ethio Telecom has now made structural adjustments aimed at generating significant economic benefits for both the region and the country.

The existing Southeast Region office, based in Adama, successfully covered a vast territory stretching from Bishoftu to the edge of East Bale, serving numerous towns, woredas, kebeles, and a large population. It effectively oversaw numerous mobile sites, extensive telecom infrastructure, and 128 service centers. Furthermore, the recent undertaking of significant large-scale network expansion and modernization works, including the construction of additional state-of-the-art 4G LTE Advanced network sites, created favorable conditions and wonderful potential for organizing this additional region.

Therefore, in order to better serve the customers, fully utilize the huge telecom and digital infrastructure developed in the area, and provide truly inclusive and efficient service, Ethio Telecom has established a new ‘South South-East’ region.

The new South South-East Region office, based in the welcoming city of Bale Robe, encompasses 3 administrative zones (Bale Zone, East Bale Zone, and part of West Arsi Zone), 29 woredas, 38 towns, and 471 rural kebeles. The new region is well-equipped with numerous mobile and fixed-line service sites deployed through recent large-scale telecom infrastructure expansion projects, service centers designed with accessibility in mind, and a dedicated team of human resources.

The areas administered by the new region boast extensive crop and flower farms, major industrial parks, significant livestock resources, rapidly growing towns, and various attractive tourism destinations. Therefore, this closer connection, combined with equipping the area with technology and digital solutions, will provide a notable boost to stimulating the country’s vibrant digital economy, reaching beyond the region itself.

The successful launch of operations for the South South-East Region office not only enables Ethio Telecom to serve customers closely, providing them with a superior experience, but also helps facilitate faster administrative decisions and streamline operational tasks. Furthermore, through dynamic collaborations with local government institutions, partners, and startups, we look forward to introducing impactful, problem-solving, and lifestyle-modernizing digital solutions and telebirr services for the local community. This commitment ensures inclusive and sustainable economic benefits and plays a vital role in powering the bright future of Digital Ethiopia.

Source: Extensia

The company is seeking to consolidate its position in the rapidly expanding African telecoms market. With this in mind, it has undergone a change of corporate identity in November 2024, affecting its operations in Madagascar, the Comoros, Senegal, Togo, and Tanzania.

Pan-African telecommunications group Axian Telecom plans to invest $82 million in Madagascar, Tanzania, and the Comoros by 2030. This investment is primarily aimed at expanding 4G coverage in these markets to 97% of the population by 2030, while also targeting the addition of 6 million new subscribers.

The investment was announced on Tuesday, March 25, by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). It is part of the Partner2Connect initiative, which mobilizes commitments to universal connectivity and digital development, with a focus on underserved areas and vulnerable populations.

In Madagascar, 4G coverage represented 33.6% of the population, estimated at 31.2 million in 2023, according to the ITU. In Tanzania, this rate was 79% (out of 66.6 million), compared to 94% (out of 850,387) in the Comoros. Also according to the ITU, only 38.1% of the Malagasy population had a mobile phone in 2023, which represents approximately 19.3 million people without access to mobile telephony. Approximately 190,000 Comorians and 17 million Tanzanians also did not use a mobile phone. Furthermore, the World Mobile Association indicates that approximately 40 million Tanzanians did not have access to mobile internet in 2023.

This digital divide represents a strategic opportunity for Axian Telecom in a context of digital transformation marked by growing demand. If forecasts are realized, the addition of 6 million new customers could enable the company to increase service consumption and, in turn, its revenue. 

However, Axian Telecom will face intense competition in these markets. In Madagascar, it competes with Orange and Airtel. In the Comoros, the company competes with the incumbent operator Comores Telecom. In Tanzania, Axian Telecom held a 30% market share as of December 31, 2024, just behind Vodacom’s 31%. The rest of the Tanzanian market is shared between Airtel, Halotel, and the incumbent operator TTCL.

With this ambitious investment, Axian Telecom seeks to become a key player in the African telecom landscape while responding to the challenges related to digital inclusion.

Source: Extensia

In order to bridge the digital gap, the Malawi government is pursuing a project to connect over 500 public facilities in rural areas to the internet.

The Digital Acceleration Malawi Project is a six-year initiative under the Ministry of Information and Digitalisation’s e-government division. It is supported by the World Bank with a grant of $150 million.

The project began in September 2024 for its initial phase, and the Ministry currently holding stakeholder meetings in various parts of the country to bring this project closer to the people and search for places to connect.

According to Ackim Sanuka, senior deputy director for the department, the project focuses on internet connectivity to improve the government’s capacity to provide digital services to the people in all areas, stating that information should be easily accessible with the click of a button rather than physically moving from one office to another.

“We should have a single platform to access the information; we are also looking at extending rural connectivity and secure data hosting, whereby we have a newly constructed national data city in the city of Lilongwe that aims at providing a conducive environment for the safety of these systems,” he explained.

Source: Extensia

In 2025, the Universal Access Fund Management Agency (AGEFAU) plans to allocate 43.35 billion CFA francs ($72.06 million) to improving people’s access to telecommunications services. The institution’s budget was revealed last week during the 9th ordinary session of its board of directors.

“For the year 2025, the Agency will pursue several essential projects, including the extension of telecommunications network coverage, the establishment of universal access centers, as well as health initiatives, such as telemedicine in maternal and neonatal health,” read a press release published on social networks on Thursday, March 13.

These initiatives can help bridge the digital divide in Mali. Indeed, data from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) shows that by 2023, 30% of Mali’s estimated population of around 24 million had no 3G network coverage. For 4G, the coverage gap rises to 47% of the population. In contrast, 2G already covered 100% of the population by 2023. However, the internet penetration rate is estimated at 33.1%, compared to 67.3% for mobile telephony.

However, AGEFAU still faces several obstacles to achieving its goals. The agency cites, in particular, the delay in budget approval, the non-payment of contributions by some telecommunications operators, as well as the security and health challenges facing Mali. By the end of the 2024 fiscal year, only 51% of the set targets had been achieved.

“Precautionary measures were taken following the Auditor General’s report, which highlighted administrative and financial irregularities within the agency. Changes to the general management were made to strengthen governance and ensure more transparent and rigorous management,” the agency said.

Source: Extensia

The Zambian government wants to work with the private sector to strengthen the country’s digital infrastructure, recognizing its crucial role in accelerating technological advancements and driving economic growth. The initiative is expected to improve government services.

Percy Chinyama, National Coordinator of the Smart Zambia Digital Transformation Institute, discussed partnership opportunities in this area with a delegation from Airtel Africa. It was led by Oliver Fortuin, CEO of Airtel Business Africa, and Lindiwe Banda, Chief Business Officer of Airtel Zambia. The government did not specify what infrastructure it plans to partner with the private sector on. However, it could include telecom towers, fibre optics, data centres, etc.

Currently, the United Nations has given a score of 0.5088 out of 1 on the telecom infrastructure index that is part of the e-Government Development Index (EGDI). Furthermore, the government highlights deficits in the national digital infrastructure in the “National Digital Transformation Strategy 2023–2027.”.

These include limited investment in rural areas. This contrasts with a duplication of infrastructure, such as fiber optic networks, observed in urban areas. According to data from the Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA), only 83 of the country’s 116 districts have fiber optic points of presence.

Furthermore, the executive believes that Zambia’s current infrastructure is not suited to emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and the exploitation of big data. For example, most telecom sites are still on 2G, a technology with limited capacities, hampering the development of the digital sector in a rapidly changing technological environment.

Strengthening telecom infrastructure could accelerate Zambia’s digital transformation, with the country scoring 0.5424 out of 1 on the UN e-Government Development Index, ranking 130 out of 193, below the global average of 0.6382. However, low internet adoption remains a barrier to people’s participation in the digital economy. According to the ITU, Zambia’s internet penetration rate was 31.2%, with a population estimated at 20.7 million by the World Bank in 2023.

Source: Agency EcoFin

Moov Africa Gabon, the local subsidiary of Morocco’s Maroc Telecom, was spared a nationalization push that affected many strategic firms in the country.

Speaking at the Mobile World Congress (MWC), Gabon’s minister of digital economy made it clear that “the sector of telecommunications was not concerned by nationalization policies.”

Since Brice Oligui Nguima took power following a coup in the country, he set sights on large companies in the country in a bid to strengthen sovereignty.

Gabon has nationalized Assala Energy and the shares that Vivo Energy held in the Société Gabonaise d’Entreposage des Produits Pétroliers (SGEPP) in a bid to make Gabon a significant player in the hydrocarbons industry.

An economic commission in the country recommended the takeover of telecommunications companies.

So far, Maroc Telecom has evaded the nationalization plan. The company holds a 52% market share in Gabon, while its main competitor, Ariel Gabon, holds 48%.

Source: Extensia