Telecom

Africa’s cross-border payments market is projected to grow from $329 billion to $1 trillion by 2035, according to a new report by venture capital firm Oui Capital. The growth—driven by increased digital adoption, mobile money use, and intra-African trade—is fueled by a 12% compound annual growth rate.

Despite this momentum, the report flags major inefficiencies such as legacy payment infrastructure, double currency conversions, and fragmented regulations, which result in high remittance costs averaging 7–8%, the highest globally.

Mobile money now plays a critical role, accounting for 30% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s remittance flows. In 2022, the continent handled 66% of global mobile money transaction value, reflecting a major shift from informal to formal financial channels.

Oui Capital identifies over $10 billion in opportunities tied to infrastructure upgrades, including interoperable APIs, decentralised FX liquidity, and regional systems like the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS). PAPSS is helping reduce dependency on USD/EUR clearing, which adds about $5 billion annually to transaction costs.

Cryptocurrencies and Stablecoins are also gaining traction, lowering remittance fees by up to 60% in well-regulated markets. Meanwhile, fintech APIs have pushed fees down to 1.5–3%.

However, limited regulatory readiness remains a barrier—only 55% of African countries support full electronic KYC, constraining the scalability of fintech innovations.

The report urges founders to look beyond simple transfers by integrating services like lending and insurance, concluding, “Africa’s payments race is now a scale game. Those that solve for liquidity, compliance, and cost will define the continent’s digital trade backbone over the next decade.”

Source: Extensia.tech

Burkina Faso has set an ambitious target to achieve national broadband coverage by 2030, as part of its broader digital transformation agenda. The government’s strategy aims to expand access to telecom services and strengthen the country’s digital economy across sectors such as education, health, trade, agriculture, and public administration.

Unveiling the plan at the World Bank Group’s Private Sector Forum on May 27, Aminata Zerbo/Sabane, Minister of Digital Transition, outlined a five-point strategy: promoting infrastructure sharing, eliminating coverage dead zones, reinforcing the national backbone, deploying fiber to homes, and increasing infrastructure investment.

While broadband is seen as a foundation for digital growth, Burkina Faso faces challenges. As of 2022, only 58% of the population had 3G access, and 39.4% had 4G, while 2G covered 92.6%. The UN’s 2024 telecom infrastructure index scored the country at 0.3640 out of 1, and the ITU ranked it 43rd out of 47 African nations in ICT development.

The government acknowledges that achieving meaningful connectivity also requires affordable devices, digital literacy, and accessible services.

Source: EcoFin Agency

The Ministry of Technology and Science, in partnership with the Zambia Information and Communications Authority (ZICTA), has commissioned a new communication tower in Kalunkumya village, Mpongwe District. The initiative aims to enhance network coverage and drive digital inclusion in rural Zambia.

According to the Ministry, the new infrastructure is expected to stimulate local economic activity, improve emergency communication, and support mobile banking and other e-payment services.

“We are not only connecting people, but also their aspirations, knowledge, and future opportunities,” said Technology and Science Minister Felix Mutati. He emphasized that connectivity in Mpongwe—an important agricultural zone—will enable access to market information, digital extension services, and improve transparency in government programmes like the Farmer Input Support Programme and social cash transfers.

ZICTA Director General Collins Mbulo highlighted the tower as part of a broader strategy to bridge the digital divide. “We are investing in a sustainable ecosystem of digital inclusion—one that also addresses the need for devices, digital literacy, and online safety,” he noted, adding that ZICTA is working closely with the Ministry of Education to support initiatives such as the digital curriculum.

Source: Extensia.tech

Safaricom has announced a major upgrade to its flagship mobile money platform, M-PESA, backed by a $300 million (Ksh40 billion) investment. The project—dubbed M-PESA 2.0—aims to significantly improve system stability, expand transaction capacity, and enhance user experience across Africa.

Safaricom Group CEO Peter Ndengwa described the upgrade as “the next big leap” in M-PESA’s evolution, promising zero downtime for customers once fully implemented. He underscored the company’s commitment to safety and cybersecurity, highlighting ongoing efforts to stay ahead of fraudsters and cyber threats. “We’ve put strong guardrails in place, and ethical hackers are constantly testing our systems. We’re building resilience so customers can trust our services every day,” Ndengwa said.

The announcement comes as M-PESA celebrates its 18th anniversary. Since launching in 2007, the platform has grown into Africa’s most successful fintech solution, with over 70 million users in more than 170 countries. It supports over one million businesses and agents across key markets, including Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, DRC, Lesotho, Ghana, and Egypt.

M-PESA currently handles around 100 million transactions daily, with a processing capacity of 4,000 transactions per second. Its open API platform, Daraja, supports over 55,000 integrations and is home to more than 100,000 developers, fostering a vibrant innovation ecosystem.

The M-PESA 2.0 upgrade is designed to scale the platform for future growth, support the rollout of new digital services, and ensure continued reliability in a rapidly evolving digital economy.

Source: Extensia

Twenty-one instructors from Egypt’s National Telecommunications Institute (NTI) have earned international certification after completing a “Train the Trainers” program led by India’s Tejas Networks, a global leader in networking technologies.

The program, part of Egypt–India telecom cooperation and backed by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, focused on advanced networking and fiber optics, aiming to develop highly skilled local technical talent.

Dr. Ahmed Khattab, NTI Director, announced that the initiative sets the stage for the launch of Egypt’s first Tejas Academy at NTI—joining a network of 12 international academies. The academy will train and certify engineers in networking and fiber optics and offer technical support to boost employment and expertise in the telecom sector.

NTI continues to serve as a national hub for ICT training, research, and consultancy, contributing to Egypt’s digital capacity-building strategy.

Source: Extensia

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