Telecom
Ericsson Sees Strong Momentum in Sub-Saharan Africa
A series of contracts in Kenya, South Africa, Madagascar and Benin, among others, highlight Ericsson’s growing footprint in Sub-Saharan Africa as communications service providers move to strengthen their networks and cater to demand for enhanced mobile services. Find out more here.
The momentum reflects the rapid growth of mobile connectivity across the region, as consumer demand for enhanced mobile services continues to grow and forward-thinking communications service providers are already securing their role in this dynamic market.
According to the June edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report, current mobile data traffic in Sub-Saharan Africa is set to grow 12-fold by 2025. Mobile broadband subscriptions are expected to account for 72 percent of all mobile subscriptions in the same year, with LTE subscriptions estimated to triple and top 270 million.
Fadi Pharaon, President of Ericsson Middle East and Africa, says: “Technology brings an unprecedented opportunity to address the challenges of sustainable economic development and improve the livelihood of people in Africa.
The latest data shows that Africa is one of the fastest growing mobile markets and reiterates the need for a more efficient technology, higher data rates and availability of ample spectrum. Mobile and fixed networks are key components of critical national infrastructure to sustain and evolve emerging economies during remote work times.”
Expanding footprint in 2020
A slew of recent wins for Ericsson highlight the company’s growing footprint in the region as service providers strengthen their networks to meet growing demand from consumers and enterprises.
Earlier this year, MTN Benin has extended its long-term relationship with Ericsson to provide world-class managed services, including Network Operations Center, Field Services in Radio, Core and Transmission in Benin. Under the agreement, the future capabilities of efficiencies, automation and data will enable MTN Benin and Ericsson to jointly create a world of predictive operations with focus on customer experience, network quality, performance and automation.
In June of this year, Telma Madagascar switched on its 5G commercial network – powered by Ericsson – to offer subscribers high-speed services enabled by the new generation of mobile connectivity.
At the southern tip of the continent, MTN South Africa went live with commercial 5G in Bloemfontein and Port Elizabeth on June 30. Ericsson was announced as an MTN South Africa vendor in November 2019, to deploy products and solutions spanning its radio access network (RAN) Ericsson Radio System, transport and 5G Core network portfolios. Ericsson will also deploy Ericsson Spectrum Sharing.
In October 2020, Airtel Africa expanded its strategic partnership with Ericsson to enable 4G coverage in Kenya. With Ericsson’s Radio Access Network (RAN) and packet core products for 4G, Airtel subscribers will experience enhanced quality of voice and data.
The network modernization deal, signed in August 2020, is in line with the ‘Kenyan Digital Economy Blueprint Vision 2030’ which aims to provide robust connectivity in rural areas and facilitate e-commerce platforms.
Committed to sustainability
Ericsson has a major focus in supporting sustainability across Africa. In October 2020 it was announced that Ericsson’s IoT Accelerator will power Telenor Connexion’s global connectivity to Wayout’s sustainable water treatment micro-factories starting in East Africa. This will expanding to the Middle East, Asia Pacific and other markets in 2021.
Wayout has engineered plug-and-play micro-factories for local production of clean, filtered water, with minimal environmental footprint. Powered by solar panels, the micro-factories offer an advanced water purification system.
October 2020 also saw Airtel Zambia announce a partnership with Ericsson on a Product Take-Back programme to minimize the potential environmental impact when disposing of decommissioned electrical equipment.
The Product Take-Back programme is part of Ericsson’s sustainability efforts geared towards taking accountability for environmental impacts of all products and services during their lifecycle. The programme ensures that end-of-life material is treated and recycled in an environmentally responsible manner.
Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN) has asked the Court of Appeal to suspend the enforcement of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations, 2025 (DEON Regulations).
WASPAN warned that the implementation before the determination of its appeal could expose telecom value-added service providers to sanctions and disrupt their operations.
Millions of subscribers across the country rely on borrowed airtime to communicate.
Seun Sofoluwe, an Abeokuta, Ogun State resident, said another interruption would have severe consequences for many Nigerians who depend on airtime and data lending services for their daily communication needs.
“A lot of people depend on the services, and it will be very bad for them, especially those who are so reliant on it that they do debt-to-debt servicing,” he said.
Debt-to-debt servicing refers to the practice of repaying an outstanding airtime loan immediately to qualify for another advance, underscoring the extent to which some subscribers depend on the facility to remain connected.
Sofoluwe’s concerns echo the experience of Lagos-based employee Farouk Rabiu, who recounted the hardship caused by the six-month suspension of airtime lending services before they were restored.
“I was devastated because, after exhausting my data, I was hoping to borrow credit to access my bank account. Instead, it was a major disappointment,” Rabiu had said after the services resumed.
Adding another dimension to the debate, Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), said the earlier disruption showed that airtime credit had evolved far beyond a conventional telecommunications offering.
“What this episode demonstrated is that airtime credit is not a financial product in the way regulators initially characterised it. It is economic infrastructure that approximately 40 million people use regularly, with the vast majority of them at the base of the economy,” Adebayo said.
WASPAN, which represents licensed value-added service providers, has asked the Court of Appeal to restrain the FCCPC from enforcing the DEON Regulations pending the hearing of its appeal against the July 20 judgment of the Federal High Court in Lagos.
The association argued that immediate enforcement would expose operators to sanctions, create regulatory uncertainty and disrupt telecom-enabled services, including airtime credit and data advances, used daily by millions of Nigerians.
The FCCPC, however, has defended the resumption of enforcement, insisting the regulations are intended to sanitise the digital lending industry, curb predatory debt recovery practices, protect consumer data and eliminate illegal digital lenders.
The Court of Appeal is expected to determine whether enforcement of the regulations should remain suspended while it considers WASPAN’s appeal, a decision that could shape the future of telecom-based digital lending services and determine whether subscribers continue to enjoy uninterrupted access to airtime and data credit.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) have entered into a partnership to deploy renewable energy solutions for telecommunications infrastructure in rural and underserved communities, a move expected to reduce operators’ energy costs and improve network availability.
Abraham Oshadami, executive commissioner for Technical Services at the NCC, disclosed this during the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Abuja.
According to Oshadami, the NCC-REA Stakeholder Forum and MoU signing ceremony will enable telecom base stations located near mini-grids to access cleaner and more affordable electricity, reducing their reliance on diesel-powered generators.
He said the agreement came at a time when telecom operators are facing rising operational costs due to increased spending on diesel to power network sites amid unreliable electricity supply from the national grid.
The partnership reflects the growing relationship between the power and telecommunications sectors, as both rely on each other to deliver essential services.
Oshadami explained that while telecom infrastructure requires a steady power supply to remain operational, digital connectivity also supports electricity services such as smart metering, electronic payments and remote customer management.
According to him, the collaboration is aimed at improving access to reliable electricity and telecommunications services, particularly in remote communities where inadequate power supply has slowed digital inclusion.
He said both agencies had identified telecom base stations located within one to two kilometres of existing mini-grids, allowing the implementation of the initiative to begin immediately.
“Where mini-grids exist, we are able to identify nearby base stations and connect them to those power sources,” Oshadami said.
He added that future mini-grid projects would be planned with telecommunications infrastructure in mind, ensuring that electricity investments also support the expansion of digital services.
Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, Dr Aminu Maida and the Executive Commissioner Stakeholder Management, NCC, Barr. Rimini Makama, congratulating Engr. Kezias Kazuba Mwale of Zambia (middle) as the newly elected Secretary General of the African Telecommunications Union, ATU, at the 7th Ordinary Session of the ATU Conference of Plenipotentiaries held in Abuja, Nigeria on 24th July 2026.
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