Work on the Middle Eastern segment of the 2Africa Pearls subsea cable system has reportedly stopped due to the war between the US, Israel and Iran as Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) says it’s unsafe to continue operations.

Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison and Safaricom revealed on Friday they have signed an agreement to combine their collective experience in AI and fintech to co-develop better customer experiences within their respective digital ecosystems.

The World Bank Group (WBG) Board of Directors earlier this week approved what is described as a transformative regional initiative that will directly boost job creation in Benin, Liberia and Sierra Leone. It includes a strong focus on digital infrastructure.

ZTE revealed on Thursday it has signed an MoU with Bangladesh telco Grameenphone to collaborate on deploying large language model (LLM) and agentic AI technologies to build autonomous networks.

The Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA) has announced that Botswana and five other Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states have collaborated to substantially reduce and harmonise mobile roaming tariffs in line with the One Network Area (ONA) framework.

Ooredoo Algeria says it has expanded its 5G network to all provinces in the country, well ahead of the government’s rollout schedule, although actual coverage in each province remains limited.

A new system in Kenya will ensure that motorists who commit traffic offences will receive instant notifications on their mobile phones informing them of the violation.

The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has reportedly kicked off a technical audit of Starlink’s Direct-to-Cell (D2C) technology as part of a review of Airtel Kenya’s application to offer the service in the country.

Paymentology, a global issuer-processor, has announced a partnership with Chikwama Pay, a pan-African neobank providing accessible financial services through WhatsApp.

State-owned Uzbektelecom (a.k.a. Uztelecom) revealed on Tuesday it has expanded its 5G network coverage across the country over the past two months as part of its broader infrastructure modernisation programme.

State-owned service provider Libya Telecom & Technology (LTT)and technology giant ZTE Corporation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) establishing a strategic partnership between the two parties.

Cameroon has approved a loan agreement of about US$195 million with the Export-Import Bank of China. The funding will support phase four of the country’s national fibre optic backbone expansion.

Global data centre solutions provider Equinix has announced a renewable energy deal in Brazil with Auren Energia, an energy generator in the country that claims 100% renewable production. The contract is scheduled to begin this year.

Bangladesh telcos reportedly urged the country’s telecoms regulator on Monday to prioritise fuel and energy supplies for telecoms infrastructure to avoid service disruptions as the government takes measures to deal with supply-chain disruptions stemming from the widening conflict between the US, Israel and Iran.

UPDATE: Ethio Telecom says it lined up several vendor deals to modernise its telecoms network at last week’s Mobile World Congress, with agreements with Ericsson and ZTE already signed and others with Huawei and Nokia in the pipeline.

Kenya’s Court of Appeal has set aside a 2020 High Court judgment endorsing the country’s Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act (2018), ruling two sections unconstitutional.

Saudi Arabian telco stc Group announced on Friday it has rolled out the second phase of its ‘New Calling’ initiative with a pilot that enables real-time Arabic–English translation during voice calls using AI.

MTN Zambia announced on Friday it has formed a strategic partnership with LEO satellite operator Starlink to offer its Direct to Cell (D2C) service in the country after a successful field test of the technology.

Turkcell made moves at Mobile World Congress 2026 this week to beef up its planned 5G network, deploy AI in its mobile core and get started on 6G via separate deals with Ericsson and Mavenir.

Axian Telecom, the parent company of pan-African telecom group Yas, says it is partnering with AST SpaceMobile to deliver direct-to-device (D2D) satellite services across Yas’ markets in sub-Saharan Africa.

Liberty Costa Rica commercially launched the first sites of its 5G network across multiple regions on Tuesday using gear from Ericsson, with plans to achieve national coverage before the end of this year.

Ghananian wholesale 4G and 5G operator Next Gen Infraco (NGIC) has finally commenced full commercial operations after several delays, although initial coverage is limited.

Beeline Uzbekistan, Veon’s digital operator in Uzbekistan, and Rakuten Symphony, a subsidiary of Rakuten Group, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at MWC26.

MTN Group has signed a multi-year MoU with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to provide meaningful connectivity and digital inclusion for refugees, internally displaced persons, asylum seekers and host communities across MTN’s African markets.

Cassava Technologies, a global technology leader of African heritage, has announced the launch of its Cassava Cloud Partner (CCP) programme during MWC26.

Pan-African (and formerly Middle Eastern) operator MTN is finally leaving Syria and, it seems, a replacement is already being lined up.

SES, a space solutions company, says it is expanding humanitarian connectivity at the Farchana refugee settlement in Chad.

The GSMA Handset Affordability Coalition signed an MoU with the Africa Group of Six (G6) operators on Tuesday to introduce US$40 entry-level 4G smartphones in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda this year.

Paratus Zambia announced on Tuesday it has deployed fixed wireless access (FWA) technology from US-based Tarana Wireless that it said will deliver fibre-class connectivity to homes and businesses across the country.

Global satellite operator SES announced on Tuesday it is partnering with IoT technology provider Advannotech and other service providers to enable data-driven farming in South Africa.

South African operator Cell C and Odine, a technology partner driving innovation in telecom and enterprise networks, have announced the signing of a proof of concept (PoC) agreement to pioneer artificial intelligence (AI)-driven network quality enhancement technologies.