5G trials are on the way to Algeria and Mexico, according to recent reports, though the uses of 5G being tested will be very different.

A 4G-enabling analogue TV switch-off is almost complete in Cape Verde.

Orange Guinea Sonatel is implementing Alepo’s authentication authorisation and accounting (AAA) platform to digitise its FTTH offering.

The City Council of the Brazilian city of Londrina is again looking to sell its stake in the regional operator Sercomtel after its previous attempt failed.

Bharti Airtel has renewed its agreement with Ericsson to provide pan-India managed network operations.

Brazilian operators TIM Brasil and Vivo (Telefonica Brasil) have revealed the locations in which they will debut their 5G offerings.

SystemOne is using SIMs from Telecom 26 to enable real-time test result communication, timely containment and treatment actions for infectious disease programs in Ghana, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

Telecom Namibia has announced the recent extension of its 3G and 4G mobile services to both urban and rural areas across the country – and there’s much more to come.

Orange has selected Parallel Wireless to extend its coverage across multiple African markets, beginning with the Central African Republic.

To comply with the terms of its freshly renewed operating licence, MTN Uganda must list a 20% stake on the country’s stock exchange within the next two years.

Omantel has selected Ericsson to support the Sultanate’s ongoing 5G radio access network (RAN) deployment plans in a multi-year partnership.

Sri Lanka Telecom is deploying a fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network based on Nokia’s fibre technology.

Qualcomm has acquired a 0.15% stake in Jio Platforms for INR7.3 billion ($97.1 million).

A boost for Latin American digital connectivity may be on the cards with the entry of  global telecoms operator BSO into the Latin American market.

Niger is set to receive funding of US$100 million from the World Bank in order to push digital transformation initiatives.

Armenia’s regulator has cleared Team LLC’s proposed acquisition of Veon’s local unit Beeline.

Following yesterday’s announcement that Zain is offering 5G coverage in all of Saudi Arabia’s regions, we also have 5G coverage news from Brazil and South Africa, although, confusingly, neither country has formally auctioned long-term 5G spectrum yet.

Kenya’s Safaricom has selected Aviat Networks’ WTM 4800 multi-band radio platform for 5G backhaul.

Iraq’s government will allow the country’s operators to renew their licences for a further five years – but with significant conditions attached.

Novator Partners has acquired a majority holding in Colombian operator Avantel for an undisclosed sum.

Zain KSA now offers 5G coverage in all of Saudi Arabia’s regions after expanding its network to Al-Jouf and the Northern Borders.

Cuba’s sole telecoms provider, the state-owned ETECSA (Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba) has claimed via social media that it now has over one million 4G users.

A new era of stratospheric communications has begun, according to Loon, a company that offers a network of what it calls floating cell towers, and that is now providing service to subscribers of Telkom Kenya.

The government of Chad has launched a new initiative aimed at modernising the country’s networks.

The Chennai-Andaman & Nicobar Islands (CANI) submarine cable system project has received clearance from India’s National Board for Wildlife (NBWL).

Saudi Arabia’s stc has completed its due diligence for a possible acquisition of Vodafone Group’s majority holding in Vodafone Egypt.

Bharti Airtel has selected Nokia’s CloudBand-based software products for its VoLTE (Voice over LTE) network in India.

Mexico’s Telcel is reportedly acquiring a 50MHz block of 3.5GHz spectrum from local fixed provider Axtel.