Kenya will be launching its first software-defined nanosatellite later this year, according to the two companies behind the development and launch of the satellite.

In a major deal anounced this week, Eutelsat Communications has been selected by Intersat to help deliver internet connectivity for three countries in West Africa.

Infobip has implemented a WhatsApp-based chat banking solution for fintech start-up Afridig Wallets.

After a few months during which South Africa’s operators have had a number of reported disagreements with each other or the South Africa regulator, MTN, Vodacom, Telkom, Cell C and Liquid Intelligent Technologies have now joined forces in a common cause: to take on criminals.

The finance ministry of Chad has decreed that equipment related to telecom and internet services, including network equipment, devices, modems and routers, are exempt from import duties and taxes for the next five years.

Will South Africa’s next spectrum auction now go ahead on 8 March as planned? A compromise gesture on the part of operator Telkom, whose court proceedings threatened to derail the process, implies that it may.

Effective regulatory reform has made Botswana’s telecom market one of the most liberalised in the region. There is a service-neutral licensing regime adapted to the convergence of technologies and services, and several operators now compete in all telecom sectors.

Poa Internet, an internet service provider that connects underserved communities in Kenya, has announced the first close of a $28 million financing round led by infrastructure investment platform Africa50.

South African giant Vodacom Group’s bid for a controlling stake in Vodafone Egypt is set to proceed after the operator received shareholder backing.

Liberia’s state-owned mobile provider has received a rebrand as it prepares to launch its new GSM network.

Kenya’s telecom market continues to undergo considerable changes in the wake of increased competition, improved international connectivity, and rapid developments in the mobile market.

Somalia’s economic difficulties in recent years have made it difficult for telcos and the government to sustain investment in infrastructure. The government has also had to contend with militant groups which continue on occasion to force the closure of internet services in many areas of the country.

South Africa’s telecom sector boasts one of the most advanced infrastructures on the continent. There has been considerable investment from Telkom, Liquid Intelligence Technologies, Broadband InfraCo, and municipal providers as well as from mobile network operators all aimed at improving network capabilities.

Benin’s telecom market continues to be restricted by the poor condition of the country’s fixed-line infrastructure. This has in turn hampered the development of fixed-line voice and internet services, and as a result there is negligible revenue derived from these sectors.

Burkina Faso’s telecom sector in recent years has made some gains in providing the necessary infrastructure and bandwidth to support telecom services.

Cabo Verde Telecom (CVT) has signed a new 20-year concession to continue delivering telecommunications services in Cape Verde.

Orange has signed an EaaS (Energy as a Service) contract with Engie to convert its main African data centre to solar power.

There’s been no let-up in 5G activity lately, with Zambia’s MTN announcing the country’s first 5G launch and Telia highlighting a dynamic spectrum sharing-based 5G launch now underway in Lithuania.

HMN Tech, a provider of turnkey submarine network solutions, has announced that it has completed the marine deployment of the Senegal Horn of Africa Regional Express (SHARE) submarine cable system, with landfalls in both Senegal and Cape Verde.

No sooner has number three South African operator Telkom tried to stop the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) from holding a spectrum auction in March than the number one operator has got involved – on ICASA’s side.

Multinational operator Airtel Africa has confirmed what is referred to as the first closing of the transaction to sell its telecoms tower assets in Tanzania for some $176.1 million.

The wait for 5G rollout and expansion of 4G capacity in South Africa may now go on even longer thanks to efforts by operator Telkom to delay the spectrum auction due to happen in March.

The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) and two of the country’s operators, Airtel Kenya and Telkom Kenya, have joined in the controversy over a case involving mobile termination rates (MTR) – the charges levied by a mobile service provider on other telecommunications service providers for terminating calls in its network.

The Ghana Smart Cities Project has been given an official go-ahead after last year’s provisional authorization.

Although Nigeria’s NIN enrolments are now said to have reached 71 million, the country’s government evidently feels not enough Nigerians have linked their National Identification Number (NIN) to their Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) and has approved a further extension of the deadline for the exercise to 31 March this year.

Tanzania’s telecom sector enjoys effective competition, particularly in the mobile segment. There remains considerable movement within it, with Smart having stopped services in late 2019 and Tigo Tanzania having completed its merger with Zantel. Tigo Tanzania in April 2021 was sold by its parent company MIC as it sought to focus on its operations in Latin America.

Following elections held in August 2021, Zambia's new government immediately established a Ministry of Technology and Science to promote the use of ICT in developing economic growth and social inclusion. This focus on ICT, and on telecoms in particular, has been central to government strategies for some years.

Until late 2020, Lesotho’s telecom regulator maintained a market duopoly between the privatised national operator, Econet Telecom Lesotho (ETL), which is focussed on fixed-line services, and Vodacom Lesotho, which dominates the mobile sector.