National regulator the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has determined a new international termination rate (ITR) for voice services paid by overseas telecom carriers for terminating international calls on local networks in Nigeria. It is to be set at $0.045.

Reliance Jio added 1.7 million wireless subscribers in October, while rivals Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea (Vi) lost subscribers.

Tele2 AB, a mobile network operator (MNO) in Latvia, has secured a crucial spectrum in the Latvian 700 MHz spectrum auction.

Despite the ongoing uncertainty caused by the conflict in that country, the second operator in Ethiopia is still making plans for next year’s launch, most recently with news of the mobile number prefix it plans to employ.

The Czech Telecommunication Office (Cesky telekomunikacni urad, CTU) has extended the allocation of frequencies to operators in the 2100 MHz band for another 20 years.

Indian telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Friday said it has paid INR 15,519 crore (GBP 1.5bn) to the government towards prepayment of its entire deferred liability of spectrum acquired in the 2014 auction.

Afghanistan’s government – which has been controlled by the Taliban since August - has revealed plans for an extensive restructure of state bodies relating to telecommunications.

India’s operators are bracing themselves for yet another delay in the 5G spectrum auction process.

Estonia looks set to offer three licences for 5G-ready 3.5GHz spectrum at auction in the first quarter of next year.

Brazilian telecommunications operator Algar Telecom has launched a commercial Non-Standalone (NSA) 5G service using its newly acquired 2.3GHz spectrum.

Indonesian digital telco PT Indosat Tbk (Indosat Ooredoo) announced the launch of 5G commercial services in Balikpapan.

Indian multinational telecommunications services company Bharti Airtel (Airtel) has announced the roll-out of Avanseus’ predictive maintenance (PdM) solution across its operations.

Ooredoo’s flurry of recent agreements continues. As well as an FWA agreement with Nokia and a payment technology agreement with i2c, the international communications company operating across the Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia recently announced a massive group-wide deal with Huawei.

Telekom Srbija is to receive a €70 million ($79.4 million) loan from the EU’s European Investment Bank (EIB) for the rollout of a 5G telecommunications network and the extension of the existing 4G network across the Republic of Serbia.

Angolan telecom sector regulator INACOM may announce this year the granting of the first license to operate with 5G, reports the local daily Expansao.

Telkom Kenya, is an integrated telecommunications provider in the East African country, and Britam Holding, the financial services firm listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, have partnered to bring a mobile-based insurance solution that will see customers benefit from a bespoke mobile and insurance bundle that includes mobile data, voice minutes, SMS, personal accident and last-expense insurance.

“Transformational weather intelligence for resilient agriculture to Africa.” That’s the promise of TomorrowNow.org, a global non-profit helping vulnerable communities adapt to climate change, which has been awarded a $2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

China's largest wireless carrier by revenue, China Mobile Communications Group Co., Ltd has received the green light from Beijing regulators for what is shaping up to be the largest IPO in Shanghai in more than a decade.

Zain Jordan, part of Zain Telecom Group, announced a 15-year agreement to sell and lease back the passive physical infrastructure of its 2,607 towers in Jordan to TASC Towers for USD 88 million.

Samsung Electronics and the Vietnamese multinational telecommunications company Viettel announced that the companies have started 5G commercial trials in Da Nang, the largest city in the Central Vietnam region.

Employees of Lebanon’s two state-owned mobile operators Alfa and Touch commenced a strike yesterday (13^th December).

Russia's biggest mobile operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) has agreed to purchase compatriot developer of face recognition systems VisionLabs for around RUB7 billion ($95 million) through a subsidiary set up to develop, launch and market compatible products globally.

Indian telecom operator Vi (formerly Vodafone Idea) announced its partnership with Hungama Music to launch premium music streaming offering through the dedicated Vi app.

Cassava Technologies, which describes itself as Africa’s first integrated tech company, has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Mitsui, one of Japan’s largest global conglomerates.

Telenor Pakistan has signed the GSM licence renewal template created by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) “under protest and without prejudice” to maintain continuity of its services.

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) seems to have made a final decision on the licensing of 4G and 5G radio frequency spectrum with the publication of a new invitation to apply (ITA) to the industry late last week.

A parliamentary commission has called for the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo to abolish a tax on mobile devices.

Senegalese regulator ARTP (L’Autorite de Regulation des Telecommunications et des Postes / Regulation Authority for Telecommunications and Posts) has fined the country’s three mobile providers a total of XOF20.284 billion (US$35 million).

Qatari multinational telecommunications company Ooredoo Group has received a delegation of senior representatives of its partner, the Chinese partially state-owned technology company ZTE Corporation to sign an extension of their existing partnership.

The Human Rights Division of Ghana's High Court presided over by Barbara Tettey –Charway has struck out the application for an interlocutory injunction to halt the ongoing registration of SIM Cards.

Poland’s regulator UKE (Urzad Komunikacji Elektronicznej / Office of Electronic Communications) has confirmed its reallocation plans for the 2100MHz band.