The telecommunications sector in Bahrain is robust and progressive and it contributes about 4% a year to the Kingdom's GDP, reports Research & Markets.

Will 5G growth continue – and eventually boost the pandemic-hit profits of Chinese operators? It’s a pertinent question in the light of first quarter figures from the country’s big three operators.

The adjusted gross revenue story is back in the news in India as Vodafone Idea has asked the government for more time to pay its AGR-based dues for the January-March 2020 period.

We now not only know that the South African regulator has released emergency spectrum to a number of service providers, as requested by the government, but we also know who those service providers are.

A lengthening list of countries putting off the auction of 5G spectrum just got longer as Poland announced plans to delay the process.

The Slovakian regulator – the Office for Regulation of Electronic Communications and Postal Services (also known as Regulacny Urad or RU) – has announced that it will be going ahead with an auction of 5G-capable spectrum.

South Africa recently announced the allocation of extra spectrum on a temporary basis to operators facing high demand during the lockdown. Now it's Ghana’s turn.

The launch of the Philippines new third player DITO (formerly Mislatel) is “on track” in spite of the Covid-19 pandemic.

South African operator Vodacom is to spend more than $27 million to add network capacity during the lockdown that is in place while the country tries to manage the spread of the coronavirus.

Ncell has paid off the full NPR22.44 billion (US$182 million) capital gains tax (CGT) bill that it was issued by Nepal’s tax authority.

Restrictions on movement due to the coronavirus are not just affecting bandwidth demand and base station rollout in India. Now telecommunications tower companies are looking for guarantees of uninterrupted power supply for the duration of the lockdown.

It will come as no surprise in the circumstances that the South African regulator ICASA has received an enthusiastic response to its offer of temporary spectrum.

Magyar Telekom, Hungary’s biggest telecommunications company, and Ericsson have launched commercial 5G in Hungary.

Croatia’s Optima Telekom is delaying a stake sale originally scheduled for this year, even if it is able to find a buyer.

There has been another regulatory shift in India as the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has adjusted its stance on infrastructure installation in response to industry requests. The DoT is also being asked to intervene in the ongoing debt issues facing two state-owned operators.

United Group has been cleared by the European Commission to acquire Bulgarian operator Vivacom.

Kiev’s District Administrative Court has suspended the decision to cancel the licence of CDMA operator Intertelecom.

The government of Niger has announced the award of a 4G licence to operator Zamani Com.

While many other issues face Indian telecoms at the moment, ongoing questions of debt dating back well before this year are still in the news for Bharti Airtel and MTNL.

The South African government’s request to the country’s communications regulator to issue additional spectrum to operators, reported here recently, has now been taken up by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA).

Regional press outlets have announced the launch by the Abu Dhabi Digital Authority (ADDA) of its Abu Dhabi Connect initiative to fast-track digitisation of government services in the Emirate.

Digicel Group has issued a new restructuring plan intended to cut its debt burden by as much as US$1.7 billion.

Slovakia’s regulatory office has opened applications for its upcoming auction of 5G-ready spectrum, including frequencies in the 700MHz, 900MHz and 1800MHz bands.

Japanese operator NTT Docomo is selling its 6.3% stake in Robi Axiata to Bharti International, marking its full exit from the Bangladeshi market.

While more usage of mobile phones may be expected during the Indian lockdown, subscriber acquisitions have not improved. The Indian telecommunications industry has recorded a sharp fall in new subscriber acquisitions during March.

Telefonica’s Latin American subsidiary has presented a new buyout offer to minority shareholders in its Peruvian operation.