Significant improvements are planned for Lebanon's fixed network, according to Lebanon's new telecoms minister Jamal Jarrah.

Mobile services are widely available in Iran, with services on offer from three major mobile network operators - MCI, MTN Irancell and Rightel - which are able to offer services on a national basis.

The market is highly competitive with the three major operators - Zain, Orange and Umniah - all having over 30% market share each in terms of mobile subscribers.

The fixed line market in Nepal remains underdeveloped, with the dominance of the mobile segment a key factor in this.

Senegal's economic growth has improved steadily in recent years, with GDP estimated to have grown 5.1% in 2015.

There are many positive developments occurring in the liberalised telecoms market of Bahrain, according to Research & Markets.

For many years Uzbekistan has been struggling to bring its telecommunications system up to the standard found in developed countries.

The ICT sector in Cameroon contributes only about 3.5% of GDP, which is low for the region.

The focus of fixed broadband network deployment has firmly shifted to fibre in Qatar, with the number of DSL connections declining by around 100,000 since they reached their peak in 2011.

Kuwait’s Zain has partnered with Towershare in a deal to sell and lease back its local mobile towers to IHS Holding Limited for US$165 million.

Omantel has signalled its aim to acquire a further 12% holding in Zain Group by signing a letter of intent with Zain shareholder Al Khair National for Stocks and Real Estate (Al Khair).

Tata Teleservices is being shuttered by its parent company Tata Sons, with regional unit chiefs told that operations will be closed by March 2018.

Two of India’s Big Three have filed a legal challenge against the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s decision to significantly reduce interconnect charges ahead of scrapping them altogether.

Pakistan's telecom market has been struggling for a long time with the transition from a regulated state-owned monopoly to a deregulated competitive structure, according to Research & Markets.

Chilean regulator Subtel has begun a public consultation over whether MVNOs should receive lower wholesale rates from network operators to allow them to compete more effectively.

Caribbean telecoms provider Cable & Wireless Communications (C&W) has begun the successful restoration of mobile services to Dominica.

9mobile’s thirteen bank creditors are working together to enable a sale of the operator by the end of the year.

The Ghanaian subsidiaries of Millicom and Airtel are on course to merge, with the proposal receiving conditional approval from the country’s National Communications Authority (NCA).

The UN has confirmed that hundreds of families affected by last month’s deadly mudslide on the peripheries of Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown are receiving aid in the form of mobile money.

Ericsson has initiated legal proceedings against Indian operator Reliance Communications (RCom), claiming that it is owed more than INR11.56 billion ($180 million) by the group and its subsidiaries.