Airtel Tanzania, the mobile telecommunications operator, has launched its 5G mobile network. Currently, this network is available in specific areas and accessible to subscribers with compatible smartphones or dedicated routers.
This commercial deployment of Airtel Tanzania's 5G network comes about ten months after its parent company, Airtel Africa, acquired an additional 140 MHz of telecom frequencies from the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) for $60.1 million. The company had expressed its intention to use these resources to expand the coverage of its existing network and introduce 5G.
Airtel becomes the third operator to offer commercial ultra-high-speed connectivity, following Vodacom Tanzania and Tigo, which launched this latest generation of mobile technology in September 2022 and February 2023, respectively.
The introduction of 5G services is expected to fortify Airtel Tanzania's position in the national telecommunications market by intensifying competition in the Internet sector. This development comes at a time when the demand for high-speed connectivity and digital transformation is continuously increasing.
According to recent TCRA statistics, Airtel holds 27% of the Tanzanian mobile telephony market, which encompasses 64.1 million subscribers. Its competitors, TTCL, Halotel, Tigo and Vodacom, control 3%, 13%, 27% and 30%, respectively, of the total number of mobile telephony subscribers in the country.
