subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: less than 1 (2019 est.)
total subscriptions: 8,394
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: less than 1 (2019 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellular
total subscriptions: 6,729,804
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 103.77 (2019 est.)
total subscriptions: 2,793,316
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 56.57 (2019 est.)
Internet country code
.sl
.lr
Internet users
total: 568,099
percent of population: 9% (July 2018 est.)
total: 383,819
percent of population: 7.98% (July 2018 est.)
Telecommunication systems
general assessment:
telecom sector is recovering from the decades of war, yet still constrained by inadequate power and pervasive corruption; recently installed terrestrial fiber backbone infrastructure; telephone service improving with the rapid growth of mobile sector; operators increased investment to provide national coverage; LTE available in some parts of the country; construction of 600 km ECOWAS Wide Area Network completed; fiber link to Guinea completed; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2021)
(2020)
domestic: fixed-line less than 1 per 100 and mobile-cellular 86 per 100 (2019)
international: country code - 232; landing point for the ACE submarine cable linking to South Africa, over 20 western African countries and Europe; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments
general assessment:
due to history of civil war and ruin of infrastructure, almost entirely wireless telecom market; good competition for mobile services; high cost and limited bandwidth means Internet access is low; additional investment needed for increased submarine cable access; progress in creating an attractive business-friendly environment is hampered by a weak regulatory environment, corruption, lack of transparency, poor infrastructure, and low private sector capacity; rural areas have little access; fixed-line service is stagnant and extremely limited; operators introducing e-commerce; importer of broadcast equipment from China (2021)
(2020)
domestic: fixed-line less than 1 per 100; mobile-cellular subscription base growing and teledensity approached 57 per 100 persons (2019)
international: country code - 231; landing point for the ACE submarine cable linking 20 West African countries and Europe; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments
Broadcast media
1 government-owned TV station; 3 private TV stations; a pay-TV service began operations in late 2007; 1 government-owned national radio station; about two-dozen private radio stations primarily clustered in major cities; transmissions of several international broadcasters are available
(2019)
8 private and 1 government-owned TV station; satellite TV service available; 1 state-owned radio station; approximately 20 independent radio stations broadcasting in Monrovia, with approximately 80 more local stations operating in other areas; transmissions of 4 international (including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Radio France Internationale) broadcasters are available (2019)
