Telecommunication systems: general assessment:
penetration rates below African average; competition among mobile service providers has spurred recent growth in the mobile market and reduced consumer costs; 3G and LTE services available; fiber backbone connects major cities with wireless networks upgraded to LTE; government committed to free WiFi hotspots to ensure universal access; telecom service tax raised to 10%; investment in submarine cable to South Africa and Mauritius; importer of broadcasting and video equipment from China (2021)
(2020)domestic: less than 1 per 100 for fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity about 41 per 100 persons (2019)
international: country code - 261; landing points for the EASSy, METISS, and LION fiber-optic submarine cable systems connecting to numerous Indian Ocean Islands, South Africa, and Eastern African countries; satellite earth stations - 2 (1 Intelsat - Indian Ocean, 1 Intersputnik - Atlantic Ocean region) (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
Definition: This entry includes a brief general assessment of a country's telecommunications system with details on the domestic and international components. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
Source: CIA World Factbook - This page was last updated on Saturday, September 18, 2021
