On Monday, state-owned telecoms Ethio Telecoms announced that it had piloted 5G tests across the country’s capital, Addis Ababa. Ethio Telecoms in a partnership with Chinese firm Huawei Technologies, will be the first to pilot the US$40 million project.
Similar to other countries that have launched 5G, Ethiopia’s launch is only available in select locations in Addis for now as the telecoms is still testing the spectrum.
“The 5G service is launched in selected places in Addis Ababa. In the coming 12 months, we will have 150 5G sites in Addis Ababa and in major cities outside the capital,” said Frehiwot Tamru, CEO of Ethio Telecoms.
5G in Africa
Ethiopia is not the first country to roll out 5G.
Globally, at least 81 countries—outside Africa—have 5G available in certain regions. In Africa, at least 18 countries are testing out 5G or have plans to launch it, and 6 countries—South Africa, Kenya, Mauritius, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Seychelles—have launched 5G. Ethiopia will be the seventh.
And Nigeria may be 8th. After running tests, both MTN and Mafab—having recently acquired their operating licenses—announced that 5G rollout in Nigeria will kick off in August 2022.
