State Telco Ready to Launch 5G

May 7 , 2022


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The state-owned Ethio telecom is to launch a 5G network on May 9, 2022. Executives says they have completed all necessary preparations for the launch, which has been in the making for over a year in partnership with Chinese tech giant Huawei. Ethio telecom has spent at least 41 million dollars on Huawei-powered core systems that would allow for the accommodation of 5G. The launch, which comes as the telecom monopoly prepares for its first taste of competition in the form of Safaricom Ethiopia Plc, would make Ethiopia one of only a handful of African countries to avail a 5G network. Others include South Africa and neighbouring Kenya. The state-owned operator has been expanding its 4G LTE network to urban areas outside of Addis Abeba for the past year, introducing it to 70 urban centres such as Bahir Dar, Adama, Dire Dawa, and Hawassa.


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