Senegal’s telecoms regulator called for interested parties to apply for 5G licences as the body prepares the groundwork for the next-generation technology.
CommsUpdate reported companies registered in Senegal could only register interest in providing communications services, said L’Autorite de Regulation des Telecommunications et des Postes (ARTP) in a statement.
Interested parties have until July 1 to request tender documents which detail model specifications and concessions. The final deadline for applications is July 14.
It added the deployment of 5G services is part of the government’s strategy ‘to strengthen very high-speed connectivity and digital use in the country’.
Senegalese operators have been preparing for a 5G launch since 2020. Orange Senegal tested 5G in Dakar in November 2020 in partnership with Huawei and conducted a second trial with Nokia in 2021. The operator opened its first African 5G lab in Senegal in July 2022.
Free Senegal deployed a pilot 5G network in June last year with Ericsson as its vendor partner.