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Kazakhstan has one of the most developed telecommunications sectors in the Central Asian region. This is especially true of the mobile segment, where widespread network coverage has enabled very high penetration rates – reaching 180% as far back as 2012.

Pakistan continues to lag most other Asian countries in terms of the maturity of its telecom sector. This is partly due to the poor state of its fixed-line network following years of under-investment and neglect by the state-owned incumbent telco Pakistan Telecommunication Company (PTC), with teledensity now down to almost 1%.

Kuwait’s telecom infrastructure is well developed, with a focus on mobile infrastructure and services. The telecoms sector is important to the country’s economy, and this will become more pronounced in coming years as the economy is purposefully transitioned away from a dependence on oil and gas to one which is increasingly knowledge-based and focussed on ICT and related services.

The nation of Tajikistan has had to struggle through a further two years of economic hardship following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. This has included receiving millions of dollars in foreign aid and loans just to maintain liquidity in a country that is already one of the most impoverished in the region.

Algeria has a steadily developing telecom infrastructure with growth encouraged by sympathetic regulatory measures and by government policies aimed at delivering serviceable internet connections across the country.

South Africa’s telecom sector boasts one of the most advanced infrastructures on the continent. There has been considerable investment from Telkom, Liquid Intelligence Technologies, Broadband InfraCo, and municipal providers as well as from mobile network operators all aimed at improving network capabilities.

Benin’s telecom market continues to be restricted by the poor condition of the country’s fixed-line infrastructure. This has in turn hampered the development of fixed-line voice and internet services, and as a result there is negligible revenue derived from these sectors.

Kenya’s telecom market continues to undergo considerable changes in the wake of increased competition, improved international connectivity, and rapid developments in the mobile market.

Somalia’s economic difficulties in recent years have made it difficult for telcos and the government to sustain investment in infrastructure. The government has also had to contend with militant groups which continue on occasion to force the closure of internet services in many areas of the country.

Burkina Faso’s telecom sector in recent years has made some gains in providing the necessary infrastructure and bandwidth to support telecom services.