Executive SummaryNorthern Africa is home to some of the most developed telecom markets on the continent and features the world’s fastest growing fixed-line market in Sudan.
All countries in this group except for landlocked Chad have well developed fixed-line infrastructures and direct access to international submarine fibre optic cables, and all but Chad and Libya are among the relatively few African countries offering commercial Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) services.
Morocco has the highest overall teledensity in the region thanks to its booming mobile market.
Maroc Telecom’s highly successful Initial Public Offering (IPO) in November 2004 was 50 times over-subscribed.
Privatisation of the PTOs is on the near-term agenda in Chad and Egypt.Algeria’s liberalisation efforts have resulted in the PTO being converted into a joint stock company in preparation for privatisation, the establishment of an independent regulator and the licensing of three GSM networks.
Despite being one of the wealthiest nations on the continent, its telecom network still requires extension and modernisation to keep up with demand as the country is slowly emerging from economic and political problems that made it difficult to finance these needed improvements.
While the fixed-line network is expanding slowly, the mobile sector has enjoyed extraordinary growth since liberalisation in 2002.
2003 also saw the introduction of ADSL broadband services and the temporary legalisation of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony, a move from which the government retreated in 2004.
Full liberalisation of the telecommunications market is now planned for 2005.Against a backdrop of poverty and years of civil war, drought and famine, Chad lags behind neighbouring countries on almost all communications-related indicators and despite support from the World Bank, private sector investment is urgently needed.
Despite impressive growth, one of the country’s two mobile networks ceased operations in mid-2004 due to an unresolved dispute with the government, but a third licence was awarded in November of the same year.
Other expected developments moving into 2005 include the partial privatisation of the national operator, Sotel Tchad.Although Egypt has suffered an economic slowdown since 2000, the telecom sector has continued to perform consistently well.
Data traffic is growing strongly and demand for both fixed-line and mobile communications is huge.
The privatisation of Telecom Egypt is at an advanced stage of planning.
Egypt has become the largest Internet market and the third largest mobile market in Africa (after South Africa and Morocco).
Extraordinary growth in both the mobile and Internet sectors has been achieved on the basis of privatisation, infrastructure-based competition and the successful implementation of a ‘free Internet’ strategy.
A broadband initiative launched by the government in 2003 aims to increase the number of broadband connections ten-fold within three years and will bring 24Mb/s access to residential households in 2005.Libya is emerging from almost two decades of economic isolation, which contributed to the stagnation of its oil industry and invariably its telecoms sector.
It is now taking steps to introduce more relaxed market policies with a view to attracting foreign participation in key sectors including telecommunications.
Despite having an old style monopoly player for the provision of posts and telecommunications services, its fixed-line network is superior to those in many other African countries.
In sharp contrast, the mobile sub-sector remains underdeveloped with a penetration of around 3% in 2004, but growth has been accelerating in recent years.
Third generation (3G) mobile technology is being installed, and the launch of a second mobile network in September 2004 may bring further stimulus to the market moving into 2005.Morocco’s telecom network is among the largest in Africa with top class facilities and services.
Driven by exceptional growth of the Internet sector since 2003, demand for fixed lines has started to rise again after falling steadily since 2000 when competition was introduced to the mobile market, driving mobile penetration towards the 30% mark at the end of 2004.
Incumbent operator Maroc Telecom was partially privatised in 2001 and highly successfully floated on the Paris and Casablanca stock exchanges in November 2004, being 50 times oversubscribed.
There are plans to auction the country’s second fixed-line concession in 2005, possibly bundled with a third mobile licence.
Full competition exists in the provision of VSATs, data and Internet services, cybercafes, and telecentres.With a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of more than 40% over the past five years, Sudan by far represents the fastest consistently growing fixed telephony market not only in Africa but worldwide, spurred by the discovery of oil in 1997.
Internet usage grew by 250% in 2003 and mobile telephony by a staggering 210% in the first nine months of 2004 alone.
Annual telecommunications investment has skyrocketed from only US$500,000 in 1994 to over US$100 million.
Key developments are the awards of a second mobile licence in October 2003 and a second fixed-line licence in November 2004.
Enormous further potential exists, as market penetration in all segments is still low.
Under a recent peace agreement, the oil-rich south of the country which has been beyond the central government’s control and deprived of development for decades, is now set to establish its own independent telecommunications regime, creating huge new opportunities for service providers and equipment suppliers.Tunisia has one of the most developed telecommunications infrastructures in Northern Africa.
The mobile sector has experienced exceptional growth, especially since a second operator was licensed in 2002.
Third generation (3G) trial systems have been installed and as one of the first countries in Africa, Tunisia saw its first 3G call made in September 2004.
Internet access is available country-wide with a fibre optic backbone and international access via submarine cables, terrestrial and satellite links.
In 2005 the focus will be on expanding broadband services throughout the country.