(Ecofin Agency) - Demand for telecom services is growing in Africa, especially in rural areas. To tap into the opportunity, operators are multiplying their investments. As part of this strategy, MTN South Africa has just announced a new investment of R700 million ($46.4 million) to upgrade its existing network infrastructure and deploy new ones in KwaZulu-Natal.

The initiative includes 4G and 5G expansion and the restoration of vandalized network infrastructure. “The KZN investment forms part of plans to modernize the entire MTN network, 68 percent has already been completed nationally, with an additional 1 350 sites to be finalized, and around 200 top areas covered across South Africa, by the end of 2022,” explained Matthew Khuma, MTN KwaZulu-Natal Operations MD.

As a reminder, MTN has already invested R270 million and R500 million in the region for similar projects in 2020 and 2021 respectively. These investments are in line with the telco’s ambition to bring telecom services to people in the most remote areas of South Africa. “We currently have over 900 active 5G sites across the country. With the aim of closing the digital access gaps in South Africa, our target is to have 20% of the population covered by 2022,” said Matthew Khuma.

Isaac K. Kassouwi