This report provides a comprehensive overview of trends and developments in Zimbabwe's telecommunications market. The report analyses the fixed-line, mobile and broadband sectors.
Revenue from Zimbabwe's telecom sector has come under pressure from a number of recent regulatory measures and taxes imposed by the cash-strapped government. Nevertheless, the sector shows some promise for the coming years, particularly from the mobile segment where active mobile penetration has increased rapidly, reaching 93% by early 2019. The three mobile network operators Econet Wireless, NetOne and Telecel Zimbabwe continue to invest in network upgrades to support data services and their fast-expanding m-commerce and m-banking facilities.
The government in April 2019 outlined its plans to merge TelOne and NetOne and sell off a majority stake in the operator as part of a wider plan to offset state debt.
Limitations in international bandwidth for the landlocked country for many years held back the development of the internet and broadband sectors, but this has changed since fibre optic links to several submarine cables were established via neighbouring territories. The expansion of 3G and LTE-based mobile broadband services have meant that more than half of the population now has access to the internet. Investment in fixed broadband infrastructure has also resulted in a slow but steady growth in the number of DSL connections, as also in fibre subscriptions.
Key Developments:
Telcos agree to the government's infrastructure sharing policy
TelOne providing satellite broadband with Avanti Communications
The government enforces m-money interoperability on MNOs, changes m-money tax basis
NetOne refreshes m-money service
Regulator confirms no room for a fourth mobile licensee
Regulator drafts framework on MVNO licences
Government begins $250 million investment to build 500 mobile towers to serve rural areas
Econet expands m-commerce
Government considers merging TelOne with NetOne and selling a majority stake in the two
Draft legislation issued to repeal Post and Telecommunications Act
Regulator proposes to create a new Virtual Network Operator (VNO) license category
Report update includes the regulator's market data to December 2018, telcos' operating and financial data to August 2018, Telecom Maturity Index charts and analyses, recent market developments
Key Topics Covered:
1. Key statistics
Country overview
2. Telecommunications market
Historical overview
Market analysis
Regional Africa Market Comparison
TMI vs GDP
Mobile and mobile broadband
Fixed and mobile broadband
3. Regulatory environment
Sector Reform Policy 1996
Posts and Telecommunications Act 2000
Telecom sector liberalisation
SNO licence
Privatisation
Regulatory authority
Licence fees
ICT Strategy 2010
ICT Strategy 2015
National Policy for ICT Act 2016
International gateways, interconnection
Value-added tax (VAT)
Universal Service Fund (USF)
Subscriber registration
Infrastructure sharing
Converged Licensing Framework (CLF)
4. Fixed network operators
TelOne
Fixed-line infrastructure
Wireless Local Loop (WLL)
National fibre backbone
TeleAccess Zimbabwe
Afritell
5. Telecommunications infrastructure
Overview of the national telecom network
Smart grid infrastructure
International infrastructure
TelOne
Liquid Telecom (Econet)
Other carriers
Data centres
Internet Exchange Point (IXP)
6. Broadband market
Introduction and statistical overview
Market analysis
Broadband statistics
Zimbabwe Internet Exchange (ZINX)
National Broadband Project
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Networks
ISP market
Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP)
Other fixed broadband services
WiMAX
Wi-Fi
Satellite broadband
7. Digital economy
E-commerce
E-learning
E-health
8. Mobile communications
Market analysis
Mobile statistics
Mobile infrastructure
4G (LTE)
3G
Satellite mobile
Mobile data
Mobile broadband
Regulatory issues
SIM card registration
Fourth mobile licence
Mobile Number Portability (MNP)
Network sharing
Spectrum auction
Spectrum Allocation Plan
Major mobile operators
Econet Wireless Zimbabwe (EWZ)
NetOne
Telecel Zimbabwe
Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs)
Mobile content and applications
Money transfer, m-banking
M-commerce
Companies Mentioned
Africa Online
Afritell
Aptics
Aquiva
Broadlands Networks
ComOne
Dandemutande (uMax)
DataOne
Econet
Econet Wireless
Ecoweb
iWay Africa (MWEB)
Liquid Telecom
NetOne
Powertel Communications
Telco Internet
TeleAccess
Telecel
Telecontract
TelOne
Zimbabwe Online (ZOL)