Telecom
5G Remains a Pretty Distant Dream for Majority of Africa’s Mobile Users – Report
In 2020, 3G will still be more popular than 5G. That’s according to mobile analytics company Opensignal in its mobile network experience predictions for next year.
“In the world of telecoms, 2019 will probably be remembered as the year 5G got serious, going from a few initial test networks to reach millions of users in dozens of markets worldwide,” says Peter Boyland, senior analyst at Opensignal.
“So, what can we expect from the next generation, and the rest of the mobile world, in 2020? We’ve had a look into our crystal ball to bring you our top predictions for the coming year,” he says.
Opensignal’s data shows that 27.2% of its global user base has never connected to 4G and instead relies on 3G.
“And this is not just in emerging markets,” Boland says. “Our recent analysis in Germany found that up to half of users don’t connect to 4G networks. 5G adoption is moving too slowly to overtake 3G adoption in just one year, anywhere in the world.”
Distant dream for Africa
Speaking about the African market, Boyland says: “Even in the most advanced African markets, we rarely see 4G availability scores over the 80% mark, meaning that the priority for most operators on the continent remains the roll-out of their 4G networks.
“Nonetheless, some operators in more mature markets, such as MTN in South Africa, are preparing to test 5G networks – suggesting we could see a commercial launch in a major city on the continent as early as 2020. But for the vast majority of Africa’s mobile users, 5G remains a pretty distant dream.”
“As a general rule, we see many more 3G users in less developed countries, where operators are still rolling out 4G networks, while more advanced countries in Europe, Asia and North America have much higher proportion of 4G users,” Boyland says.
“However, in some countries like Germany, for example, they stand out with one of the highest proportions of 3G users – out of our user base – compared to the other developed countries.”
Opensignal’s analysis shows that South Korea is currently leading in terms of 5G subscribers and devices, but it is seeing some of the fastest speeds in the US.
Boyland explains this is a result of widespread US launches using the mmWave spectrum bands, which offer blisteringly fast speeds but limited network propagation.
“The US is in dire need of lower bandwidth spectrum to accelerate 5G coverage, and this issue with spectrum availability is likely to be an ongoing theme globally as 5G becomes more ubiquitous.”
Full experience
Opensignal also predicts 4G will remain an essential foundation for 5G services in 2020.
The mobile analytics firm recently found just 1% of speed tests its US users conducted from 5G New Radio (5G NR) enabled devices used an active 5G connection, compared with 20% of speed tests conducted in early 5G leader South Korea.
Much like the issue with non-standalone 5G networks, this means the user is not getting the full 5G experience, and this issue will continue in 2020 unless more 5G NR devices become available, it says.
The firm also believes spectrum availability will have a huge impact on the 5G experience.
“Our analysis shows that the frequencies used for 4G can have a strong impact on the mobile network experience,” Boyland says.
He points out the majority of early 5G launches have utilised mid-band spectrum, in the two 2GHz to 4GHz ranges.
These bands are ideal for urban roll-out, offering a good mix of data capacity, range and in-building penetration.
“But in some markets, particularly the US, availability of this spectrum is scarce, meaning operators are using higher mmWave bands. Markets using mmWave bands will struggle to offer wide coverage for 5G. Unless both mid-band spectrum and mmWave spectrum is available, the 5G experience will be incomplete,” Boyland says.
Easing congestion
Opensignal also predicts that using 5G to ease congestion on 4G networks will become a key operator use case come next year.
It points out current 5G networks have limited reach, meaning the vast majority of users are still relying heavily on 4G.
“And as data demand continues to rise, we are seeing signs of increased congestion on 4G networks. As 5G networks become more ubiquitous and devices more widespread, operators will look to move their heavy data users onto 5G, to improve the mobile network experience on 4G,” Boyland says.
“The 5G experience will depend on the type of spectrum used. Consumers connecting to 5G on low-band spectrum will not have a dramatically better experience than 4G, but consumers will still see 5G in their phone’s status bar.
“Those using mmWave will see extremely fast speeds, but very little coverage. But all kinds of network experience will be called 5G,” he concludes.
Ralph Mupita, president,MTN Group, has announced plans to reduce its shareholding in MTN Nigeria through a public offer after it returns to profitability.
The group aims to cut its stake from 76 percent to 65 percent in line with its longstanding commitment to deepen local ownership, according to ITWeb, South African tech publication.
Mupita, who disclosed the plan during an editors’ roundtable meeting this week, said “The only localisation we have as MTN Group is we have potentially a sell-down in Nigeria at some point in time, approximately 11 percent. This is something we have said long ago, that over time, we would want more Nigerians owning the company, and we are prepared to sell down to 65 percent. We are at around 76 percent,” he said.
The anticipated offer would mark MTN’s second major retail public offering in Nigeria, following its 2021 sale of 575 million MTN Nigeria shares to local investors.
That offer was oversubscribed, resulting in the allocation of 661.25 million shares, including a 15 percent greenshoe option. This reduced MTN’s stake in its Nigerian unit to 75.6 percent from 78.8 percent.
More than 126,000 investors participated in that round, including retail and institutional investors such as Nigerian pension funds, representing approximately 6.5 million contributors.
At the time in 2022, MTN Group announced plans to further reduce its stake to approximately 65 percent from 75.6 percent.
Mupita confirmed that the Group would only proceed with a new offer once MTN Nigeria resolves its negative equity position and resumes dividend payments.
Currently, MTN Nigeria’s shares are trading at N235 per share.
Despite reporting a revenue of N3.36 trillion in 2024, a 36.03 percent bump from N2.47 trillion in 2023, it posted a loss after tax of N400.44 billion, a 192.25 percent rise from N137.02 billion in 2023.,
This negative performance was driven by macroeconomic headwinds, including record inflation and a steep devaluation of the naira, which raised operating costs and wiped out investor value.
MTN Nigeria has fallen behind MTN South Africa as MTN Group’s largest revenue contributor.
However, the Group is projecting a rebound in 2025, citing key drivers such as recent tariff adjustments, operational restructuring, and improving macroeconomic indicators in Nigeria.
Speaking at the roundtable, Mupita highlighted that the Group is anticipating a V-shaped recovery in Nigeria’s service revenue. He pointed to the recent structural reforms, such as the removal of fuel subsidies, the naira stabilisation, and improved dollar availability.
“The continued normalisation of these factors, particularly naira stability, should have positive impacts on consumer spending power and our business operations,” Mupita noted in the Group’s financial statement for 2024 recently.
In a remarkable demonstration of corporate volunteerism, MTN staff, through the Y’ello Care initiative, have renovated a school block at Iwerekun Community Senior High School, Lakowe. This effort has restored hope and significantly improved learning conditions for both students and teachers.
The project, led by dedicated MTN employees, is part of the annual Y’ello Care campaign, which focuses on empowering communities through education, digital inclusion, and economic support.
Prior to the renovation, students at Iwerekun Community Senior High School faced challenges, including deteriorating classrooms that hindered effective learning. Recognising the need for intervention, MTN staff stepped in to transform the learning space, creating a safe, conducive, and inspiring environment for both students and teachers.
At the commissioning ceremony, Honourable Jamiu Tolani Alli-Balogun, Commissioner of the Lagos State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, acknowledged the significance of MTN’s contribution to education: “The education sector worldwide thrives on collaboration and commitment between public and private partners. MTN’s generous contribution is truly recognised, and I express my deepest gratitude for its unwavering commitment to supporting education in Lagos State. This new facility will provide a conducive environment for teaching and learning, enabling our students to reach their full potential.”
Representing the Ojomu of Lakowe, Prince Mukaila Adeola expressed the community’s gratitude: “This is a rare opportunity, and it is not every day that Lakowe benefits from such support. We truly appreciate MTN for this contribution, and we look forward to even more support in the future.”
The renovated school block is equipped with improved water supply and an inverter included in a serene environment that enhances the learning experience. This renovation will ensure that students and teachers have a more comfortable and sustainable academic setting.
Speaking on the significance of the project, Tobe Okigbo, Chief Corporate Services and Sustainability Officer (CCSSO) at MTN Nigeria, emphasised the personal investment of MTN staff: “I want to emphasise that this commissioning was made possible by the dedicated staff of MTN. Although MTN has a Foundation funded by 1% of the company’s annual profits, the credit for this commissioning goes to the MTN Nigeria staff members who, through their personal contributions, made this happen.”
Beyond the fresh coat of paint and structural improvements, initiatives like this create a lasting impact and a sense of hope in the lives of the students. The addition of a reliable power source and water facility means that students no longer have to struggle with poor infrastructure, allowing them to focus on their education.
For many students, access to quality education remains a challenge—not just because of financial barriers but also due to poor infrastructure, lack of resources, and limited teacher support. Programmes like Y’ello Care, alongside other education-focused volunteer initiatives, are helping to fill these gaps by creating safe, well-equipped learning environments and equipping students with knowledge beyond the classroom.
With the successful completion of the Lakowe school project, MTN reaffirms its commitment to education and youth development. The company encourages more organisations to embrace volunteerism and community service, as collective action remains a powerful force for societal progress.
Today’s software ecosystem is moving fast, building quality digital products has never been more crucial and more complex. As teams accelerate release cycles using a blend of manual and automated testing, one persistent issue remains: test management is fragmented.
That’s the problem TestPod, a newly launched test management platform from the team behind Scandium, is built to solve.
TestPod officially launched on Friday, April 11, 2025, offering software teams (whether in Africa or anywhere else) a much-needed solution to centralize and track their testing processes across platforms and test types. Whether it’s manual, automated, exploratory, accessibility, performance, or regression testing, TestPod brings visibility, structure, and speed to fragmented QA workflows.
“We spoke to over 200 teams at different African startups and enterprises, and despite having some automation in place, at least 90% are still heavily reliant on manual testing, just like their global counterparts,” said AbdulAzeez Ogunjobi, CEO and Co-Founder of Scandium Systems.
He explains that while Scandium’s AI-powered no-code automation suite is already being used across web, mobile, and API products globally, TestPod addresses a more foundational gap: organizing and managing all forms of testing—not just automation.
“Furthering our mission to help teams build bug-free digital products, we’re launching TestPod to help them organize their software testing operations, regardless of what kind of testing they need to do,” he added.
The timing is critical. According to the World Quality Report 2024–25, 68% of organizations are exploring Generative AI in their QA workflows, but most still lack clarity on what tests are running, what’s failing, and how test coverage aligns with ongoing releases.
Meanwhile, Africa’s digital economy is booming. A recent McKinsey report estimates it could contribute over $712 billion to continental GDP by 2025. The continent now holds more than 1.1 billion registered mobile money accounts, and in 2023 alone, over $1 trillion in transactions were processed across Instant Payment Systems, according to AfricaNenda. Regulations are tightening. Quality, reliability, and user trust are becoming more central, as the continent churns out more tech solutions in expanding sectors.
Testing isn’t just about automation. It’s about knowing what’s working and what’s broken.” noted Sodeeq Elusoji, CTO and Co-Founder of Scandium. “The real bottleneck in testing isn’t always a lack of automation—it’s lack of visibility. You can’t improve what you can’t track, and that’s what TestPod delivers.”
Unlike traditional tools that prioritize rigid workflows, TestPod is lightweight, modern, and flexible, designed for agile teams who need to move fast. It supports test case authoring, tagging, execution tracking, and real-time dashboards.
“Testing has evolved, but the way teams manage tests hasn’t caught up. We’ve seen teams with advanced automation pipelines still tracking test outcomes in spreadsheets and Slack.” said Jafar Alabi, Vice President of Products and Business Development at Scandium.
While it integrates seamlessly with Scandium’s no-code test automation suite, TestPod is framework-agnostic, making it a perfect fit for teams using Selenium, Playwright, Cypress or other custom test stacks.
Backed by a proven team with success building Africa’s first no-code test automation platform, Scandium has already achieved 6-figure ARR and powers test automation across 120+ organizations in 15+ countries. With TestPod, they’re expanding that impact even further—from test execution to test orchestration.
TestPod is now available at testpod.io. Early access is open globally and free for teams of all sizes.
As Africa’s tech scene continues to accelerate—with fintech, health tech, and mobility leading the charge, TestPod is built to ensure these innovations are not just fast but flawless.
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