The GSMA has warned that rising smartphone component costs could widen the digital divide as 3.1 billion people remain offline despite living within mobile broadband coverage.

Confirming Nigeria’s plans to expand its satellite resources, telecommunications and technology giant Thales Alenia Space says it has won a contract to build the NigComSat-2A geostationary telecommunications satellite.

The SAMENA Telecommunications Council – the industry body representing the telecoms sectors in South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa – has called for stronger practical cooperation between the Arab region and Africa to invest and implement AI.

Pan-African telecoms firm Africell confirmed on Friday it has secured a US$99.6 million direct loan from the US Export-Import Bank (ExIm) primarily to enable the American-owned company to buy only US and European mobile network equipment.

South Africa-based Digital Parks Africa (DPA) says it’s expanding into West Africa with plans to develop a new carrier-neutral data centre in Nigeria in association with the Master Power Technologies Group.

Ethio Telecom revealed on Thursday it has held a stakeholders' workshop with Djibouti Telecom and Sudatel Group to push their planned Horizon Cross-Border Terrestrial Fiber Initiative into the pre-commercialisation phase.

The US Export-Import Bank is reportedly set to award pan-African telecoms firm Africell a loan worth US$100 million as part of a move by the Trump administration to discourage it from buying network equipment from Chinese vendors like Huawei and ZTE.

Can AI boost sustainability and combat climate change? A recent memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Japanese technology giant NEC Corporation implies that it can.

The LuLu Coastal Cable System the Kenyan coast’s first fully protected coastal cable system, has been announced at this week’s ITW Africa digital infrastructure and connectivity event, held in Nairobi.

The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has opened a consultation on a proposed standalone licence for colocation data centres, in a move aimed at providing greater regulatory clarity for the sector and supporting investment in digital infrastructure.

Cloud and carrier-neutral data centre platform Digital Realty has announced the opening of the 6.4-megawatt (MW) Nairobi Two Data Centre (NBO2), expanding its Nairobi campus.

Malawi has activated a new telecommunications tower in Lilongwe Nyanja, taking the number of operational towers under the government's Last Mile Rural Connectivity Project to 36 as it expands mobile coverage in underserved areas.

Safaricom Ethiopia has surpassed 15 million 90-day active subscribers, less than four years after launching commercial services in the country.

Côte d'Ivoire’s Ministry of Digital Transition and Technological Innovation (MTNIT) says it has signed a strategic partnership agreement with French AI solutions company Mistral to help develop an AI ecosystem adapted to the country’s specific requirements.

African digital infrastructure provider WIOCC Group announced on Tuesday that Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and Saudi Arabian infrastructure investment and development firm Vision Invest will invest a combined US$300 million in the company.

Digital and infrastructure solutions company Cybastion says it plans to invest US$75 million in an AI-powered data centre and power plant in Cameroon, expanding the company's digital infrastructure projects across Africa.

State-owned Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC) has revealed plans to enter the country’s 5G race in October as part of a BWP240 million (US$17.8 million) investment plan in the 2026/27 financial year to modernise and upgrade its network.

MTN Digital Infrastructure confirmed on Thursday that it has formed a new company in partnership with UAE-based investor Tarek Al Ashram to speed up development of AI-ready digital infrastructure platforms across Africa.

MTN is exploring banking licences in selected markets as it looks to expand its fintech business and eventually provide loans from its own balance sheet.

Mozambique Telecom (a.k.a. Tmcel) has started  proof of concept (PoC) tests with Angola’s Angosat-2 satellite as part of an agreement between the two countries earlier this year to cooperate in the space, telecoms and ICT sectors.

MTN Group has reportedly secured conditional approval from Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) for its proposed acquisition of the remaining stake in tower company IHS Holding Limited.

MTN Group reported strong growth in the first half of 2026, with service revenue rising 17.5% to ZAR 115 billion (US$7.2 billion) and EBITDA before one-off items increasing almost 25% to ZAR 56 billion (US£3.5 billion) in constant-currency terms.

Paratus Uganda said on Monday it has become the first service provider in the country to launch Starlink’s LEO satellite service after the Uganda Communication Commission approved Starlink’s provisional operational licence in May.

Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) has reportedly approved the acquisition and deployment of two new high-throughput communication satellites.

Tech giant Ericsson and MTN Group Fintech, which operates African digital financial platform MoMo (Mobile Money), say they have completed what they call the Mobile Money (MoMo) Evolved Migration across key African markets, with more markets on the way.

South African operator Cell C added 1.3 million subscribers in its 2026 financial year, while cutting net debt by 64% following a balance sheet restructuring completed during its first full year as a listed company.

South African fixed wireless connectivity and private network operator Comsol announced on Thursday it’s entering the country’s home broadband sector with a wholesale 5G-Advanced fixed wireless access (FWA) offering.

Interesting news for countries trying to grow their internet domains comes from Kenya, where recent data has shown the .ke domain growing four times faster than the global average. But why is this?

Around 80% of Malawians live within mobile broadband coverage but do not use mobile internet, highlighting a major usage gap that could be worth MWK 1.1 trillion (US$637 million) to the economy by 2030, according to the GSMA.

Nigeria has announced what it calls a National Digital Cloud Policy aimed at attracting US$750 million in private investment within 24 months and positioning Nigeria as a major cloud computing and data-hosting hub for West Africa and the wider African market.

Airtel Africa and Starlink have launched their satellite-to-mobile service in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the operator claiming the country's deployment is the first commercial launch of Elon Musk's satellite connectivity service.

South African operator Vodacom has appointed lead independent director Khumo Shuenyane as its next chairman, succeeding Saki Macozoma when he retires in July 2027.