Sudan makes up the northern part of a country which in 2011 was separated to form the new state of South Sudan. Three quarters of the former population live in the north, where mobile market penetration is far higher. The country has a relatively well-equipped telecommunications infrastructure by regional standards, including a national fibre optic backbone and international fibre connections. In common with a few countries in Africa, including neighbouring Ethiopia, Sudan is developing space technologies in a bid to support economic growth and improve the capabilities of its military and agricultural sectors. A Chinese built a satellite was launched (from China) in November 2019.
The economy has performed poorly in recent years, with hyperinflation resulting from the effects of having lost much of its oil reserves to South Sudan and to domestic volatility and social unrest. The country remains subject to United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions which include (inter alia) an arms embargo, travel bans, and a freeze on certain assets. This economic climate has made it difficult for operators to develop revenue from services and sufficiently invest in infrastructure upgrades. Nevertheless, Sudatel has invested in rural tower infrastructure to improve connectivity and has also contracted Nokia to upgrade mobile infrastructure and Liquid Telecom to build a fibre broadband network across the country.
Competition in the fixed-line market comes from Canar Telecom, which was majority-owned by Etisalat until Etisalat sold its 92.3% interest to the Bank of Khartoum in mid-2016. The operator opted to adopt CDMA2000 technology to cost-effectively roll out fixed services and in April 2017 it secured spectrum in the 2.5GHz band which has enabled it to launch LTE services.
BuddeComm notes that the outbreak of the Coronavirus in 2020 is having a significant impact on production and supply chains globally. During the coming year the telecoms sector to various degrees is likely to experience a downturn in mobile device production, while it may also be difficult for network operators to manage workflows when maintaining and upgrading existing infrastructure. Overall progress towards 5G may be postponed or slowed down in some countries.
On the consumer side, spending on telecoms services and devices is under pressure from the financial effect of large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes. However, the crucial nature of telecom services, both for general communication as well as a tool for home-working, will offset such pressures. In many markets the net effect should be a steady though reduced increased in subscriber growth.
Although it is challenging to predict and interpret the long-term impacts of the crisis as it develops, these have been acknowledged in the industry forecasts contained in this report.
The report also covers the responses of the telecom operators as well as government agencies and regulators as they react to the crisis to ensure that citizens can continue to make optimum use of telecom services. This can be reflected in subsidy schemes and the promotion of tele-health and tele-education, among other solutions.
Key developments:
Sudatel launches 'Gorooshi' m-money service;
China launches Sudan’s first satellite;
Hyperinflation causing revenue decline for telcos;
Sudatel partners with Nokia to trial mobile broadband technologies, joins Liquid Telecom to build FttP networks across Sudan;
Regulator awards 2.5GHz spectrum licence to Canar Telecom for LTE services;
Sudatel announces $267 million investment plan to 2020, contracts to build mobile towers in rural areas; launches LTA-A in Khartoum;
Zain Sudan expands LTE services under five-year investment program;
Report update includes operator data to Q3 2019, Telecom Maturity Index charts and analyses, assessment of the global impact of COVID-19 on the telecoms sector, recent market developments.
