Safaricom Is Launching The 5G Network Today

After speculations that Safaricom had abandoned the rollout of the 5G network across the country, the giant telecommunications, in a surprise move, said it is launching the same in Nairobi and Western Kenya today (Friday).

Being Kenya’s first fifth-generation (5G) mobile internet, the company will be targeting major urban centers, making it the inaugural operator to offer commercial and superfast services in the East African region.

Safaricom says trials and tests for the network have been successful and says it aims to capitalize on the evolving technology to have many Kenyans on board.

“Safaricom will be the first operator in East Africa to launch 5G services and will be showcasing the capabilities of the network with the aid of Huawei and Nokia’s technologies,” said the company on Thursday.

According to Safaricom, the 5G technology will be supplied by Nokia Corporation and Huawei. Huawei has been at loggerheads with the Western world on the rollout of 5G across the world. The United States, under President Donald Trump, banned its operations.

The 5G service is a central part of its attempts to further expand its data business to counter slower growth in voice calls revenue. The service will be available in Nairobi and greater western Kenya including Kisumu, Kisii, and Bungoma, which routinely witness increased data traffic.

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The surprise launch comes few months after CEO Peter Ndegwa had indicated that the company was not keen on rolling out 5G before maximizing on the opportunities still available within the 4G network.

According to Mr.Ndegwa, while talking about 5G in December 2020, there were still more opportunities to fill within the 4G network before thinking of embracing the 5G network. “There is still so much headroom for us to exploit and fully utilize 4G before we go into 5G,” he said.