SPONSORED: Mauritius Telecom Positions Island Nation as African 5G Pioneer with Advanced Network Rollout

Mauritius Telecom is executing a significant technological infrastructure upgrade, transitioning its mobile network from 5G to 5G Advanced (5G-A), a move that positions Mauritius as one of Africa’s frontrunners in next-generation connectivity. This structured rollout underscores a strategic commitment to enhancing the nation’s digital capacity and fostering future economic development.

The process began with a crucial regulatory step: the formal allocation of essential spectrum by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA). This provided the necessary bandwidth for Mauritius Telecom to commercially launch its 5G network across the island in 2024. This initial phase established a critical foundation, offering substantially improved mobile broadband speeds and reliability for consumers and enterprises, and marked a definitive step up from previous network generations.

Building on this foundation, the company is now advancing to the next stage. In July 2025, Mauritius Telecom publicly demonstrated its 5G-A technology in its capital Port Louis, showcasing the capabilities of what is considered the next evolutionary phase of 5G. The implementation of 5G-A is expected to provide a substantial leap in network performance, including faster speeds, ultra-low latency, and greater capacity for connected devices, which are essential for accelerating digitalisation across various sectors of the Mauritian economy.

The scale of this deployment has garnered attention from industry partners. A representative from our technology partner noted that the project positions Mauritius Telecom as one of the pioneers of 5G-A on the African continent. And according to the Chinese ICT giant Huawei shared in MWC this year, the integration of 5G-A with artificial intelligence is a key focus of this very new era, aimed at building a sophisticated and robust network platform capable of supporting more advanced applications and services in the future. We can believe in that, with this technical innovation and their new AI ambitions, Mauritius Telecom is targeting to support the broader objective of modernising the nation’s telecommunications and digitalisation infrastructure.

And the progression from 5G to 5G-A within a short timeframe highlights Mauritius Telecom’s focused investment in cutting-edge technology, aiming to solidify the island’s status as a connected digital hub and a benchmark for telecommunications development in the African region.