While Nigerian plans to open up the market to many new MVNOs are not necessarily guaranteed success, they have certainly been good for Wireless Technology Labs (WTL), which recently announced that it had been chosen by MobileCoreX Ltd (MCX), a Nigerian mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE), to spearhead the development of the country’s first mobile virtual network.
WTL, a specialist in innovative mobile core solutions for MVNOs and MVNEs and small cells solutions for rural communications, says this initiative, announced late last week, aims to enhance mobile connectivity for Nigeria’s more than 220 million people, addressing the current challenges of low broadband penetration and poor quality of service. It is described as a landmark deal valued at millions of US dollars over the next three years.
As WTL explains, Nigeria’s telecom sector is predominantly dominated by four major operators but only 29% of Nigerian’s population regularly accesses the mobile internet, due to poor coverage and a variety of other issues.
With this in mind, early in 2023 regulator the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) adopted a new strategy to boost coverage and adoption. It issued 43 mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) licenses to amplify service coverage, particularly in unserved and underserved regions.
Among the new licensees was MCX which obtained a tier 4 MVNE license aimed at constructing new mobile network infrastructure to provide capacity for emerging MVNOs as a platform as a service.
MCX says it empowers MVNOs and businesses to excel in the competitive telecommunications sector without requiring substantial investments in network infrastructure.
MCX says offering MVNOs the necessary tools, expertise and support to thrive through its comprehensive platform as a service (PaaS) allows MVNOs to concentrate on scaling their operations while MCX manages the complex technical and operational aspects of their business.
WTL, headquartered in Belgium, with over 20 years of experience, has been active in Nigeria and across Africa, working with operators of all sizes to roll out both urban and rural networks. The company has already partnered with two of the 43 new MVNOs licensed by the NCC.
