KT completes Africa’s first LTE network in Rwanda

(Third from left) KT Corp. executive Yoon Kyong-rim and Rwandan officials at the Transform Africa Summit 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda. [Photo provided by KT Corp.]

Korea’s KT Corp. said it finished connecting Rwanda with 4G LTE nationwide network for the first time in the African continent as part of its overseas outreach with wireless technology.

The company announced on Sunday that it has completed the installation of a 4G LTE network that could cover a majority of the 12 million population. The launch was timed with the Transform Africa Summit 2018, the continent’s largest ICT conference held in Kigali, Rwanda on May 7-10.

Rwanda is actively pursuing industrial development through ICT and human resources in order to overcome the limitation of the inland country where resources are scarce and land is narrow. About 8.6 million own mobile devices, of which smartphone users are estimated at around 1.15 million in the African country. The LTE nationwide network is expected to enable the majority of people in Rwanda to experience a fast network speed.

The Rwandan government hoped the LTE nationwide network will contribute to improving the quality of life for its people. The achievement was made three years and six months after commercial services began in Kigali in Nov. 2014 after a joint venture KTRN (KT Rwanda Networks) was established between KT and the Rwandan government in 2013. It is in the spotlight as an excellent PPP (Public-Private-Partnership) example realized through close cooperation between overseas business operator and local government.

KT said it plans to leverage its experience in Rwanda to expand cooperation with other African countries, including Nigeria, South Africa, Malawi, Benin and Senegal.

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