Dr. Stanley Shanapinda, CEO, Telecom Namibia

Telecom Namibia intends to begin commercial 5G deployment in 2026, aiming to catch up with its peer MTC, which launched its first 5G testing in March in partnership with Huawei

Dr. Stanley Shanapinda, CEO of Telecom Namibia, gave an update in Windhoek during a session organised by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology on the Implementation of Telecom Namibia's Mobile and Data Turnaround Strategy.

Shanapinda provided the 5G update in response to an inquiry about when the telco will begin its testing to catch up with MTC.

During his presentation, he also stated that Telecom Namibia plans to deploy 500 base stations across the country to improve network coverage are on track.

According to Shanapinda, at least 77 of the base stations will be live by the end of the year.

The deployment of base stations is a significant investment for the network operator, currently it has 376 base stations, which Shanapinda admits has impacted quality.

"With that small number, you cannot cover the rest of the country and you cannot get good service," he explained.

"We have heard the cries from our customers and Namibians at large and we believe they deserve quality network services from Telecom Namibia." .

Shanapinda stated that the mobile operator had negotiated competitive pricing with its primary equipment suppliers, Chinese firms Huawei and ZTE, for the rollout.

In addition, he said the company intends to connect more than 100,000 households in the Southern African country that at present don’t have access to fibre.

“With the fourth industrial revolution and the digital economy (upon us), we need to have all these houses connected,” said Shanapinda.