MTN Group has no official presence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the mobile market is dominated by Airtel, Orange, Vodacom and Africell. The South African operator is, however, active in several countries bordering the DRC, including Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, South Sudan and the Republic of Congo.

DRC authorities have accused telecommunications company MTN Group of illegally providing mobile phone and internet services within the country. In a statement issued on Wednesday, Feb. 11, the telecommunications regulator identified the cities of Goma and Rutshuru, near the Rwandan border, where it says the South African group’s network is active. The accusation underscores the sensitive issue of frequency management and control in border areas across Africa.

According to the Democratic Republic of Congo's Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ARPTC), the alleged irregular operation violates existing legal and regulatory provisions and could lead to legal action against the company. The regulator said it has referred the matter to relevant national and international bodies and will pursue all legal avenues to ensure compliance with the law and safeguard the country’s digital sovereignty.

On Tuesday, Feb. 10, Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka convened a meeting on what officials described as “digital intrusion and the illegal use of Congolese frequencies by a foreign operator.” The minister of posts and telecommunications, the head of ARPTC and executives from Airtel, Orange and Vodacom attended. Following the meeting, ARPTC was instructed to lead the technical investigation and refer the matter to relevant international bodies, with a declared zero-tolerance policy toward any breach of digital sovereignty.

MTN Group has not yet publicly commented on the accusations. The South African company operates in several countries bordering the DRC, including Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, South Sudan and Congo, where it has rolled out mobile networks.

Signal Propagation and Regulatory Challenges at Borders

To deploy networks in a country, telecom operators use radio frequencies allocated by the state through the national regulator. These scarce and strategically important spectrum resources underpin mobile phone and internet services.

Allocated for a fixed period and within specific bands, they are governed by licenses that define operating conditions, coverage areas and technical requirements. In theory, their use is restricted to the country that issued the license. In practice, especially in border regions, the natural propagation of radio waves can cause signals to spill across national frontiers.

According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), radio signals do not stop at national borders, creating the need for joint frequency management in border areas. Spillover can lead to neighboring operators providing services inside another country’s border regions. Where these operators have no official presence, cross-border signal access can fuel an informal market, with makeshift agents selling SIM cards and related services.

A notable example involves Cameroon and Chad in the 2000s. In October 2002, Chad’s telecommunications regulator (OTRT) contacted its Cameroonian counterpart, accusing MTN and Orange operators based in Kousseri of unfair competition by flooding the N’Djamena market with low-cost phones and SIM cards. This, it said, undermined Chadian operators CELTEL and LIBERTIS, which were still rolling out their networks. After several exchanges and ITU involvement, a coordination agreement was signed in September 2009 in Maroua to address the issue.

Frequency Harmonization: A Project Gaining Momentum Across Africa

An agreement on cross-border frequency coordination in Africa, signed by 54 countries and facilitated by the ITU, was adopted in January 2022. It aims to prevent harmful interference affecting fixed and mobile terrestrial services and to optimize spectrum use through bilateral or multilateral arrangements.

Since then, coordination efforts have accelerated across the continent. In August 2025, Congolese and Angolan delegations met to harmonize frequency use along their shared border. The two sides set coordination parameters for seven bands between 700 MHz and 3500 MHz and adopted binding measures, including limiting coverage to 1,000 meters beyond the border, banning omnidirectional antennas in border areas and dismantling unauthorized sales points.

This trend extends beyond the Congo-Angola corridor in Central Africa. Also in August 2025, Gabon and Cameroon signed a coordination agreement. Congo concluded similar arrangements with the DRC in 2021 and with Gabon in 2023, and has opened discussions with Cameroon. Other recent initiatives reinforce this pattern, including a bilateral meeting between Chad and Cameroon in June 2025 and the announcement in August 2024 of a tripartite agreement among Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

In West Africa, member states of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) signed a border frequency coordination agreement in November 2025. The text establishes mechanisms to prevent interference within a 15-kilometer zone on either side of territorial boundaries. Similar initiatives have also been launched between Togo and Ghana, Ghana and Burkina Faso, and Nigeria and Niger.

Isaac K. Kassouwi