• LTA suspends Starcell’s telecom license and spectrum authorization for 90 days

• Operator failed to launch services and settle outstanding financial obligations

• Regulator reiterates openness to new entrants in Liberia’s telecom market

Liberia’s Telecommunications Authority (LTA) has suspended for 90 days the telecom operating license and frequency authorization held by Starcell International Liberia, citing multiple regulatory breaches.

In a Feb. 9 statement, the regulator said the suspension takes effect immediately and follows Starcell’s failure to respond to a license revocation notice sent in September 2025. The LTA also noted that the company has not launched services in Liberia, despite holding a license since 2020.

The authority further pointed to unpaid financial obligations to the state, including arrears owed to the tax administration and the sector regulator, as well as repeated non-compliance with the regulatory framework.

The decision reflects the authorities’ stated intention to strengthen discipline in the telecom sector, where licenses and radio spectrum are considered strategic resources. Regulators are seeking to prevent these authorizations from being held by operators that do not deploy services, to the detriment of market development and competition.

In this context, the LTA has reiterated its openness to the entry of additional operators into the Liberian market. In July 2025, its chairman, Clarence Massaquoi, defended this position before the Senate, saying the arrival of a third or even a fourth operator would significantly benefit Liberian consumers.

Liberia’s telecom market is currently dominated by two operators, MTN and Orange.

Adoni Conrad Quenum