• Chinguitel completed the modernization of its base stations in Nouakchott with Huawei’s technical support and plans nationwide upgrades by end-2025.

• The telecom regulator fined Chinguitel 100.2 million ouguiyas ($2.5 million) in 2024 for repeated quality-of-service failures and shortened its 2G, 3G, and 4G licenses.

• The company aims to strengthen coverage and data speeds amid regulatory pressure and growing competition from Moov Mauritel and Mattel.

Mauritania’s telecom operator Chinguitel announced on Tuesday, November 11, that it has completed the modernization of its network base stations in the capital, Nouakchott, with technical support from Huawei. The company said it will extend the project to several other cities by the end of 2025 to expand coverage, enhance service quality, and meet rising demand for broadband and digital services.

“The project marks a major step toward building a next-generation network capable of supporting government digital transformation plans, fostering innovation, and enabling modern services such as online education, digital banking, and smart city applications, while meeting customer demand for higher-quality and faster Internet,” Chinguitel said in a statement.

The announcement follows months of pressure from Mauritania’s telecom regulator, the Autorité de Régulation (ARE), which has criticized mobile operators for poor network performance. In September, the regulator issued formal notices to Chinguitel, Moov Mauritel, and Mattel for failing to meet contractual service quality standards.

The warning came after an inspection between July 7 and August 23 that found shortcomings in 62 localities, including 11 road corridors. Chinguitel’s service fell short in 28 cities for voice, 39 for 3G, 22 for 4G, and 10 on major road routes.

Earlier, on January 19, ARE had already warned Chinguitel for failing to ensure continuous service. Its monitoring platform recorded 162 sites down for more than 72 cumulative hours between January 1 and 14—above the legal limit. The operator was given seven days to fix the issues or face penalties.

In November 2024, ARE fined all three mobile operators for breaching service quality obligations. Chinguitel received a 100.2 million ouguiya ($2.5 million) fine, and its 2G, 3G, and 4G licenses were shortened by three, one, and two months respectively.

At the time, rivals Moov Mauritel and Mattel had already announced investments in network expansion and quality improvement.

According to the regulator, these enforcement measures aim to guarantee users service levels that meet international standards. The GSMA, a global mobile industry body, notes that consistent service quality can offer a competitive advantage in saturated telecom markets.

Mauritania’s mobile market is dominated by Moov Mauritel, a subsidiary of Morocco’s Maroc Telecom, which held a 53% market share at the end of 2024. The last available data from the Ministry of Digital Transformation and Public Administration Reform, dating back to 2019, attributed 21% of market share to Chinguitel and 27% to Mattel.

This article was initially published in French by Isaac K. Kassouwi

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum