• Senegal to scrap mobile roaming charges with four neighbours

• Free incoming calls, local rates apply from March 2026

• Move supports ECOWAS push for regional telecoms integration

Senegal has committed to eliminating mobile roaming charges with Benin, Gambia, Mali and Togo from March 1, 2026.

The Senegalese Telecommunications and Postal Regulatory Authority (ARTP) signed memorandums of understanding with its counterparts from the four West African countries on Dec. 11 to implement the measure.

Under the agreements, Senegalese citizens travelling in any of the four countries will receive free incoming calls for 30 consecutive days, pay local rates for mobile services, and no longer face surcharges on incoming international and roaming calls, ARTP said. The same conditions will apply to citizens of Benin, Gambia, Mali and Togo when travelling in Senegal.

ARTP Director General Dahirou Thiam said the agreements pave the way for the gradual harmonisation of tariffs, closer coordination among national regulators and improved service quality, calling the move “an important milestone for West African digital integration.”

The initiative is part of a broader regional push, initially led by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to eliminate roaming charges across the bloc. Ivory Coast and Ghana were the first to implement the policy in June 2023. It later took effect between Ghana and Benin, and between Ghana and Togo in October 2024. Togo and Benin have also implemented their bilateral agreement. Several other protocols have been signed among ECOWAS members, including Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.

Separately, the countries of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which have withdrawn from ECOWAS, signed a convention in November 2024 to introduce free roaming by Dec. 31 of that year. They are also seeking to extend the mechanism to other countries in the region, as illustrated by Mali’s participation in the signing ceremony in Dakar. Burkina Faso also held talks with Ghana in late November to finalise a related memorandum of understanding.

ECOWAS says the policy is designed to facilitate cross-border communications and support the free movement of people and goods, with the aim of building a single, integrated telecommunications market across the region. The bloc estimates that high international communication costs continue to hamper trade and the development of a cohesive regional market.

The agreements signed by Senegal with Benin, Gambia, Mali and Togo must still be implemented within the agreed timelines. Elsewhere in the region, rollouts have faced obstacles including limited direct inter-operator connections, high call termination rates and persistent fraud.

Isaac K. Kassouwi