Over the past five years, the privatization of state telecom operators was considered several times. MTC began its listing process in 2019.  

The Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN) recommends the sale of state-owned companies operating in the information and communications technology sector to private investors to increase competition in the national market. The companies targeted are Mobile Telecommunications Company (MTC) and Telecom Namibia (TN), among others.

These two telecom operators "would potentially be more competitive with each other if they were owned by different private companies, compared to the current situation where they are both state-controlled," the CRAN wrote in its draft market saturation report.  

CRAN's proposal comes at a time when liberalization is needed to ensure the development of Namibia's ICT sector against a backdrop of accelerating digital transformation and to meet the growing demand for high-speed connectivity. The draft report shows that the state controls 89.4% of the sector's assets, compared with 10.6% for the private sector, represented in particular by Paratus (the ISP was controlling 81% of private sector assets in 2021).

The Communications Regulatory Authority also recommends that the government facilitate the entry of new players into the national telecoms market by reducing licensing requirements, simplifying regulatory frameworks, and encouraging foreign investments. This also involves the sharing of telecoms infrastructure between old and new telecoms operators.

The regulator believes that increased competition in Namibia's ICT sector should promote market efficiency, encourage innovation and ultimately benefit consumers. According to the latest statistics from the regulator, Namibia has 2.9 million cell phone subscribers, 68% of whom use mobile Internet services.

Isaac K. Kassouwi