(Ecofin Agency) - On 29 April 2019, telecom operator Société nationale des télécommunications (Sonatel) announced an agreement that would soon grant it access to the Gambian telecom market.  

It will acquire 91.6% of internet access provider Xoom Wireless. Once the agreement is approved by Gambian authorities, Sonatel can truly enter this market.

Sonatel explains that in Gambia, its investments in the coming years will let the population profit from both Sonatel and Orange’s expertise and dynamism in terms of innovation and development on a digital ecosystem.

The operator plans to improve internet access in Gambia where out of a population of 2,200,000 residents, only 406,200 were connected to internet as of January 2019, according to We are social and Hootsuite. This represents a slight improvement compared with the 18% recorded in 2017.