south african mobile Operators are periodically recognized for the quality of their networks by global network experience expert OpenSignal. However, compared to their market-leading counterparts in other parts of the world, local telcos are lagging on key metrics.
According to Sylvia Kechiche, vice president of industry analysis, this gap is unusual at first glance because opensignalRadio access network (RAN) equipment in South Africa conforms to global standards.
“We test the end-to-end customer experience and in the case of South Africa you may have the same RAN, but the RAN is not the only part of the network,” Kechiche told TechCentral in an interview on the sidelines of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Wednesday.
“The customer experience can be affected by the transport layer, the core layer and the connection to the content providers. It is not the radio conditions that make the difference, it is the overall optimization of the traffic from where the user is to where the content is located.”
The factors that differentiate global leaders in network experience relate to the richness of the connectivity ecosystem across user device types, edge network density, fiber backhaul capacity, local data center capacity, local content hosting and spectrum availability.
But even at the RAN level, South African mobile operators are limited in their ability to maximize the years of investment they have made in the quality of their networks. This is because spectrum use is not as efficient as it could be. Kechiche said perennial delays in the sunset of older RAN technologies, namely 2G and 3G, are locking up spectrum that could be used to transmit more efficient 4G and 5G signals typically associated with better network experiences.
Spectrum is the key
Running four different generations of network technology also increases complexity which ultimately impacts the user experience.
“It is important to have adequate spectrum. 2G and 3G are using existing spectrum, especially lower mid-band spectrum, which is very valuable in terms of bringing additional capacity,” Kechiche said.
Another factor closely related to radio access technologies is the device ecosystem. The reason South African regulators have not yet phased out 2G and 3G technologies is that a large portion of the population still relies on devices using these technologies for connectivity. Kechiche said countries with a higher number of 4G and 5G devices generally report better network experience results.
Reading: South Africa's best mobile network
This is out of the control of mobile network operators, but what affects their customers' network experience is the density of data centers and whether YouTube, Netflix and similar content providers host their content locally.
OpenSignal compared one telco's performance with operators in both South Africa and Kenya and found that although the RAN was similar, the network experience differed depending on where the content was being fetched.
“Their connection to one of the main content delivery networks (CDNs) from Kenya is not through the Middle East, which would be the fastest route. It goes to South Africa because the CDNs there are located locally in Joburg or Cape Town. So performance may differ in the two countries because they do not have local servers,” Kechiche said.
There is also a strong correlation between fiber penetration density and mobile network experience. Due to its high capacity and reliability, fiber is the preferred backhaul technology for mobile towers. He cited Vietnam as an example where high fiber density supports strong mobile experience results, but acknowledged that expanding fiber access is a challenge for a country with a large landmass like South Africa where the population is not concentrated in one area.
Kechiche said satellite direct-to-device capability is emerging as a promising technology to bridge connectivity gaps in countries with large landmasses, while sharing infrastructure is also emerging as a way to cut costs.
Reading: Only one SA operator has been placed on the map in the global network ranking
“Direct-to-device won't be able to answer everything, but it complements terrestrial coverage. We're also seeing a lot of telcos sharing infrastructure to try to reduce costs – we see a lot of that in the Nordic countries, Singapore and Korea as well,” Kechiche said. – © 2026 NewsCentral Media
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