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MTN South Africa CEO Godfrey Motsa announced that the mobile operator would reach 90% of the 4G population by the end of the year.
At a press conference in Johannesburg, Mr Motsa said that when MTN reaches this figure by the end of 2018, more than 50 million South Africans would be covered by its 4G network.
He added that MTN would be the first in South Africa to take this step in 4G and that the acceleration of MTN's 4G network in South Africa is unprecedented – and much faster than previous technologies.
By the end of 2015, MTN's mobile network had 4G network coverage for 5 million South Africans.
"Detractors will tell you that we are only deploying 4G in rich regions, but this is not the case for MTN," Ms Motsa said.
He said that the number of MTN rural sites is a testament to his desire to provide coverage throughout the country and not just in the big metros.
Fiber network
Motsa also stressed the importance of a good fiber backbone to ensure extensive coverage in South Africa.
"For us, this is not limited to the radio access network, we also need a powerful fiber optic network," he said. MTN South Africa has more than 18,000 km of fiber infrastructure in South Africa.
"The fiber optic network we have today in the country is the largest after Telkom," Ms Motsa said.
He stated that MTN's fiber network was very important for continued growth and that the operator considered it complementary to its radio network.
Sharing infrastructure
Motsa also discussed the new agreement between MTN and Cell C on roaming, saying it was about infrastructure sharing in the industry – allowing it to significantly improve the coverage of its 4G population while benefiting MTN.
He noted that Cell C had improved its 4G population coverage from% to 30% to over 80% in a very short time due to the roaming agreement with MTN.
"I want to emphasize the fact that MTN is open to sharing commercially pleasing agreements," Ms. Motsa said.
MTN said that its competition with other mobile operators to achieve 100% coverage of the population is an excellent engine for a better customer experience.
"There is a huge battle between us and other mobile operators to achieve 100% 4G coverage in South Africa," said Motsa.
He added that if the government's WOAN plan implemented without consideration of infrastructure competition, mobile data prices may suffer.
"The idea of opening our wholesale network at cost will dissuade us from improving our infrastructure," Ms. Motsa said.
"We believe that if you weaken competition in the infrastructure sector, you will lower prices. A hybrid model meets the objectives of government and industry. "
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