South Korea's KT has entered a collaboration to jointly deploy and operate a wholesale LTE network in Rwanda.
KT has agreed to enter a public-private partnership deal with the government's Rwanda Development Board to set up an LTE joint venture in the nation.
The JV will deploy the network and then provide wholesale infrastructure services to both MNOs and MVNOs in the market.
The network will also be used to help fulfil the government's efforts to improve broadband connectivity in Rwanda - with KT's co-operation.
“This moment marks a significant milestone in our long standing commercial relationship with KT Corporation,” Rwanda Development Board ICT chief Patrick Nyirishema said.
“KT has been our partner in the deployment of Rwanda’s extensive fibre optic network and the early form of high speed mobile broadband services.”
KT opened an office in Rwanda in 2009 to support its involvement in the $40 million fiber backbone project.
A recent commentary piece from the Financial Times suggests that multinational operators have woken up to the fact that they originally severely underestimated the anticipated demand for mobile services across Africa.