Safaricom is set to commercialise the superfast 5G network in 2022 after increasing 5G sites to 200 by the end of 2021.
Safaricom launched the 5G technology in the country in March with 15 sites and is yet to commercialised the network.
“This year is a trial phase and we intend to have 150 to 200 sites coming from the first use case of homes, especially in places where we do not have fibre. We will be able to test on such areas and help customers in terms of speed and reliability and from next year we can be able to commercialise a bit faster but I will come with that at the appropriate time,” said Safaricom chief executive Peter Ndegwa.
Read: Airtel Upgrades 600 Sites In Readiness for 5G Switch
In March, the 5G network sites were installed in the towns of Nairobi, Kisumu, Kisii and Kakamega, with the giant telco targeting more towns in the second and commercial phase of the launch.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, Safaricom had 5,526 2G base stations, 5,500 for 3G and 5,387 4G base stations.
The 5G technology can support up to one million connected devices per square kilometre compared to 4G which can only support up to 100,000 connected devices in a similar area.
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