Draft 1.

ARAB Book 2012

Country Report: SOMALIA

Since 1991, no central government has controlled the entirety of the country, despite several attempts to establish a unified central government. The northwestern part of the country has been relatively stable under the self-declared, but unrecognized, sovereign state of Somaliland. During the two decades of war and lack of government, Somalia has maintained an informal economy, based mainly on livestock, remittance/money transfer companies, and telecommunications. The TFG formed with the help of IGAD, AU and the UN, which is based in Mogadishu is the only government entity regonized by the UN and the international community.

1. STRATEGY, POLICIES AND REGULATION ICT Strategic vision Contrary to many African states that have set a policy framework to develop the ICT sector in light of a strategic vision that defines an institutional structure and reforms, Somalia is only in the beginning of an institutional creation process. To date, a formulation of comprehensive ICT strategic vision for Somalia is still work-in-progress. However, the Ministry of Information, Post and Telecommunications has identified the telecommunication and postal service as the basic prerequisite of the development. The government has made commitment to maintain private sector's participation in the telecommunication sector by keeping the post and telecommunication sectors open for competition through a lightfootprint regulatory approach. The main objective of the Ministry of Information, Post & Telecom sets the ..main objective of the Telecommunication Policy is to create favorable environment in order to make the telecommunication service reliable and accessible to all people at the reasonable cost throughout the country in collaboration with the private sector in order to support the social and economic development of the country. The following tasksobjectives have been determined in order to give support for the accomplishment of this paramount objective:

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1. In order to bring the access of general public of rural and urban areas of the country to the telecommunication service, arrangement shall be made in a manner that the telecommunication service shall be available within the short distance in the inhabitant areas. 2. The telecommunication service shall be made available to meet the demand in the urban areas of the country. Arrangement shall be made in a manner that the corporate telecommunication service shall be available to the business areas. 3. Opportunity shall be provided to the consumers of the urban areas to choose service from various providers. Arrangement of opportunity to choose service accordingly shall be gradually extended in the rural areas also. 4. Arrangement shall be made for getting opportunity to use appropriate information and communication technology for poverty alleviation and development of the rural areas. Universal Service (US) has been identified as having a postal office and a public telecom booth in every village in Somalia. Mechanisms for financing US are still being developed through consultation between MIPT and the Somali operators, including the possibility of establishing a US fund to be financed through a percentage of telecom revenues. No final decision has been taken yet1.

Current situation of ICT sector The level of ICT infrastructure in Somalia is low, and concentrated in few urban centres. Staff with up-to-date technical skills, including basic computer use can be hard to find. However, the private sector has been active in increasing access to communication technology. Despite the low level of ICT usage, clear development potentials are associated with the presence of several telecom companies and Internet cafes. The telecommunication operation in Somalia is currently operated by unregulated private operators which developed out of necessity to fill the vacuum left when the former infrastructure was completely destroyed. Despite instability in some parts of the country, Somalia has internet connectivity to almost 53% of the whole area of the country and the Internet business is mushrooming in the country and becoming one of the fastest growing services along with telephony. By the end of 2009 there

Mohamed Ibrahim, Advisor to Somali Ministry of Information, Post & Telecom. 8/12/2011 Page 2

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were more than 100 thousand users of Internet services 2 in the country with few established ISP and cyber cafes with growth of 4% per year. There are five telecoms companies. They include: Al-Barakaat and the Somali Telecom Group, an umbrella for a number of companies. Both have mobile operations in addition to fixed line, Somtel and Telecoms Somalia, are looking at setting up mobile operations.

Three of the companies provide internet services. The number of companies providing mobile services reached 12 in 2010.
Mobile Operators 1 2 3 4 5 Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mobile_network_operators_of_the_Middle_East_and_Afr ica#Somalia, accessed on 11/12/2011

Operator

SOMAFONE Nationlink Hormuud Telecom Telsom Mobile GSM Golis Telecom GSM Somalia

Technolo gy GSM GSM GSM

Subscribe rs (000) 201 139 133 125 n/a

Ownership Somafone FZ LLC Bintel Hormuud Telecom Somalia Inc Telsom Mobile Somalia Golis Telecom Somalia

There is an urgent need for a policy and regulatory framework providing for the establishment of a regulatory body that is financially and managerially independent from the operators in the telecommunications sector. The MIPT is currently working on setting up this framework based on best practices from neighboring Kenya.3

Development of Telecom/ICT sector After years without a central government and an economy in ruins, Somalias ICT sector is starting to grow and to provide the economy with an alternative means for growth and development. Prior to 1991, when Somalia last had a national government, this country of nearly 10 million people had only 8,500 operational fixed lines, most of which were in the capital, Mogadishu.

2 3

ITU Database Interview with Ibrahim, Page 3

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There is no national telecommunications operator in Somalia at the moment. In the ensuing political turbulence, that infrastructure was destroyed, along with its Public Switch Transmission Network. This left Somalis without the means to connect to the large expatriate community of friends and relatives outside the country. In time, VSAT was installed by private operators and the services of international companies such as AT&T and Telia were employed to provide transit facilities for incoming and outgoing calls. Satellite services are mainly provided through Kenya to connect Somalia to the world. It was quite useful in achieving quite competitive costs for international outgoing traffic (USD 0.3-0.7 depending on destination). However, incoming international calls as quite high (more than USD 1.2 per minute). Infrastructure had to be built from scratch but the situation has developed quickly off a low base. In 2010, there were an estimated 1.1 fixed lines per 100 people and 7 mobile subscriptions per 100 people4. Due to lack of interconnection framework, mobile subscribers are not capable of calling one another across different service providers. Users have to have a mobile line from each operator in order to be able to call subscribers on the same network5. Internet users were estimated at 1.2 users per 100 people in 2009. However, the launch of the .so domain was quite successful in 2010. Between 30-40 thousand domain names have been registered under .so domain which is currently being managed by GMO of Japan on behalf of the Somali MIPT, who are responsible for the .so ccTLD. The long term plan is to setup Somali Network Information Centre, an independent entity comprised of members from the internet service providers, the civiil society, acamedia and the ministry . 2000 0.3 1 0.2 2005 1.2 6 1.1 2008 1.1 7 1.1 2009 1.1 7 1.2

Telephone lines (per 100 people) Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) Internet users (per 100 people) Source: World Development Indicators

database, 2011

Telecoms operators have moved quickly to take advantage of the lack of restrictions and regulation made possible by the lack of a functioning central government. This environment also allowed equipment to be brought in cheaply.
4 5

ITU database, Interview with Ibrahim Page 4

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In Somalia, the telecom companies haven't competed only for customers. They have also cooperated with each other to maintain their networks and set prices to ensure that competition doesn't become too fierce.

Regulatory Trends and Evolution Regulation doesnt exist in Somalia. Yet its air wave is crowded with several mobile networks. And there is no interconnection between all operators. The Somali government has planned to regulate its mobile phone market to stimulate the growth of the market and finance roll out of services in rural areas.6 In 1998, the Somali Telecommunications Association (STA) was formed as a means for self-regulation, collaboration, in-house training and technical assistance in the absence of a government. The STA, comprised of concerned telecommunication companies, has been largely responsible for improving key issues such as standards, interconnection and coordination. This was an ITU sponsored initiative but did not deliver the expected outcomes. In fact, this has contributed to the further fragmentation and confusion in the Somali telcom sector. The ITU helped this initiative to ensure that it manturesmatures and becomes self-sustaining in the long run. However, onece the seeding fund dried out, the group stopped operating. The biggest mistake and lesson learnt from this initiative was the fact that is was based in Dubai anot in Somalia, and therefore, it was almost impossible to remotely manage opertionsoperations in Somalia from Dubai.

ibid Page 5

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2. REGULATION FRAMEWORKS, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Up till now there is no National regulatory authority in Somalia, or regulations. This has lead to an increase in the number of mobile operators as there is no need for licensing and the market is widely open. Other countries have to deal with massive obligations to legacy investors, employee pensions and legal and political issues. While quality voice calls are important customers in sophisticated economies now demand broadband and other advanced services that Somalia and the like cannot provide. Another positive outcome of this situation is that Somalia has some of the lowest domestic and international rates in all of Africaan international call costs just USD .30/min. as there are no taxes to be paid by the operators. In addition, Somalias telecom sector enjoys a speedy three days for installation of a landline, compared with waiting many years in neighboring Kenya. Nevertheless, the absence of regulator and a legal framework has created ambiguity in the investment environment and has resulted in incomplete interconnectivity agreements. The government currently is perusing establishing regulations for the telecom sector in Somalia and has already considered started taxing the Telecom operators. Discussion s are underway to achieve this goal.

Convergence Impact and Broadcasting The most dynamic trajectory for using websites as an alternative media is merging it with other types of media, such as radio stations and newspapers and incorporating them into a single online publication. This process, known as media convergence, is taking a remarkable toll in Somali media. Nearly all websites practice one of form of media convergence or another. A sizable number of them materialize all forms of convergence. Chief among them is Somaliweyn.com, which frequently posts audio and video sound bites from an affiliate radio and TV stations in Sweden and in Mogadishu. Hiiraan.com, arguably the oldest most popular Somali website, routinely uses sound bites and imagery for stories and interviews. Many others, such as Allsbc.com and Hornafrik.com are subsidiaries of an existing radio or TV stations. Seldom is news item available only in text or audio format on the aforementioned websites. Media convergence is particularly an area where traditional media has fallen behind significantly. Although the BBC Somali Service has a website,
Country Report Somalia Page 6

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its contents are internationally-geared with little relevance to local issues, thereby sacrificing immense readership. When national events occur, Somali websites exceedingly outpace traditional media in breaking news, sometimes with video clips. Leaders of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) routinely rely on websites for complete coverage when visiting international destinations. More importantly, websites report from remote parts of Somalia, often with digital images- another area where traditional media, for all its constraints, underperformed. Reciprocating such images for extended period of times, stirred a virtual community and an unforeseen national solidarity. Online business within the Somali community is also at advanced stage, as all the Somali remittance services use online service to receive and send money from around the world to Somalia. New Regulatory challenges The biggest regulatory challenge Somalias telecom sector is facing is having no regulation at all for such a long time.along with no regulator. Although this comes with the privilege of free entry to the market and low prices to consumers promoting a highly competitive environment, yet having a regulator is important because it leads to growth of other services sectors like banking, which requires connectivity and formal processes and procedures. In addition issues of interconnection are so far handled internally among the companies. In a pilot project, the Somali Telecom Association brought the local operators together with international experts on the economic benefits and costs of having interconnectivity. This led to the companies purchasing new equipment and actually forming a jointly owned entity. Now the residents of Mogadishu who have phone service can talk with each other, no longer hindered by a lack of connectivity among different operators.

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3. BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT AND REGULATION Somalia was one of the last African countries to get connected to the Internet after the country established its first ISP in 1999. But today the country has internet connectivity to almost 53% of the whole area of the country and the Internet business is mushrooming in the country and becoming one of the fastest growing services along with telephony. Dial up internet services in Somalia is the fastest growing internet services in Africa as Somalia enjoys landline growth of more than 12.5% per year compared to Horn and eastern Africa countries where landline is experiencing a serious decline due vandalism and increase cost of copper cables in the international market. This growth is attributed to the unique services policy adopted by the Somali telcom operators that is based on free local calls within each town of in the country. Landline has become the product of choice and most affordable telecommunication service in the local market. By just paying a flat rate of US$ 10 per month for unlimited calls and US0.005 per minute for Internet connections, with one time connection fee of US$50. The other high-flying Internet service in the country is Wireless Internet for corporate, educational institutions, UN, NGO and diplomatic Missions. This service is provided by both dial up and non-dial up ISPs. Major cities like Mogadishu, Hargeisa, Bosaso, Kismayo and Galkayo, the services has been delivered at the pricing structure ranging from US$ 150- 300 per month for unlimited internet access with bandwidth rate of 64kbs up and down. ADSL and LRE( long range ethernet) Internet services are also offered in Mogadishu, specially for the business centers and corporate institutions in the city. The services has not been extended to other major cities in the country but expected to be completed in the near future. So far Global internet is the only operator at the moment able to provide ADSL services in Mogadishu. The cost of ADSL services in country, believed to be the cheapest in the sub-region. For instant, the cost of the terminals plus the installation is about US$100 while the rate of services is determined by the number of computers that to be connected. For example ADSL services connected to one computer costs US$30 per month for unlimited Internet access and unlimited downloads.

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The biggest challenge for Internet services in Somalia is the cost of bandwidth as most of the customers are currently paying between US$ 2500-3000 per Mbs per month.

Country Report Somalia

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4. SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT, INTEGRATED SERVICES

UNIVERSAL

ACCESS

AND

The government has drafted rules for spectrum management, numbering plan and interconnection. The Finance Ministry is also formulating details of the taxes, although a timeline for the passing of the necessary laws remains unclear.

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5. NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND REGULATORY CAPACITY NEEDS After complete destruction of the government controlled telecommunications infrastructure, the private sector took the risk and began a nascent telecoms sector to respond to the needs of the Somali people. The result is that today Somali companies have invested in GSM cellular telephony and satellite networks, and provide the lowest international calling rates in the African continent. It is estimated that within Somalia, the private sector have invested more than US$ 390 million in the Somali telecommunication sector over the last ten years. Somalia has the opportunity to leap-frog over several generations of intermediate technologies. Recent market entrants to Somalia in fibreoptic cables and the positioning of underwater fibre-optic cables along the coast of Somalia reflect this potential. In order to reach its full and profitable potential, the sector needs are as below:1. Consensually develop the legislation for a Telecommunications Act which should provision for an independent Telecommunications and Regulatory Authority (TRA) 2. Formulate a cooperation mechanism with the private sector operators to introduce light foot-print regulations that would assure sustaining a healthy market development, most importantly interconnection, numbering and universal services. 3. Enact the Telecommunications and Regulatory Authority to draft and implement regulatory procedures assuring continuous consultation with the private operators. 4. Facilitate investment influx to build the backbone of Somalias telecommunications infrastructure to enable enhanced access and interconnectivity between networks. 5. Implement guidelines for bandwidth/frequency allocation to accommodate new generations of telecommunication networks while taking into consideration existing self-regulatory bodies.

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References:
1. http://lirneasia.net/2011/01/good-luck-to-somalia/ 2. http://www.mipt.gov.so/ 3. http://reason.com/blog/2011/01/18/somali-government-to-regulate 4. http://www.unescap.org/idd/events/2009_sRW-MDG-WSIS-SEAsia%20and %20Pacific/2010-04-20_UN_ESCAP_Telecom_Seminar_Report.pdf 5. http://www.hiiraan.com/news/2006/apr/somali_websites.aspx 6. http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/documents/Somalia-Telecom-Rev-AfriPol-Econ.pdf 7. http://www.balancingact-africa.com/news/en/issue-no-345/topstory/somalia-s-civil-war/en 8. http://somalitalk.com/2010/may/istambul/telecom.pdf 9. http://www.somaliawatch.org/archivedec01/020111101.htm 10. http://www.uneca.org/aisi/NICI/country_profiles/Somalia/sompol.htm 11.http://www.infodev.org/en/Publication.428.html 12.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somalia 13.http://mirror.undp.org/somalia/Themes/Governance/ICT.htm 14.http://comesa.assure.danishictmanagement.dk/index.php? option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=5

Country Report Somalia

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Draft 1.0 Series Code I4214 I81 I81$ I652 I4213CAB I271MD I911MD I4213D I965S I131M I133WM I4213DSL I143 I4213FTTH/B I4213TFB I992 I4213BS_CP I4213 I993 I4213BC I4213BC$ Series Name International Internet bandwidth (Mbit/s) Annual investment in telecom services Annual investment in telecom services (US$) Average annual exchange rate per US$ Cable modem Internet subscriptions Dedicated mobile data subscriptions Dedicated mobile data subscriptions per 100 inhabitants Dial-up Internet subscriptions Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite antenna subscriptions Domestic fixed-to-fixed telephone traffic (minutes) Domestic mobile telephone traffic (minutes) DSL Internet subscriptions Faults per 100 fixed telephone lines per year Fibre-to-the-home/building Internet subscriptions Fixed (wired) broadband Internet subscriptions Fixed (wired) broadband Internet subscriptions per 100 inhabitants Fixed (wired) broadband price of excess usage (per additional GB) Fixed (wired) Internet subscriptions Fixed (wired) Internet subscriptions per 100 inhabitants Fixed broadband Internet connection charge Fixed broadband Internet Page 13 2005 3 .. .. 15,484 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 0 0 .. .. .. .. .. 2006 .. .. .. 14,406 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 0 0 .. .. .. .. .. 2007 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 0 0 .. .. .. .. .. 2008 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 0 0 .. .. .. .. .. 2009 .. .. .. 33,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 2010 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 connection charge (US$) Fixed broadband Internet monthly cap Fixed broadband Internet monthly subscription Fixed broadband Internet monthly subscription (US$) Fixed broadband Internet speed (Mbit/s) Fixed telephone lines Fixed telephone lines per 100 inhabitants Fixed telephone service investment Fixed telephone service investment (US$) Fixed-to-mobile telephone traffic (minutes) Foreign investment Full-time telecommunication employees: Female Full-time telecommunication employees: Mobile Full-time telecommunication employees: Total Households Installation fee for business telephone service Installation fee for business telephone service (US$) Installation fee for residential telephone service Installation fee for residential telephone service (US$) International incoming fixed telephone traffic (minutes) International incoming total telephone traffic (minutes) International incoming traffic to mobile network (minutes) Page 14

I4213BS_C I4213BS I4213BS$ I4213BS_S I112 I91 I83 I83$ I1313WM I841F I51F I51W I51 I62 I151B I151B$ I151 I151$ I132MI I132TI I1335WM

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.20 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,356,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.17 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,393,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.15 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,426,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.12 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,468,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.10 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,502,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. 100,000 1.07 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,539,000 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 I994U I132M I132T I1191 I28 I281 I282 I28C I4213L I1311M I133MMS I153CO I153CO$ I153C I153C$ I152C I152C$ I151C I151C$ I153POO I153POO$ I153PON International Internet bandwidth per Internet user International outgoing fixed telephone traffic (minutes) International outgoing total telephone traffic (minutes) International telephone circuits ISDN subscriptions ISDN subscriptions: Basic rate ISDN subscriptions: Primary rate ISDN voice channel equivalents Leased line subscriptions Local fixed telephone traffic (minutes) MMS sent Mobile cellular - price of 3 minute local call (off-peak) Mobile cellular - price of 3 minute local call (off-peak) (US$) Mobile cellular - price of 3 minute local call (peak) Mobile cellular - price of 3 minute local call (peak) (US$) Mobile cellular monthly subscription charge Mobile cellular monthly subscription charge (US$) Mobile cellular postpaid connection charge Mobile cellular postpaid connection charge (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, offnet) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, offnet) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, onPage 15 33.31 .. .. .. 400 .. .. 800 .. .. .. 318.2 0.021 636.4 0.041 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 0 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, onnet) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, to fixed) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (off-peak, to fixed) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, off-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, off-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, on-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, on-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, to fixed) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (peak, to fixed) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, off-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, off-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, on-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, on-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, to fixed) Page 16

I153PON$ I153POF I153POF$ I153PO I153PO$ I153PN I153PN$ I153PF I153PF$ I153PWO I153PWO$ I153PWN I153PWN$ I153PWF

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. 1680.7 0.12 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 I153PWF$ I153SMS_PO I153SMS_PO$ I153PSMS I153PSMS$ I151P I151P$ I2712 I271 I911 I841M I841M$ I152B I152B$ I152 I152$ I965M I1312M I4213OB I1332WMF I1333WM Mobile cellular prepaid price of local call per minute (weekend/evening, to fixed) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of SMS (off-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of SMS (off-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid price of SMS (on-net) Mobile cellular prepaid price of SMS (on-net) (US$) Mobile cellular prepaid connection charge Mobile cellular prepaid connection charge (US$) Mobile cellular subscriptions: Digital Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants Mobile communication investment Mobile communication investment (US$) Monthly subscription for business telephone service Monthly subscription for business telephone service (US$) Monthly subscription for residential telephone service Monthly subscription for residential telephone service (US$) Multi-channel TV subscriptions Long distance fixed to fixed telephone traffic (minutes) Other fixed (wired) broadband Internet subscriptions Outgoing mobile traffic to fixed networks (minutes) Outgoing mobile traffic to Page 17 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 500,000 5.98 .. .. 31,820 2.06 31,820 2.055 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 288.12 0.02 .. .. .. 550,000 6.43 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 600,000 6.87 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 627,000 7.03 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 641,000 7.03 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 648,200 6.95 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 international (minutes) Percentage of fixed telephone faults cleared by next working day Percentage of fixed telephone lines connected to digital exchanges Percentage of fixed telephone lines in urban areas Percentage of fixed telephone lines which are residential Percentage of households with a computer Percentage of households with a fixed line telephone Percentage of households with a mobile cellular telephone Percentage of households with a radio Percentage of households with a TV Percentage of households with electricity Percentage of households with Internet access at home Percentage of individuals using a computer Percentage of individuals using a mobile cellular telephone Percentage of individuals using the Internet Percentage of localities with telephone service Percentage of the population covered by a mobile cellular network Percentage of the population covered by at least a 3G mobile network Percentage of the population in urban areas Page 18

I141 I1142 I1162 I116 XHH4_IDI XHH3F XHH3M XHH1 XHH2 XHHR1 XHH6_IDI YHH5 YHH10 I99H I1163% I271POP I271G I6111

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1.08 .. .. .. 35.2

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1.10 .. .. .. 35.64

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1.12 .. .. .. 36.08

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1.14 .. .. .. 36.52

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1.16 .. .. .. 36.96

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 I61 I271P I153O I153O$ I153 I153$ I1112 I98 I75 I75$ I71 I71$ I741 I741$ I133SMS I271MB_USE I911MB_ACTIVE Population Prepaid mobile cellular telephone subscriptions Price of a 3-minute fixed telephone local call (off-peak rate) Price of a 3-minute fixed telephone local call (off-peak rate) (US$) Price of a 3-minute fixed telephone local call (peak rate) Price of a 3-minute fixed telephone local call (peak rate) (US$) Public payphones Public payphones per 1000 inhabitants Revenue from all telecommunication services Revenue from all telecommunication services (US$) Revenue from fixed telephone services Revenue from fixed telephone services (US$) Revenue from mobile networks Revenue from mobile networks (US$) SMS sent Standard mobile subscriptions with use of data communications at broadband speeds Standard mobile subscriptions with use of data communications at broadband speeds per 100 inhabitants Terrestrial mobile wireless subscriptions Terrestrial mobile wireless subscriptions per 100 inhabitants Terrestrial multi-channel TV subscriptions Page 19 8,359,859 .. 1591 0.10 1591 0.10 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 8,547,497 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 8,733,493 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 8,922,260 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 9,119,848 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 9,330,872 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

I271MW I911MW I965C

.. .. ..

.. .. ..

.. .. ..

.. .. ..

.. .. ..

.. .. ..

Country Report Somalia

Draft 1.0 I117 I123 Total capacity of local public switching exchanges Waiting list for fixed telephone lines .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

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Somali Operators
Company Name

URL

Services fixed mobile Internet Money Transfer VoIP

Notes

DALKOM Telecom carrier &

http://www.dalkomsomalia.com/compan y-info.html
http://www.golistelecom.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somali_Telecom_Group

Capacity provider Somalia Golis Telecom Somalia Somali Telecom Group

Dalkom
Hormuud Telcom OnkoTel NationLink Telecom Netco Somafone Telesom Company

http://www.dalkomsomalia.com/ http://www.hortel.net/home.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telcom

http://www.onkotel.com/ http://www.nationlinktelecom.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netco_(Somalia)

http://www.somafone.com/index.htm
http://www.telesom.net/

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We received this note from the GSMA.

We have recently received some allegations of legitimacy of some of the GSMA operator members in Somalia. There are currently 10 operators registered with the GSMA. I would be grateful if you could please confirm the mobile licence status of all Somali mobile operators listed below:

Org Name ASGSM.MOBI Golis Telecommunications Company Ltd Hormuud Telecom Somalia Inc Montysom Ltd Nationlink Onkod Telecom Ltd Somafone FZLLC Somtel GSM FZCO (Somtel International Ltd.) Telcom Mobile Telesom Company

Networks SALAMGSM - GSM 1800 - SOMALIA,SALAMGSM - 3G 2100 SOMALIA Golis - GSM 900 - SOMALIA Hormuud Telecom Somalia - GSM 900 - SOMALIA Montysom LTD - 3G 2100 - SOMALIA,Montysom LTD - GSM 1800 - SOMALIA Nationlink - GSM 900 - SOMALIA,Nationlink - GSM 900 - SOMALIA Onkod Telecom - GSM 1800 - SOMALIA SOMAFONE - GSM 900/1800 - Somalia SOMTEL - GSM 900/1800 - SOMALIA Telcom Mobile - GSM 900 - SOMALIA Telesom - GSM 900 - SOMALIA

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And this is what we told them. And therefore the official list.
The following are the properly certified operators so far in Somalia that are members of the GSMA according to your public records: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Golis Telecommunications Company LtdGolis - GSM 900 SOMALIA Hormuud Telecom Somalia Inc Hormuud Telecom Somalia - GSM 900 SOMALIA Nationlink Nationlink - GSM 900 - SOMALIA, Nationlink - GSM 900 SOMALIA Somafone FZLLC SOMAFONE - GSM 900/1800 Somalia SOMTEL - GSM 900/1800 SOMALIA Telcom MobileTelcom Mobile - GSM 900 SOMALIA Telesom CompanyTelesom - GSM 900 - SOMALIA

Section 74 of the Somali Telecommunications Law, 2007 states that no person shall operate a telecommunications network or provide telecommunication services except in accordance with a license issued by the Authority in accordance with this Law. Pursuant to this law, the Ministry is working to prohibit further operation by several GSM wireless operators in outside the national territory which continue to operate without such a valid Ministry license.

Please use the above information if you feel it is relevant and useful to the paper.

Country Report Somalia

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