Niger is one of the largest countries in West Africa and one of the poorest countries in the world. As in many African markets, the lack of fixed telecommunications infrastructure has led to growth in mobile services. Compared to other countries in the region, Niger has a moderate mobile penetration rate and a negligible fixed broadband penetration rate.
The recent completion of international investment in the Trans-Saharan backside fibre (SDR) network has expanded the coverage of the country's fibre infrastructure and increased international capacity. New cables connecting the country to Chad and Burkina Faso have extended Niger's connectivity to the international cable infrastructure.
After years of financial difficulties, state-owned fixed line operator Sonitel merged with its wholly-owned mobile arm SahelCom at the end of 2016 to create a new entity, Niger Telecom, which was awarded a global telecommunications licence in November 2017, with the aim of increasing efficiency through shared resources and infrastructure.
Economic difficulties in recent years have prompted the Orange Group to sell its local operations to its minority partner. The division, which had operated under the name Orange Niger, was renamed Zamani Telecom in December 2020, while the company received funding to carry out a major network upgrade programme.
