Morocco prepares tender to launch 5G

Morocco is preparing to launch a tender to launch 5G bandwidth, a project that attracts interests from China’s Huwawei and western firms, Morocco’s Finance News Hebdo said.

Huwawei is already operating in the country in partnerships with local operators Maroc Telecom and Orange Maroc and seems to be better placed compared to western peers such as Nokia, Ericson, and Oracle.

The winner will also face the challenge of meeting the ambitious targets of the Moroccan government to offer the service to 25% of the population by 2026 and 70% by 2030, when the country will co-host the World Cup.

The six cities that will host the 2030 World Cup matches will be fully covered by the 5G network, according to the Moroccan government’s targets.

Compared to 4G, 5G can provide download speeds up to 100 times faster, while reducing latency to as low as 1 millisecond.

Morocco has one of the highest internet penetration rates in Africa at 90.7%.