Telecommunications overview
There are roughly 60,000 telephone lines in Rwanda, over 90% of which
are in Kigali. The telecoms parastatal, RwandaTel, was to be privatised in 2001 with 51% being sold to a strategic investor. Cellular phone services are operated by MTN RwandaCell, established in 1998. The network is a joint venture 50% owned by a Rwandan business conglomerate, Tristar, and 25% each by RwandaTel and MTN. The service had around 20,000 subscribers in 2000, and operates in six towns, including Goma in the DRC. RwandaTel has a monopoly on internet service provision, and there are about 2,000 internet subscribers.
RwandaTel recently announced that it would sell its 28% holding in
RwandaCell. The other shareholders, MTN and Tristar, have preferential bidding rights. Bidders for the fixed line Rwandatel will only be sought once this sale is concluded.
Telecom performance indicators
| Indicator |
2000 |
2001 |
| Fixed line network |
| Lines connected |
17,000 |
22,000 |
| Equipped capacity |
30,000 |
30,000 |
| Waiting list |
10,400 |
12,000 |
| Average waiting time for line installation |
1 month |
1 month |
| Teledensity |
0.21 |
0.27 |
| Digitalisation switching (%) |
100% |
100% |
| Mobile network(s) |
| Total mobile subscribers |
39,000 |
69,000 |
| Number of digital leased lines |
| International |
3 |
3 |
| Number of public telephones |
400 |
600 |
| Number of internet accounts |
800 |
1,000 |
