Sub-Saharan Africa set to lead global 5G growth, reaching 370 million subscriptions by 2031

Ericsson forecasts Sub-Saharan Africa will become the fastest-growing 5G market over the next five years, with subscriptions soaring from 30 million in 2025 to 370 million by 2031, signalling a major shift in the region’s digital landscape.

Ericsson says Sub-Saharan Africa is on track to become the world’s fastest-growing 5G market over the next five years, with subscriptions rising from about 30 million in 2025 to roughly 370 million by 2031. The latest Ericsson Mobility Report also projects that total mobile subscriptions in the region will increase to 1.31 billion by 2031, up from 1.05 billion in 2025, as operators continue shifting users away from older 2G and 3G networks towards 4G and 5G. While 5G will still represent a minority of connections at the end of the forecast period, Ericsson expects it to reach 28% of the market, underscoring how quickly the region’s network mix is changing.

The report suggests that data demand will accelerate sharply alongside that transition. Average monthly usage per active smartphone is forecast to more than double, from 5.3 gigabytes in 2025 to 12 gigabytes in 2031, while total mobile data traffic is expected to jump from 2.8 exabytes a month to 9.7 exabytes. Ericsson says that growing use of artificial intelligence and uplink-intensive applications such as extended reality and autonomous devices will alter traffic patterns across the region.

Even so, the pace of adoption is likely to remain uneven. Ericsson notes that 5G has now been launched in 36 of Africa’s 54 countries, but in many markets coverage is still confined largely to major cities, busy commercial districts and tourist zones. The wider rollout is being held back by device costs, with industry groups warning that mass adoption in emerging markets depends on smartphones falling into the $30 to $40 range. The GSMA estimates that 3.1 billion people already live within mobile coverage but remain offline.

The report’s regional heads framed the shift as both a connectivity and economic opportunity. Alain Maupin, vice-president and head of Ericsson East and North Africa at Ericsson Europe, Middle East and Africa, said the spread of digital transformation across the continent, together with AI and uplink-heavy services, would reshape traffic demand. Majda Lahlou Kassi, vice-president and head of Ericsson West and Southern Africa, said the rise of 4G and 5G could help the region bypass older stages of network development and build a more inclusive digital economy, provided governments and operators invest in spectrum and supportive policy frameworks.

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Source: Fuse Wire Services