Rwanda to Phase Out 2G Networks After 3G Shutdown by 2027
Africa · Eastern
Key Facts
—National 3G switch-off. Rwanda will shut down 3G networks nationwide by 30 June 2027, with pilot shutdowns beginning in 2026.
—2G retirement follows. The government will retire 2G services after 3G is fully decommissioned, completing the legacy network phase-out.
—Airtel front-runs the timeline. Airtel Rwanda plans to switch off 3G by end-2025 and 2G by end-2026, ahead of the national schedule.
—4G coverage near-universal. About 95–97% of Rwanda’s population already has 4G LTE coverage, making the legacy shutdown technically feasible.
—5G already live in Kigali. MTN Rwanda launched commercial 5G in June 2025 with 51 sites, targeting enterprise and industrial clients.
Rwanda will phase out 2G and 3G mobile networks in a deliberate leapfrog to a 4G/5G-only future, betting that near-universal broadband coverage and a competitive telecom market can absorb the transition without leaving poorer users behind.
The decision: a state-led push to retire legacy networks
On 28 July 2026, Rwanda’s Ministry of Information and Communication Technology and Innovation (MINICT) confirmed a formal plan to switch off 3G nationwide by 30 June 2027. The retirement of 2G services will follow, though no hard national date has yet been fixed beyond “following” the 3G shutdown.
MINICT frames the move as central to Rwanda’s digital transformation agenda. The goal is to accelerate broadband adoption, shift users onto 4G and 5G, and free spectrum and capital currently tied up in ageing infrastructure.
A formal technical assessment of the phase-out was launched via an Expression of Interest led by MINICT. The document explicitly positions the shutdown as part of an effort to “enhance telecommunications infrastructure and become a leading digital hub in Africa.”
Why Rwanda can afford to phase out 2G now
Rwanda enters this transition from a position of unusual strength for an African market. The country has built a national fibre-optic backbone of over 3,000–4,000 kilometres, connecting all 30 districts and multiple border points, completed around 2010–2011.
4G LTE was rolled out through a wholesale-only model by Korea Telecom Rwanda Networks (KTRN) starting in 2013–2014. By 2024, coverage reached about 95–97% of the population, giving Rwanda one of the highest 4G footprints on the continent.
As of early 2024, the country had 12.2 million mobile connections, roughly 86% of the population, and 9.27 million mobile internet subscriptions. Fixed broadband remained modest at about 62,000 lines, underscoring mobile’s dominance as the primary connectivity channel.
Airtel and MTN: two operators, two timelines
Airtel Rwanda has already front-run the government’s schedule. The operator announced in December 2024 that it would phase out 3G by end-2025 and 2G by end-2026, “in line with global trends and national broadband ambitions.”
The GSMA’s global 2G/3G phase-out tracker records Airtel Rwanda’s planned 3G shutdown on 31 December 2025 and 2G shutdown on 31 December 2026. Airtel has actively promoted Voice over 4G (VoLTE), reporting over one million subscribers on the service by late 2024.
MTN Rwanda has taken a different approach, focusing on 4G modernisation and 5G rollout rather than committing to specific legacy shutdown dates. The operator made its network 5G-ready in November 2024 through a partnership with Ericsson and launched commercial 5G in Kigali in June 2025 with 51 sites.
The money behind the migration
Rwanda’s telecom infrastructure has been built through a hybrid of public capital, foreign investment, and development finance. In 2013, South Korea’s KT Corp signed a deal to build a 4G LTE mobile network on a wholesale-only basis, investing around US$140 million in the project.
A new public-private infrastructure agreement with KT announced in 2025 aims to expand nationwide 4G and 5G coverage, adding new fibre routes, high-capacity towers, and last-mile upgrades with a focus on rural and peri-urban connectivity. The World Bank has also committed US$40 million to finance Rwanda’s new digital identification system, which will be issued from birth and anchor e-government and e-payment services.
The government’s National Broadband Policy and Strategy, adopted in October 2022, foresees RWF 200 billion in new broadband investment, mainly from the private sector but supported by catalytic public funding. Tower operator IHS has entered the market to improve efficiency and lower costs, while TRES Infrastructure Ltd has leased state land in nine districts to expand optical fibre and antenna networks.
The policy pivot that made the phase-out possible
Rwanda’s original Single Wholesale Network (SWN) model, which granted KTRN a monopoly on 4G LTE wholesale services, attracted criticism for slowing adoption and limiting operator incentives to invest. In 2022, the government reversed the SWN policy, opening 4G and 5G to greater competition.
The results were dramatic. According to GSMA, 4G penetration surged from 2% to 30% in just two years following the reversal.
The 2022 broadband policy also introduced technology neutrality, allowing operators to reuse spectrum bands simultaneously for 4G and 5G, a key enabler for retiring older technologies.
The decision to phase out 2G and 3G can be seen as the second stage of that policy pivot: moving from a tightly controlled wholesale model to a competitive, high-bandwidth marketplace where multiple operators invest in next-generation infrastructure.
The inclusion question: what happens to basic-phone users
2G remains important in many emerging markets for low-cost handsets, voice calls, and basic SMS. The phase-out raises legitimate concerns about device affordability and digital inclusion, especially for poorer and rural users.
MINICT has convened device importers to coordinate on the availability of affordable 4G and 5G-capable phones. The government lists improving device affordability as a core objective in its digital infrastructure agenda, and Airtel’s rapid growth of VoLTE subscribers is a key step in migrating voice traffic onto 4G so users still have voice services once 3G disappears.
Whether these measures prove sufficient will be a critical test. A state-driven leapfrog that leaves poorer citizens stranded on the wrong side of a digital divide would undercut the very development narrative Rwanda is selling to investors.
Geopolitics and the great-power contest
Rwanda’s digital transformation sits at the intersection of several great-power and middle-power interests. South Korea, through KT Corp’s US$140 million investment and ongoing 4G/5G expansion agreements, has secured a long-term foothold in the country’s digital infrastructure, positioning Rwanda as a showcase for Korean telecom technology in Africa.
The World Bank’s US$40 million digital ID programme reflects a broader pattern of Western development-finance support for digital public infrastructure. Meanwhile, Ericsson’s role in modernising MTN’s network ties Rwanda into the Swedish equipment-maker’s global ecosystem, at a time when the geopolitics of 5G vendors has become a flashpoint in the contest between Western and Chinese technology standards.
For readers following the broader scramble for digital influence across Africa, this story fits squarely within the dynamics covered in our pillar series Africa: The New Scramble. Rwanda is betting that early adoption of high-bandwidth infrastructure will attract data centres, fintech hubs, and AI ventures, turning a small, landlocked nation into a regional digital services node.
What to watch next
The pilot 3G shutdowns later in 2026 will offer the first real-world test of whether the migration strategy holds. Investors should watch for any disruption to voice services, spikes in device prices, or pushback from rural communities that rely on 2G for basic connectivity.
The regulatory environment will also be under scrutiny. Rwanda’s SWN reversal in 2022 showed the government can make significant policy U-turns when strategies underperform.
International investors will want to see predictable spectrum allocation, stable competition rules, and transparent taxation as the 4G/5G market matures.
Finally, the digital ID rollout, combined with ubiquitous connectivity, will expand the state’s ability to manage identity, taxation, and social services. How Rwanda handles data protection and cross-border data flows will shape whether it becomes a trusted regional digital hub or a cautionary tale about surveillance and control.
Connected Coverage
Frequently Asked Questions
When will Rwanda switch off 3G and 2G networks?
Rwanda will switch off 3G nationwide by 30 June 2027, with pilot shutdowns beginning in 2026. The retirement of 2G services will follow after 3G is fully decommissioned, though no hard national date has been fixed.
Airtel Rwanda plans to move faster, targeting 3G shutdown by end-2025 and 2G by end-2026.
Will basic mobile phones still work in Rwanda after the phase-out?
Phones that only support 2G or 3G will stop working once those networks are switched off. The government is working with device importers to ensure affordable 4G and 5G-capable handsets are available.
Airtel has also built a VoLTE subscriber base of over one million users to carry voice traffic over 4G once 3G disappears.
Why is Rwanda phasing out 2G and 3G now?
Rwanda already has 4G coverage reaching about 95–97% of the population, making legacy networks less essential. The phase-out frees spectrum and capital for 4G and 5G, improves spectral efficiency, and supports the country’s ambition to become a regional digital hub.
The policy also follows a 2022 reversal of the Single Wholesale Network model, which unlocked rapid 4G adoption and competition.
Sources
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