Ghana's 5G Auction Comes With New Rules for MTN

Ghana’s 5G license auction is doing more than allocating spectrum. It is also redefining how the country’s next generation of mobile networks will be built and who gets to compete for them.

The National Communications Authority (NCA) has opened bidding for 5G spectrum divided into 11 lots with a combined reserve value of $230 million. The auction comes months after the government amended the exclusive rights previously granted to Next Gen Infraco (NGIC), allowing mobile operators to compete directly for spectrum in the 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands.

MTN Ghana and Telecel Ghana have both confirmed they intend to bid, setting up one of Africa’s most closely watched telecom auctions.

The auction marks a significant change from Ghana’s original 5G strategy.

In 2024, the government established NGIC as a neutral wholesale network operator through a partnership involving Radisys, Nokia and Tech Mahindra. The company received a 10-year exclusive licence to build and operate shared 4G and 5G infrastructure that mobile operators would access on a wholesale basis instead of deploying their own nationwide 5G networks.

NGIC launched its wholesale 5G network in November 2024, but the model struggled to gain momentum. Operators were slow to lease network capacity, deployment progressed below expectations and the government later revised the framework to allow direct spectrum licensing.

The latest Request for Applications now enables licensed operators to compete for spectrum while limiting how much any single bidder can acquire.

By dividing the available frequencies into 11 spectrum lots, regulators are seeking to encourage wider participation while avoiding excessive concentration.

One of the auction’s most notable provisions is a 40% bid premium applied to MTN.

The NCA classifies MTN as having Significant Market Power, reflecting its dominant position in Ghana’s mobile communications sector. Rather than excluding MTN from the auction, regulators have increased the effective cost of its bids to give competing operators a more balanced opportunity to secure spectrum.

The approach is uncommon in African telecom markets, where spectrum auctions generally apply the same pricing rules to all qualified bidders.

Current subscriber data helps explain the regulator’s position.

According to the NCA’s first-quarter 2026 industry figures, MTN serves 23.8 million mobile internet subscriptions, accounting for roughly four out of every five mobile internet connections in Ghana. Telecel follows with 4.6 million, while AT serves about 1.3 million.

Together, MTN and Telecel account for approximately 95% of Ghana’s mobile internet market.

The policy change also reflects the government’s assessment of NGIC’s rollout.

Although the company was tasked with delivering nationwide shared 5G infrastructure, progress fell short of initial expectations. NGIC had scaled back its deployment target to 1,200 sites by 2027, and by March 2026 had 49 operational 5G sites.

Communications Minister Sam George subsequently indicated that the pace of deployment and the need for stronger market competition justified opening 5G licensing to mobile operators.

The revised framework does not abandon Ghana’s ambition for nationwide 5G coverage. Instead, it places greater responsibility on competing operators to expand their own networks while the government maintains its target of reaching 70% population coverage by 2027.

NCA data shows Ghana recorded 29.7 million mobile internet subscriptions in the first quarter of 2026, up from 23.2 million in the final quarter of 2023.

During the same period, mobile internet penetration rose from 71.6% to 87.7%, while mobile voice subscriptions increased from 33.4 million to 43.5 million.

Those figures point to a market where demand for mobile broadband continues to expand, giving operators a strong commercial case for investing in nationwide 5G infrastructure.

Many African countries have awarded 5G spectrum through conventional licensing frameworks while relying on existing competition rules.

Ghana has taken a different approach.

The combination of spectrum caps, direct operator participation and a bid premium for the market leader makes this one of the continent’s most closely watched telecom regulatory experiments.

Equally notable is what the government has changed. Ghana has not abandoned the idea of wholesale infrastructure altogether. Instead, it has moved away from granting a single provider exclusive control over the country’s 5G rollout, opting for a model that gives multiple operators the opportunity to build and compete.

Whether that approach delivers broader coverage, stronger competition and faster deployment will become clearer once the auction concludes and the winning operators begin rolling out their networks. For now, Ghana is testing whether opening the market can accelerate 5G investment without allowing the country’s largest operator to strengthen its already dominant position.

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