---
title: DRC and Sudan drive Africa cell growth - Developing Telecoms
description: Congo and Sudan drive Africa cell growth
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date: 2015-01-06T15:49:19Z
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  Following identification as a potentially strong Internet market, Eastern and  Central Africa  have now been singled out as markets set for exceptional growth on cellular applications...

Following identification as a potentially strong Internet market, Eastern and    Central Africa    have now been singled out as markets set for exceptional growth on cellular applications.

Two countries,   Sudan  and Democratic Republic of Congo, were identified as the main drivers of growth at a recent conference: 187% growth by 2010 is the key statistic.  The analysts and executives looked at a region which stretches from   Sudan  in the north to   Tanzania  in the south and   Cameroon  in the west, and predicted that 55 million subscribers would be in place by 2010, as new networks come online and competition forces down prices.

Reasons behind the forecasts included political stability in an area long beset by civil strife, natural resources notably Congo's diamonds, affordability (competition coming into force), and population size (Congo has 56 million people).

Vitalis Olunga, head of regulatory and public policy at Kenyan cellular operator Safaricom, and chairman of lobby group GSM Africa, believes: "There is a lot of potential in   Sudan  due to political change. It is already taking (off), and we believe there will be more growth...In DRC there is penetration of just 5%, and we expect a lot more in that area."

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