5g POLICY IMPLICATIONS in Africa

USTDA Nigeria Digital Connectivity and Security Standards Workshop

Dr B ie n ve n u A GB OKPON TO SOGL O, Gove rn me n t a n d Pol icy Dire ctor for A frica

26 January 2021

SESSION 2: The Future of Connectivity in Nigeria

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Our purposeis to create world-changing technology thatenriches the lives of every person on earth

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5G Opportunity for Africa – Potential Economic Benefit

¹ Ericsson “The 5G Business Potential 2nd Edition” 2017, for Africa; ²GSMA: The socio-economic benefits of mmWave 5G (2020-2034); SSA Edition³ https://www.wi-fi.org/news-events/newsroom/wi-fi-global-economic-value-reaches-196-trillion-in-2018

❑ Estimated 5G Business Potential for Africa is in the order of 10.52 Billion USD by 2026¹

❑ The GDP impact (socio-economic benefits) of mmWave 5G in Sub-Saharan Africa is around 5.2 billion USD by 2034²

❑ License-exempt frequency bands are also a critical component of 5G.

✓ In 2018, the economic value provided by Wi-Fi is nearly $2 trillion, and is expected to grow to almost $3.5 trillion by 2023³.

COMPUTE

COMMS

PERSONAL COMPUTER Era Broadband

InternetMobile

& Cloud

2G 3G 4G

5GCloud-Network-Edge

Continuum

Ultra Reliable Low Latency

Communications

Enhanced Mobile

Broadband

Massive Machine Type

Communications

5G: convergence of wireless with computing and the cloudNext Generation Of Wireless Networks

Higher Speeds, Greater Capacity And Lower Latency

Billions Of Connected Devices And Things

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5G policy implications in Africa – regulatory policy❑ Any broadband strategy or policy plan should include the following key elements/items to facilitate 5G deployment/use:

✓ Spectrum allocation – affordable access to licensed spectrum and timely access to additional license-exempt spectrum.

✓ Technology neutrality.

✓ Right of way and permit process

❑ Other aspects that might be included in national ICT policy or digital economy strategies are:✓ Privacy, data protection, and cybersecurity considerations

❑ Recommendations to Countries in Africa✓ Review and update their national broadband plans/strategies to incorporate the needs for new

technological development e.g., 5G, new broadband targets, etc.

✓ Review and modernize existing regulations to adapt to new technological developments i.e. 5G, including the elimination of regulations that have outlived their original purpose, or that create unnecessary burdens which negatively impact deployment and adoption

5G Policy implications in Africa – SPECTRUM POLICY

A diverse set of regulatory models & spectrum is required for 5G to fulfill its promise

WIDE AREA EXCLUSIVELY

LICENSED

• Exclusive to MNOs• Verticals supported

by network slicing

SHARED LICENSED

• e.g., shared between govs/incumbents and MNOs/commercial

LICENSE-Exempt

• “Unlicensed” approaches (e.g., Wi-Fi 6 scheduling)

LOCAL AREA EXCLUSIVELY

LICENSED

• For enterprise & industrial on-premise applications

Licensed Band Unlicensed Band Hybrid / Shared License Band

LOW BANDS MID BANDS HIGH BANDS

26/28 GHz700 MHz CBRS in US(~3.5 GHz)

40 GHz 60 GHzUnlicensed

2.3 – 2.4 GHz, 3.3 – 3.6 GHz, 2.5 - 2.69 GHz, 4.8 – 4.99 GHz

6 GHz Unlicensed

800 MHz

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Suggestions towards a 5g strategy in Africa

It is recommended to consider the following:

1. Review of national ICT policy/strategy to incorporate the needs for new technological development i.e., 5G.

2. Review and modernize existing regulations to adapt to new technological developments (5G)

3. A harmonized 5G spectrum roadmap that consists of:

➢ Licensed spectrum: in low-band – below ~1 GHz (e.g., 700 / 800 MHz band); mid-band – between ~2 – 5 GHz (e.g. 2.3 – 2.4 GHz, 2.5 – 2.69 GHz, 3.3-3.6 GHz, 4.8 – 4.99 GHz); and high-band – above 24 GHz (e.g., within 26 GHz and 40 GHz)

➢ License-exempt spectrum: to immediately open up the lower part of the 6 GHz band (5 925 – 6 425 MHz) for license-exempt low power indoor (LPI) and very low power (VLP) outdoor use; and unlicensed spectrum accessed in the 60 GHz range (e.g., 57 – 66 GHz and 66 – 71 GHz)

4. The deployment of infrastructure that will facilitate 5G such as fiber, data centers, edge compute and transformed networks

5. Deployment of 5G use cases/applications in areas such as fixed wireless broadband, digital government, education, healthcare, smart agriculture, smart cities and Industrial IoT.

For more information, please refer to Section 4.2. Recommendations in the Intel White paper on 5G policy implications in Sub-Sahara Africa

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Thank you