EriTel
TypeState-owned enterprise
IndustryCommunications services
Founded1996[1]
HeadquartersAsmara, Eritrea
ProductsLocal wireline telecommunication services, Digital TV mobile phone operator and ISP
Websitewww.eritel.com.er

The Eritrean Telecommunication Services Corporation (formerly the Telecommunications Service of Eritrea), more commonly known as EriTel, is the sole operator of landline telephone communication infrastructure in Eritrea. It is also the sole operator of the mobile telephone service. However, it is but one of several internet service providers in the country.

Overview

EriTel (mobile phone operator)

Mobile service by EriTel started in March 2004 and service has grown considerably since inception. EriTel, as of 2013, has nearly 358,000 users,[2] though access to SIM cards are severely restricted, requiring applications to the government.[3] EriTel operates a GSM 900 network which covers almost all major urban areas including: Asmara, Embatkala, Ghinda, Massawa, Dekemhare, Mendefera, Keren, Adi Keyh, Barentu, Teseney, Agordat, Sawa,[4] and Nakfa.[5]

This branch of EriTel was founded jointly between the Government of Eritrea and Ubambo Investment Holdings Limited, a South African firm. EriTel doesn't provide its customers with SMS services to foreign locations.[6]

EriTel (ISP)

As an internet operator, EriTel was among the first companies to get a license to operate. To provide its product the firm provides internet cafes, leased lines and dial-up connections. However, connections are typically overcrowded and congestion is an acknowledged problem. EriTel controls the national gateway, which it created in partnership with USAID.[7]

EriTel (landline operator)

EriTel assumed this infrastructure from the Postal and Telecommunications Authority once they were split into separate entities. The infrastructure that is used was laid during the Italian colonial period. It consists primarily of aging copper wire, though in the major urban centers, including Asmara, Massawa, and Keren, upgrades have been made to the switching systems.

References

  1. ↑ "Telecommunication Development Country Report for Eritrea" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-05-24.
  2. ↑ "EriTel begins sale of shares". 2013-02-13. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  3. ↑ "Eritrea - where ATMs are unknown and Sim cards are like gold dust". BBC News. 2019-10-14. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
  4. ↑ "Mobile Subscribers Reach 58,000". Archived from the original on 2006-11-07. Retrieved 2006-10-17.
  5. ↑ "Mobile phone service introduced in Nacfa town". Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved 2006-10-17.
  6. ↑ "Eritrea: First mobile phone company about to be launched". Retrieved 2007-01-21.
  7. ↑ "Eritrea Country Page". Archived from the original on 2006-10-19. Retrieved 2006-10-17.


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