Following months of testing, Airtel is now the second telco to roll out 5G in Kenya after Safaricom did so in October 2022.
Eliud Owalo, Kenya’s cabinet secretary for ICT, and Ezra Chiloba, the director-general of the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), attended the event where Airtel, the country’s second-largest network operator, introduced the product.
Due to the carrier’s limited number of 370 5G sites dispersed across 16 counties, Airtel 5G will initially only be accessible to a small number of consumers. Which locations would be served was not made clear by the operator. However, it’s anticipated that the service will concentrate on serving people in populous areas and urban centres like Nairobi, Nakuru, Mombasa, and Kisumu.
Customers can purchase 5G-compatible routers from Airtel for KES 10,000 ($72). Airtel will provide residential homes and commercial buildings with 5G home broadband connections. 10Mbps plans start at KES 3,500 ($25). Higher speed customers must pay extra; 30Mbps costs KES 5,500 ($40) and 50Mbps costs KES 7,500 ($54). Volume-based home data plans are also available from Airtel starting at KES 3000 ($22). These packages appeal to users who require fast internet because they are also unlimited.
Following Safaricom, Airtel has also announced the availability of 5G Wi-Fi. Last year, Safaricom unveiled a comparable device that allowed users to buy a 5G router and connect to the network in locations with 5G signals.
