SIMs have been around since 2016. When it was introduced, it was touted to replace physical SIM cards quickly. This prediction is yet to come to pass. As of 2023, there were only 986 million eSIMs connected, with most in European and American countries.
However, like most new technologies, eSIMS only made its way into Africa in 20919. In fact, Airtel only launched its eSIM service in 14 countries in February 2023.
But it’s not all gloom. Egypt has announced that it will join 18 other African countries to provide eSims to mobile subscribers.
Egypt’s minister of communications, Amr Talaat, noted that government-owned Telecom Egypt and other telcos plan to launch eSIMs by Q4 2024. The only thing left is the approval of the government regulator, the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA).
Egypt’s e-SIM plan is unique because it will allow interoperability with all four major telcos operating in the country. Talaat says that these e-SIMs will allow smartphone users to switch between telecom operators without needing to remove or exchange SIM cards in their phones. This is bound to increase competition for the telecoms market in Egypt. Users will likely see a drop in data prices as the four major telecoms strive for user attention. Switching costs become lower.
Furthermore, Egypt is set to launch a mobile 5G network after Telecom Egypt, in partnership with Nokia, obtained the country’s first 5G license. This is timely as the 5G network, used in e-SIMs, will offer faster internet speeds.
