Egypt Signs Agreements to Accelerate 5G Services worth $3.5 Billion

Egypt is pressing ahead with its “Digital Egypt” transformation as the government signed new spectrum allocation agreements with the country’s four mobile operators to accelerate the rollout of 5G services, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced on Saturday.

Speaking during the signing ceremony, Madbouly described the agreements as “the largest investment deal in the history of Egypt’s telecommunications sector,” noting that the four operators committed investments estimated at $3.5 billion. He said the scale of the deal reflects strong investor confidence in Egypt’s market and the stability of its economic policies.

Madbouly stressed that telecommunications and information technology have evolved beyond a traditional service industry into what he called a “promising productive service sector,” joining key pillars of the economy such as industry, agriculture, and tourism in driving growth and exports.

The prime minister highlighted several recent achievements. Egypt has successfully attracted 15 global brands to manufacture mobile phones locally. The country has also welcomed 55 multinational outsourcing companies. Agreements have been signed to employ more than 75,000 specialists in the ICT sector. Meanwhile, digital service exports have increased to over $6.2 billion. Additionally, the number of companies exporting digital services has expanded from 10 to more than 240.

Since 2019, the government has invested approximately $2.5 billion to upgrade fixed broadband infrastructure, resulting in a 19-fold increase in average internet speeds to around 90 Mbps.

Madbouly also pointed to the national fiber-optic replacement project, which aims to substitute legacy copper networks with high-speed fiber connections, as well as the “Decent Life” initiative designed to extend high-speed internet services to 4,500 villages nationwide to ensure equitable access to digital services.

Regarding 5G deployment, Madbouly said Egypt is transitioning from the launch phase,  initiated last June, to a broader implementation and expansion stage.

He emphasized that 5G is not merely a technological upgrade, but a foundational platform for artificial intelligence applications, the Internet of Things (IoT), and smart city development.

The newly signed agreements will effectively double the spectrum capacity available to mobile operators in a single step, helping accommodate rapidly growing data consumption and improve service quality for consumers.

Madbouly reaffirmed the government’s commitment to public-private partnership, noting that the ICT sector’s contribution to GDP has risen from 3.2% and is targeted to reach 8%, reinforcing Egypt’s regional and international standing in the knowledge economy.