Guinea: Return of intra-network call fees suspended in 2022
March 20th 2025
The Guinean government has revealed that it has reintroduced the on-net (intra-network) charge, which was suspended in 2022, for calls within the same network. However, the charge has increased from 20 Guinean francs ($0.0023) to 15 Guinean francs per minute.
This measure, which came into effect on January 1, was announced by the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy . “The decree does not provide for any increase in the price of telephone calls. Current rates remain unchanged for users, despite the introduction of a new fee for operators,” the ministerial department said in a statement published on its Facebook page on Wednesday, March 19.
The reintroduction of the same-network call fee is part of the Guinean authorities’ desire to increase the telecoms sector’s contribution to state revenue for development projects. For example, for the 2025 budget, the Guinean government is planning total expenditures of 41,897 billion Guinean francs, an increase of 12.1% compared to 2024.
In addition to the on-net fee, the Guinean government has decided to increase the authorization management fee to 0.50% of the turnover of Internet service providers (ISPs). For telephone and infrastructure operators, the license management fee is increasing from 0.25% to 0.75% of turnover.
This shift toward the telecommunications sector comes amid a digital transformation marked by an acceleration in the adoption and use of telecom services. A similar situation can also be observed in neighboring Mali, where the government decided last February to increase the tax on the provision of telecom services to 7%, up from 5% previously.
In January 2022, Mamy Diaby, former director of the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ARPT), revealed that the elimination of the on-net fee would cause the State to lose at least 240 billion Guinean francs per year. The executive then argued that “this fee creates a brake on the growth of traffic for the simple reason that it prevents operators from carrying out market stimulation activities through the granting of bonuses, which in itself is a form of price reduction for consumers.”
While this measure by the Guinean government could increase its revenues, it risks affecting the income of telecom operators. This decline could limit their ability to invest in improving the quality of services and expanding network coverage across the country.
Source: Agency EcoFin
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