Frequency management: Central Africa accelerates cross-border cooperation
August 13th 2025
Frequencies are the basis of telecom services in each country. Poor coordination between countries can affect the quality of services provided, particularly in border areas.
From August 5 to 7, Congolese and Angolan delegations met to harmonize the use of frequencies at their shared borders. According to the Congolese Postal and Electronic Communications Regulatory Authority (ARPCE), the two parties established coordination parameters for seven frequency bands ranging from 700 MHz to 3,500 MHz and adopted a set of binding provisions, including limiting coverage to 1,000 meters beyond the borders, banning omnidirectional antennas in border areas, and dismantling irregular points of sale.
A regional trend
This project is part of a broader dynamic. On August 4, Gabon and Cameroon signed a similar agreement. The ARPCE also concluded partnerships with the DRC in 2021 and with Gabon in 2023. Discussions are currently underway with Cameroon. Other recent initiatives confirm this regional commitment, such as the bilateral meeting between Chad and Cameroon last June or the announcement, in August 2024, of a tripartite agreement bringing together Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea.
Waves know no boundaries
According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the propagation of radio frequencies ignores administrative boundaries between states, which poses a problem for joint management of frequencies at national borders. This is therefore necessary for equitable access to spectrum resources, efficient use of frequencies to avoid ” wastes ” such as guard bands or geographical exclusion zones, and the prevention or resolution of harmful interference risks.
Furthermore, the spillover of frequencies across borders can lead to the presence, in a country, of neighboring telecom operators providing their services in border areas. A notable example concerns Cameroon and Chad in the 2000s. In October 2002, the Chadian Telecommunications Regulatory Office (OTRT) referred the matter to the Cameroonian ART, accusing the Kousséri-based operators MTN and Orange of unfair competition by flooding the N’Djamena market with low-cost phones and SIM cards, which weakened the Chadian operators CELTEL and LIBERTIS, then in the installation phase. After several discussions and the involvement of the ITU, a coordination agreement was finally signed in September 2009 in Maroua to regulate this situation.
It should be noted, however, that the agreement between Congo and Angola has not yet been signed, even though its implementation is expected in the coming weeks. Once formalized, it remains to be seen how this agreement will actually be implemented on the ground. This questioning of actual implementation does not only concern this bilateral partnership, but extends to the entire sub-region.
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