The National Communications Institute of Mozambique (INCM) has warned of the continued presence of significant failures in the national mobile network, according to the “Quality of Service Report – National Campaign 2024”, resulting from a technical assessment conducted between June and November this year.
The campaign, based on the Drive Test methodology, was carried out in 20 geographic areas across the southern, central, and northern regions of the country, aiming to measure the coverage and quality of voice and data services provided by operators Tmcel, Vodacom, and Movitel on 2G, 3G, and 4G technologies.
Among the evaluated indicators, the average network availability fell short of the regulatory target of 99%: Vodacom reached 96.78%, Tmcel 91.95%, and Movitel 91.40%.
Regarding voice service quality, operators showed uneven performance. Although all recorded percentages close to the target of successfully established calls (≥ 98%), some failed to meet the parameters for call setup time (target: < 8 seconds) and average audio quality (target: > 3.5). The dropped call rate revealed significant differences: Vodacom recorded 0.33% on 3G networks, while Tmcel reached 2.20% and Movitel 0.28%.
As for mobile data services, Vodacom led in average 4G download speed with 20.71 Mbps, followed by Tmcel with 14.44 Mbps and Movitel with 13.02 Mbps. On 3G technology, Vodacom also achieved the best performance (4.95 Mbps), slightly above Tmcel (4.91 Mbps), while Movitel lagged with 2.70 Mbps. Network coverage analysis showed better performance in urban and densely populated areas. However, not all operators met the regulatory coverage target (95% of samples with minimum recommended signal). On 4G, Vodacom and Movitel reached 85% of tested areas, while Tmcel achieved only 40%.
According to the report, tests were conducted using commercial devices installed in vehicles, simulating the experience of a typical user and ensuring equal conditions for all operators.
“Through this action, INCM aims to promote transparency regarding sector performance, inform consumers, and encourage greater competition in Mozambique’s mobile telecommunications market,” the study notes.
Text: Felisberto Ruco
