MTN Ghana and Vodafone Ghana have signed an agreement to pilot national roaming as the first step to a nationwide roaming partnership to permanently expand coverage, and spur digitalisation in the country.
In a joint statement, the operators will first test roaming in the Volta region, which will see Vodafone Ghana expanding coverage by leveraging MTN’s network infrastructure in this pilot phase.
The companies detailed the purpose of the national roaming agreement is to expand universal access to connectivity and accelerate digitalisation in the country, which aligns with government objectives.
MTN and Vodafone say this partnership will set a blueprint for a national roaming agreement with all operators in Ghana.
The next phase of the roaming agreement will cover more complex technical configurations to prepare for nationwide roaming on either network.
Vodafone Ghana chief executive Patricia Obo-Nai said: “The implementation of national roaming will enable Vodafone Ghana customers to stay connected in areas outside our current locations of coverage.
“This is especially important for rural communities as national roaming invariably provides a greater choice of network providers. We believe strongly that the collaboration in the Volta Region is a positive step, and working together with the government, the regulator and MTN Ghana, we look forward to extending the national roaming service beyond the Volta Region in due course.”
MTN Ghana CEO Selorm Adadevoh added: “MTN fully supports the Government’s National Roaming plans. We acknowledge that national roaming will extend network coverage for Ghanaians nationwide and support the growth of the Ghana Telecommunications industry”.
