• Telecel has made 1,890 sites 4G-compliant out of 2,698 planned for 2026
  • The figures leave 808 sites to complete but do not show where service quality has improved

The fact

Telecel Ghana has upgraded 1,890 network sites for 4G service, Communications Minister Samuel Nartey George said during a government briefing in Accra. The operator's target for 2026 is 2,698 sites, putting the reported rollout at about 70% and leaving 808 sites to complete.

George also said Telecel's capital investment between 2023 and 2026 was 60% higher than in the preceding four-year period. The reports do not state how much of that investment went into the 4G upgrades. They also do not provide a site-by-site list, population-coverage figures or measurements of customer speeds after the work. The 1,890 figure therefore measures infrastructure completed rather than the quality of service available to individual customers.

The assessment

Telecel's site count shows that much of the planned upgrade work is complete, but it does not tell a business whether service has improved at a particular office, shop or warehouse. That depends on which sites have been upgraded and how the network performs once customers are using them.

For companies considering 4G as a primary or backup connection, the useful evidence will come from individual locations. Speeds, reliability and latency during normal working hours will matter more than the national completion percentage when deciding whether an existing connection can be changed.

For BTW readers, the missing detail is where the upgrades have been completed and what customers experience there. A site map and local performance data would show how much of Telecel's infrastructure work has translated into better service.

What to watch

Watch for Telecel or the government to publish the locations of completed 4G upgrades and measurements of network performance at those sites. Progress on the remaining 808 sites will show whether Telecel reaches its 2026 target, while local service data would show what the rollout is changing for customers.