Gathered for the first time on the same panel at Gitex Africa, the three major national telecom operators—Maroc Telecom, inwi, and Orange Maroc—put aside their historic rivalry to discuss a key issue: the sharing of telecom infrastructure.
A debate without any major concrete announcements, but revealing a strategic shift and convergent discourse,
While the three operators usually avoid each other in this type of joint communication exercise. Morocco is presented as a nerve center of continental c level executive list digital traffic. Between the Atlas Offshore and the new cables being developed to Africa, the Kingdom already plays a key role in regional connectivity.
“Morocco is a regional hub serving Africa,” the incumbent operator emphasizes, emphasizing the role of telecoms in Moroccan economic diplomacy. Morocco is indeed the leading African investor in West Africa, and digital technology is seen as a major lever of sovereignty.
Sharing of infrastructure
On the ground, telecom operators are facing an explosion in demand. “The volume of data has increased tenfold,” confides an inwi executive, citing an investment rate “rarely seen before.” Two flagship projects illustrate the efforts made by the Al Mada group subsidiary across the country: 4G coverage for more than 3 million Moroccans the best websites in remote areas, and the interconnection of 240 universities with 20,000 WiFi hotspots for one million students.
These projects are technically complex and costly, but vital for bridging the digital divide. The recent announcement of joint ventures between Maroc Telecom and inwi marks a form of reconciliation in a long-fragmented sector. Orange Morocco, which has significant institutional shareholders (CDG, Ocapital, Orange Group), says it is “totally open” to pooling its assets.
This is the first time the group has made an official statement.
Its CEO points out that 3,000 mobile towers are already shared, and that an ambitious fiber optic network (FTTH) sharing project is in the testing phase with the support of the ANRT (French National Agency for the Protection of Telecoms). “It’s no longer a question; it’s an obligation,” she summarizes. Optimizing costs, accelerating deployment, reducing the carbon footprint: the reasons converge among the three operators.
Beyond infrastructure, operators agree: the ultimate goal remains service. “Infrastructure is not an end in itself,” insists one speaker. Developing sovereign cybersecurity solutions, hosting data on the continent, or digitizing key sectors such as b2b phone list agriculture and healthcare: the projects are vast. But technical cooperation must now translate into sustainable and equitable economic models, benefiting African users in all their diversity. In their interventions, the operators demonstrate that they are ready to speak with one voice. All that remains is to make them happen.