Burkina Faso’s Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Posts (ARCEP) has issued formal notices to the country’s three mobile network operators (MNOs) – Orange Burkina Faso, Telecel Faso and Moov Africa Burkina Faso – over their failure to meet quality of service (QoS) obligations set out in their operating licences. The warnings follow an audit conducted in April and May which highlighted issues with call connection and drop rates, voice quality and data connection speeds. The operators have been notified they face financial penalties if they fail to comply by 31 December 2022.
‘This decision is an invitation to operators to remedy the non-compliance with the terms of their operating licences observed during audits conducted between 31 March and 23 April and 26 April and 16 May 2022,’ ARCEP stated in the notices issued on 28 October, adding: ‘Following the formal warnings, a further audit will be carried out to ensure that the operators have rectified their shortcomings. Failure to comply with the provisions of the decision will lead to the application of sanctions, as provided for under existing regulations.’