The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has issued warning notices to Airtel and Telkom Kenya for non-compliance with the quality of service (QoS) provided to consumers on their mobile telephone networks.
The CA’s QoS report for the year, which ended June 2023, shows that only Safaricom surpassed the 80 per cent performance threshold, after attaining 90 per cent of the set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
A mobile operator is rated compliant when they attain 80 per cent of the set QoS KPIs, and Airtel and Telkom Kenya attained 79 per cent and 65 per cent, respectively. With an industry average of 72.4 per cent, the 2022/2023 score was a big drop compared to the previous scores, 82.3 per cent in 2021/2022 and 75.53 per cent in 2020/2021.
According to the report, “Airtel Kenya Networks and Telkom Kenya failed to meet not only their coverage targets but also a number of the most critical QoS KPIs, particularly the ‘Unsuccessful Call Ratio’ and Data Internet KPIs, which is an indicator for coverage and internet availability and accessibility, respectively.”
The report further revealed that the county with the best QoS was Nairobi, scoring 93.9 per cent, while the county with the lowest QoS was Laikipia, at 54 per cent.
The Authority had targeted conducting the QoS inspection and monitoring in all 47 counties; however, due to insecurity, the Authority did not conduct the QoS tests in Wajir, Mandera, and Garissa counties.
These scientific measurements and analyses are aim to provide a broader view of the quality of service offered by mobile service providers. The CA has continuously invested in systems and infrastructure to improve the performance of the sector and its assessment methods. Section 23 of the Kenya Information and Communications Act, 1998, mandates the Authority to ensure that licensed telecommunications operators and service providers offer efficient services that adhere to the license conditions.
The report also reveals that mobile network connectivity projects, implemented by the Authority through the Universal Service Fund (USF), have tremendously enhanced the overall quality of service offered to and experienced by consumers, especially in rural and hard-to-reach areas of the country.
