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SA reached a median mobile download speed of 65.7Mbps by the end 2025. (Image from 123RF)
Despite slipping five places, South Africa’s mobile download speeds make it a “consistent leader” in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).
Additionally, the country is one of only three SSA nations in the global top 100 list for mobile in the fourth quarter of 2025, according to Ookla.
The US-based market research firm released the latest Speedtest Global Index, which analysed mobile and fixed broadband performance in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region in 2025.
Ookla notes Sub-Saharan Africa relies mostly on mobile infrastructure, with a huge usage gap between urban and rural areas, adding that infrastructure reliability is plagued by electricity shortages.
In its latest report, Ookla shows that SA reached a median mobile download speed of 65.7Mbps by the end of the year, ahead of rival nations Kenya and Nigeria.
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The achieved download speeds saw the Southern African nation placed 64th in the top 100 list in December.
Meanwhile, Kenya and Nigeria ranked 80th and 85th place, respectively.
On the fixed broadband side, Ookla notes that the picture is more diversified, reflecting the great progress made by SSA in terms of fibre deployment and adoption.
West African nation Côte d’Ivoire is the highest-ranking country in SSA, taking the 103rd position in December 2025, with a median download speed of 58.17Mbps.
Research and analyst firm Omdia estimates that 10% to 15% of all country premises are covered with fibre-to-the-premises (FTTPP), according to Ookla.
“While this is lower than other countries such as Senegal, SA, and Kenya, it outperformed them in median download speed. This could be because the user base is concentrated on relatively higher‑speed connections.
“Six other countries in SSA are in the top 120, with Mauritania recording the largest jump in 2025, moving 24 places to the 106th with a median download speed of 55.66Mbps, just below Morocco.
“The country expanded its backbone, adding 5 500km of fibre, and planning to lay a total of 8 000km of additional lines by 2025 and beyond as part of the Mauritanian government’s digital agenda 2022-2025. Interestingly, South Africa is the only country in the region where wholesale-only FTTP networks are common.”
Among the G20 groups major economies, Saudi Arabia, SA and Türkiye are the only MEA countries that are part of this group.
However, there are significant differences, highlights the report.
The G20 groups major economies across 19 countries and the European Union represent nearly 80% of the global gross domestic product.
Saudi Arabia ranked ninth globally in December 2025 in mobile, which corresponds to the third position among G20 countries, ahead of the US, China, Australia, Canada and Japan, and European countries.
On the other hand, Türkiye sits at the 13th position ahead of Japan, before even launching 5G. Despite having 5G since 2021, South Africa is ranked slightly lower at 15th, suggesting there is room for improvement.
“On the fixed side, Saudi Arabia stands at 10th place among G20 nations. In comparison, Türkiye and South Africa rank in the bottom quarter of G20 at 16th and 18th, highlighting challenges in fixed internet infrastructure and fibre adoption.”
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