Mobile cellular subscriptions in Africa Eastern and Southern

Africa Eastern and Southern: Mobile cellular subscriptions was 734.00 million in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
734.00 million
Change on year
up 9.2%
Rank
31st
of 48 groups
All-time high
734.00 million
in 2025
All-time low
0
in 1960
Years of data
54
1960–2025

Mobile cellular subscriptions in Africa Eastern and Southern, 1960–2025

0200.0M400.0M600.0M800.0M196019922025

Source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Analysis

Africa Eastern and Southern recorded 734.00 million for mobile cellular subscriptions in 2025. That is the highest value across all 54 years on record.

The figure is up 9.2% on the previous year and up 81.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, mobile cellular subscriptions in Africa Eastern and Southern peaked at 734.00 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1960.

Africa Eastern and Southern ranks 31st of 48 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 0 0 0 2
1970s 0 0 0 6
1980s 398 0 3,980 10
1990s 1.35 million 7,880 5.93 million 10
2000s 64.20 million 10.01 million 163.12 million 10
2010s 353.47 million 201.69 million 458.70 million 10
2020s 601.67 million 486.00 million 734.00 million 6

Countries ranked near Africa Eastern and Southern

  1. 28 Argentina 64.08 million compare
  2. 29 Democratic Republic of Congo 63.96 million compare
  3. 30 Spain 62.41 million compare
  4. 31 Myanmar 62.31 million compare
  5. 32 Cote d'Ivoire 58.72 million compare
  6. 33 Morocco 58.29 million compare
  7. 34 Saudi Arabia 54.18 million compare

See the full ranking of 260 places →

More infrastructure data for Africa Eastern and Southern

All data for Africa Eastern and Southern →

Frequently asked questions

What is mobile cellular subscriptions in Africa Eastern and Southern?
Mobile cellular subscriptions in Africa Eastern and Southern was 734.00 million in 2025, according to World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
What is the highest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Africa Eastern and Southern?
The highest recorded value was 734.00 million in 2025.
What is the lowest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Africa Eastern and Southern?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1960.
How does Africa Eastern and Southern rank for mobile cellular subscriptions?
Africa Eastern and Southern ranks 31st out of 48 groups with data for 2025.
Is mobile cellular subscriptions rising or falling in Africa Eastern and Southern?
Over the last ten years it is up 81.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Africa Eastern and Southern data come from?
The figures come from World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), published as part of Mobile cellular subscriptions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator
Mobile cellular subscriptions
Source
World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
260 places, 13,039 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions are subscriptions to a public mobile telephone service that provide access to the PSTN using cellular technology. The indicator includes (and is split into) the number of postpaid subscriptions, and the number of active prepaid accounts (i.e. that have been used during the last three months). The indicator applies to all mobile cellular subscriptions that offer voice communications. It excludes subscriptions via data cards or USB modems, subscriptions to public mobile data services, private trunked mobile radio, telepoint, radio paging and telemetry services.