Mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Mobile cellular subscriptions was 4.10 million in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea, 1960–2024
Source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
Analysis
The most recent figure for mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea is 4.10 million, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 15.9% on the previous year and up 22.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea peaked at 5.02 million in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1960.
That places Papua New Guinea 133rd out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0 | — |
| 1965 | 0 | — |
| 1970 | 0 | — |
| 1975 | 0 | — |
| 1976 | 0 | — |
| 1977 | 0 | — |
| 1978 | 0 | — |
| 1979 | 0 | — |
| 1980 | 0 | — |
| 1981 | 0 | — |
| 1982 | 0 | — |
| 1983 | 0 | — |
| 1984 | 0 | — |
| 1985 | 0 | — |
| 1986 | 0 | — |
| 1987 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | 0 | — |
| 1989 | 0 | — |
| 1990 | 0 | — |
| 1991 | 0 | — |
| 1992 | 0 | — |
| 1993 | 0 | — |
| 1994 | 0 | — |
| 1995 | 0 | — |
| 1996 | 2,285 | — |
| 1997 | 3,857 | +68.8% |
| 1998 | 5,558 | +44.1% |
| 1999 | 7,059 | +27.0% |
| 2000 | 8,560 | +21.3% |
| 2001 | 10,700 | +25.0% |
| 2002 | 15,000 | +40.2% |
| 2003 | 17,500 | +16.7% |
| 2004 | 48,311 | +176.1% |
| 2005 | 75,000 | +55.2% |
| 2006 | 100,000 | +33.3% |
| 2007 | 300,000 | +200.0% |
| 2008 | 874,000 | +191.3% |
| 2009 | 1.42 million | +62.2% |
| 2010 | 1.91 million | +34.7% |
| 2011 | 2.40 million | +25.7% |
| 2012 | 2.71 million | +12.9% |
| 2013 | 3.00 million | +10.7% |
| 2014 | 3.36 million | +12.0% |
| 2015 | 3.56 million | +6.0% |
| 2016 | 3.78 million | +6.2% |
| 2017 | 4.02 million | +6.2% |
| 2018 | 4.30 million | +7.0% |
| 2019 | 4.54 million | +5.5% |
| 2020 | 4.82 million | +6.2% |
| 2021 | 4.82 million | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 5.02 million | +4.2% |
| 2023 | 3.54 million | -29.5% |
| 2024 | 4.10 million | +15.9% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 4.10 million is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 12.17 million, 34% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 4.10 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 4.10 million, 1.0× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +200.0% | 100,000 | 300,000 |
| 2008 | +191.3% | 300,000 | 874,000 |
| 2004 | +176.1% | 17,500 | 48,311 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1970s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1,876 | 0 | 7,059 | 10 |
| 2000s | 286,662 | 8,560 | 1.42 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.36 million | 1.91 million | 4.54 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.46 million | 3.54 million | 5.02 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More infrastructure data for Papua New Guinea
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 38.77 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 172,691 (2022)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 1.69 per 100 people (2022)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0.0169 units per person (2022)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate 4.03 % change on previous year (2022)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 172,691 (2022)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 0.3877 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, gaps filled 4.10 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea?
- Mobile cellular subscriptions in Papua New Guinea was 4.10 million in 2024, according to World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
- What is the highest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 5.02 million in 2022.
- What is the lowest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1960.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for mobile cellular subscriptions?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 133rd out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is mobile cellular subscriptions rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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 — 53 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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.