Econet Telecom Lesotho (ETL) came into being following the merger between Telecom Lesotho and Econet Ezi ~ Cel Lesotho in April 2008. When Eskom Enterprises (Pty) Limited sold its shares to Econet Wireless Global, Econet became a majority shareholder with 70% shareholding while the Government of Lesotho remained with 30%. The Econet Group was established in 1993 by Strive Masiyiwa in Zimbabwe, with the name originally intended to be "Enhanced Communications Network" which was later shortened to Econet. The ownership of Econet Telecom Lesotho is under the Econet Group, which has made significant investments in various telecommunications subsidiaries across Africa, Europe, South America, and the East Asia Pacific Rim.
3G Network
The company has provided 3G UMTS over B1 (2100 MHz) since February 2011.
3G Frequency Bands
| Network Frequency Band | Status |
|---|---|
|
Active
|
3G Network Events
| Date | Event | Subtype |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Launch of 3G Network
|
Launch
|
4G Network
4G LTE services began in Maseru around October 2016, understood to be operating on both B3 (1800 MHz) and B20 (800 MHz) bands, although confirmation has not been provided. ETL holds some 36.8 MHz paired spectrum in the 1800 MHz band and 12.5 MHz paired spectrum in the 800 MHz band.
4G Frequency Bands
| Network Frequency Band | Max. Channel Bandwidth | Status |
|---|---|---|
|
20
|
Active
|
|
|
10
|
Unconfirmed
|
4G Network Events
| Date | Event | Subtype |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Launch of 4G Network
|
Launch
|