Somalia, Burundi costliest call destinations from Kenya

Kenya's telecommunications market is grappling with a pricing paradox: despite the rollout of a regional roaming harmonization initiative, call charges to Somalia and Burundi remain stubbornly elevated compared to other East African destinations. This anomaly reveals friction in cross-border telecom infrastructure and regulatory alignment that international investors need to understand.

## Why are Somalia and Burundi calls so expensive from Kenya?

The cost disparity stems from a combination of factors. Somalia's fragmented telecom ecosystem—where multiple operators compete without unified regulatory oversight—creates higher termination fees that Kenya-based carriers must pay to complete calls. Burundi similarly faces infrastructure gaps and limited carrier competition, forcing Kenya's major operators (Safaricom, Airtel, and Equity Bank's Equitel) to absorb steeper interconnection costs. These are passed directly to consumers. Unlike Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania—where regulatory bodies have negotiated bilateral roaming agreements—Somalia and Burundi lack formal frameworks that would reduce handoff costs.

The regional roaming initiative, designed by the East African Communications Organization (EACO), was meant to standardize rates across the bloc. However, Somalia's ongoing governance challenges and Burundi's limited digital infrastructure mean both countries operate outside the harmonized zone, leaving them subject to commercial negotiations rather than protocol-driven pricing.

## Market implications for telecom investors

This pricing gap creates a paradox for investors eyeing East Africa. While Safaricom dominates Kenya's market with a 65% subscriber base, its profitability depends on roaming revenue from the diaspora and business travelers. Higher Somalia and Burundi rates improve short-term margins but risk pushing price-sensitive segments toward cheaper VoIP alternatives (WhatsApp, Telegram, Skype), eroding voice revenue further.

For Burundi and Somalia telecom operators, the challenge is structural. They lack sufficient international bandwidth and carrier-grade switching capacity to compete on price. An operator like Somtel or Smart Telecom in Somalia cannot offer competitive termination rates without underselling below operational cost. Burundi's sole incumbent, Africell and ONATEL, face similar constraints.

## What happens as regional harmonization progresses?

The EACO framework theoretically caps roaming rates at $0.12–0.18 per minute for voice calls within the bloc. Somalia and Burundi's exclusion is temporary; as both nations stabilize governance and infrastructure investment flows in, they will be absorbed into the standard. This creates a two-phase investment window: first, current high-margin roaming revenue will compress; second, volume growth from affordable cross-border calling will offset margin loss.

Kenya's carriers are already hedging by launching digital services (mobile money, data bundles, business VPNs) that generate revenue beyond voice. Safaricom's M-Pesa expansion into Somalia via partnerships with local operators signals this pivot.

For diaspora remittance platforms and call-credit aggregators, the present pricing disparity is unsustainable—consumer demand will force standardization within 18–24 months.

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