Turkmenistan - Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Mobile broadband slowly gains momentum in Turkmenistan in a struggling fixed line market

Slow growth in telecom services in Turkmenistan, a predominantly rural country and former Soviet republic, can be attributed to a large extent to the slow development of the private sector and state control over most economic activities.

Turkmen Telecom has been the primary provider of telecommunication services, and through a subsidiary, TM-Cell, it has been operating a GSM mobile network in competition with a private mobile operator, MTS Turkmenistan.

In 2019 Russia-based Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) is said to have begun the process of dismantling its equipment in Turkmenistan with a view to fully withdrawing from the country. So Turkmenistan only has one public mobile operator left in the country and no private national or international operator.

Turkmenistan’s mobile market has experienced extraordinarily strong growth over 2007 to 2012 period. Over the 2013 to 2019 the mobile market increased at a much slower pace, as the market has moved closer to a saturation phase there has been an inevitable slowing in the growth rate. Also, TM-Cell’s monopoly since MTS licence has been revoked in 2017, does not create an optimal situation for strong growth. Slow growth is predicted over the next five years to 2024. The market will be constrained from higher growth due to a further maturing market and the potential lack of investment and competition.

Turkmenistan has experienced a number of problems relating to communications technology. Despite efforts to upgrade the country’s telecom infrastructure, the telephone network remained poorly developed and many villages have been left without telephone services. Fixed line penetration over the past four years has been increasing slowly from a relatively small base.

Fixed broadband penetration in Turkmenistan remains limited in scale and nature and extremely low mainly due to a limited number of fixed lines as well as the dominance of the mobile platform. Over the next five years to 2024 growth is expected to continue but overall market penetration will remain extremely low.

Turkmenistan has seen a strong increase in mobile broadband penetration over the past four years however the mobile broadband market is still at an early stage of development and penetration remains relatively low compared to other Asian nations. Strong growth is predicted over the next five years to 2024.

Key developments:

• Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) is said to have begun the process of dismantling its equipment in Turkmenistan
• Fixed broadband penetration in Turkmenistan remains limited in scale and nature and extremely low.
• The Turkmenistan President ordered the Turkmenistan Academy of Sciences to design the state programme 'Digital Turkmenistan'.
• Turkmenistan launched the Biz Byarde (We Are Here) social network.
• Turkmenistan has seen a strong increase in mobile broadband penetration over the past four years

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