Internet service providers in Kenya are eyeing a windfall as rising demand for faster speeds and more broadband pushes data usage to new highs.
New data from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) indicates a sharp jump in subscriptions to fourth-generation (4G) and fifth-generation (5G) networks, with 5G users recording the fastest growth.
The two networks are the fastest commercially deployed generation of mobile network technologies yet. Kenya added 722,343 new 5G users in the year to March 2026, pushing the subscriber base on the high-speed network to 1.9 million, up from 1.2 million in March 2025.
Meanwhile, 4G remains the country’s dominant mobile network, with subscriptions rising to 45.9 million from 36.3 million in the same period.
As consumers migrate to faster networks, older technologies continue to decline. The number of 3G users fell to five million from seven million a year earlier, while 2G subscriptions decreased to 9.8 million from 12.7 million.
The shift has largely been driven by the growing adoption of video streaming, with platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Netflix and Instagram pushing users to ditch their 2G and 3G devices.
This comes as analysts project growth in video streaming, online advertising and the adoption of AI among users in Africa over the medium term.
According to the latest report from consulting firm PwC, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa lead the continent and outperform global averages in digital engagement, a trend expected to persist into the medium term.
“In 2024 Nigeria led the region with a 11.2 percent growth, followed by Kenya at 7.1 percent and South Africa at 6.2percent,” PwC says in its latest edition of the Africa Entertainment and Media Outlook.
“The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2029 is projected to be 7.2 percent for Nigeria, 5.2 percent for Kenya and 3.5 percent for South Africa.”
Smartphones have become the primary gateway to the internet for millions of Kenyans, replacing desktop computers and feature phones whose use is declining.
CA data shows that an overwhelming 98.2 percent of Kenyan users accessed the internet through a smartphone between January and March 2026, up from 97.9 percent in the previous quarter and 97.6 percent in the three months to September 2025.
Smartphone connections rose to 50.2 million in the three months to March, up from 48.7 million in December, marking the first time Kenya has crossed the 50-million smartphone threshold.
The shift towards high-speed mobile internet has prompted telecom operators to step up investment in network infrastructure.
Safaricom has invested more than Sh500 billion in capital expenditure over the past decade, including Sh55.8 billion last year alone. Of this, Sh38.6 billion went into network infrastructure, alongside investments in new data centres, distribution infrastructure and software applications.
Kenya’s largest telco says the number of smartphones on its network grew by 21.2 percent to 33.16 million.
Airtel Africa invested $884 million (Sh114.3 billion) in capital expenditure during the year ended March 2026, predominantly in network expansion, while adding more than 3,250 infrastructure sites across its 14 African markets.
The company says its 4G network now reaches 75.6 percent of the population across its markets, up 1.2 percentage points from the previous year, while 96.7 percent of data traffic on its network now comes from customers using 4G and 5G smartphones.
Smartphone penetration on Airtel’s network stood at 49.5 percent as of March. Leveraging this growth, Safaricom in 2024 invested in the country’s first smartphone assembly plant in the region, the East Africa Device Assembly Kenya (EADAK).
Over the last two years, Safaricom has put more than Sh192 million into EADAK. The facility assembled 700,000 devices last year. This, coupled with other initiatives such as the Lipa Mdogo Mdogo device financing, has boosted the number of 4G and 5G subscribers on the company’s network.
Telcos have also been venturing into satellite-based connectivity to extend internet coverage into remote areas where cell towers and fibre optic networks are limited and expensive to deploy.
In December 2025, Airtel Africa announced a partnership with US satellite firm SpaceX to introduce Starlink Direct-to-Cell (D2C) satellite connectivity across its African markets.
The technology is designed for areas without reliable internet connectivity, including remote locations and flights and maritime environments.
Satellites equipped with cell tower technology act as space-based mobile towers, connecting directly to phones using existing 4G or 3G protocols. Handsets recognise the satellite as another mobile network, much like they would when roaming. Airtel has begun piloting the service in Kenya.
