Nicaragua had a population of 6.2 million people and 7.4m mobile subscriptions at the end of 2014, giving a SIM penetration rate of 120% - about average for Central America. Around 81% of subscribers had a pre-paid account.

Sustainable growth, fair pricing and skilled personnel

The Mexican telecom tower industry could get really busy very soon

An active tower market which could expand further thanks to Xinwei

Doubts raised about the Chinese giant plans, while the country falls behind regional standards

Marc Ganzi and José Sola on MTP, AT&T, Telesites and what is going on in Mexico

The future of CALA telecoms according to the leaders of the region’s largest towercos

Cuba had a population of 11.3mn people and 2.6mn mobile subscriptions at the end of 20141, giving a mobile penetration of 23% – a very low level of penetration compared to other markets in the Americas and worldwide. Even a relatively undeveloped market like Haiti has penetration of 75%. 96% of mobile subscribers in Cuba had a pre-paid account. The low historic penetration stems from factors such as the lack of competition and the high cost of mobile ownership compared to income levels. There is a single Mobile Network Operator (MNO) serving the Cuban market – ETECSA (Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba S.A.) with 2.6m subscribers. According to Telegeography, ETECSA is wholly owned by the Cuban government via six state entities: Telefonica Antillana (51%), Rafin (27%), Banco Financiero Internacional (6.2%), Universal Trade & Management Corporation (11.1%), Banco Internacional de Comercio (0.9%) and Negocios en Telecomunicaciones (3.8%). Local financial services entity Rafin bought its 27% stake in January 2011 from Telecom Italia for US$706mn.

Blackstone’s highly acquisitive towerco expands its footprint in Brazil

A summary of challenges and opportunities discussed discussed during the Colombia roundtable at the TowerXchange Meetup Americas 2015

Costa Rica had a population of 5.0mn people and 7.7mn mobile subscriptions by the end of 2014, giving a penetration rate of 154% - one of the highest in Central America, alongside Panama and El Salvador. Around 83% of subscribers had a pre-paid account.

BMI assesses the roadblocks to an independent towerco entering the Senegalese market