TCRA: Voice traffic nears 180 billion minutes

DAR ES SALAAM: IN the final quarter of 2025, the telecommunications sector closed the year with a story of resilience, subtle shifts and steady expansion.

According to the December 2025 communications statistics released by Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) Director General, Dr Jabiri Bakari, beneath the technical tables and charts lay a powerful narrative of how millions of people stayed connected locally, regionally and across the world.

According to the TCRA, as the quarter ending December 2025 closed, local voice traffic reached 47.2 billion minutes.

Though this represented a slight 0.3 per cent decline from the 47.4 billion minutes recorded in the previous quarter, the overall picture remained strong.

October stood out as the most active month, generating 24.7 billion minutes of calls, followed by November at 22.5 billion minutes.

December recorded lower activity compared to the first two months, but the quarter as a whole still reflected sustained demand for voice communication. A closer look revealed an interesting shift in calling behaviour.

On-net traffic calls made within the same network rose by 4.8 per cent during the quarter, climbing to 24.7 billion minutes from 23.6 billion minutes in the previous quarter. Meanwhile, off-net traffic calls made to other networks declined by 5.3 per cent, falling from 23.8 billion minutes to 22.5 billion minutes.

This divergence suggested that customers were increasingly taking advantage of bundled offers and promotional pricing that favoured intra-network communication.

Among operators, Airtel led the market in both on-net and off-net segments, commanding 35.2 per cent of on net traffic and 31.9 per cent of off-net traffic. Its strong performance underscored its competitive positioning in a dynamic and evolving market.

When viewed across the year, the progression of local voice traffic told a clear growth story.

The first quarter of 2025 recorded 40.6 billion minutes, rising to 43.3 billion minutes in June and peaking at 47.4 billion minutes in September before stabilising at 47.2 billion minutes in December.

Despite the slight quarterly dip, the annual momentum was undeniable. The five-year trend painted an even more compelling picture. In 2021, total local voice traffic stood at 94.9 billion minutes. By 2022, it had climbed to 122.7 billion minutes.

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The upward trajectory continued through 2023 at 144.9 billion minutes and 2024 at 158.1 billion minutes.

By the end of 2025, local voice traffic had reached 178.4 billion minutes, nearly double the level recorded five years earlier.

This sustained expansion reflected deeper mobile penetration, improved network coverage and increasingly affordable communication bundles. Beyond national borders, international voice traffic also showed encouraging growth.

In the quarter ending December 2025, outbound international calls increased by 5 per cent, rising from 146.2 million minutes in the previous quarter to 153.5 million minutes. Even more notable was inbound traffic, which grew by 16 per cent from 43.4 million minutes to 50.6 million minutes.

Although outbound calls remained significantly higher in volume, the faster growth in inbound traffic signalled strengthening global engagement.

Regionally, East Africa continued to dominate international traffic flows. During the quarter, calls to East Africa totalled 147.9 million minutes, while calls from East Africa reached 42.8 million minutes.

Traffic to and from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Rest of the World (RoW) also contributed to the totals, though at comparatively smaller volumes.

Still, the steady presence of these corridors highlighted expanding cross-border business ties, diaspora connections and social communication patterns. The annual international trend reinforced this narrative.

Outbound traffic to East Africa surged dramatically over five years, from just 9.1 million minutes in 2021 to 147.9 million minutes in 2025. Inbound traffic from East Africa also rose significantly during the same period.

Communication with the Rest of the World followed a similar upward path, reflecting growing international integration. Taken together, the story of 2025 was not one of decline, but of transformation.

While total local voice minutes dipped slightly in the final quarter, the broader trend remained firmly upward.

Consumers increasingly favoured on-net calls, operators strengthened competitive strategies and international connectivity deepened.

Over five years, voice traffic nearly doubled, clear evidence of a telecommunications sector that continues to expand its reach and relevance in people’s daily lives.