3rd December 2020, Kathmandu
At the moment there is no implementation of the 5G network in Nepal. Talking about the 4G network, NTC(Nepal Telecom) was the first to provide 4G LTE service in Nepal. Ntc Launched 4G LTE Service on 1st January 2017 and now it has expanded to 77 districts of Nepal.
Even in the advanced markets, 5G technology is very new. 5G speeds around 10 gigabits per second to your phone and is up to 100 times quicker than 4G provides lower latency to users of mobile data. Currently, The United States, South Korea, and China are the countries that lead the 5G technology building and deploying in the world. Even other countries like Turkey, Sweden, and Estonia have taken major steps to make 5G networks commercially available in their country.
Here we will be discussing the 5G network in Nepal and various related questions about the 5G plan in Nepal.
What is the 5G network?
5G network is the 5th generation global wireless standard mobile network which comes after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. 5G is designed to connect virtually everyone as well as everything together including machines, devices, and objects.
| Generation | Developed | |
| First-generation – 1G | 1983 | 1G delivered analog voice. |
| Second generation – 2G | 1991 | 2G introduced digital voice |
| Third generation – 3G | 2001 | 3G brought mobile data (e.g. CDMA2000). |
| Fourth-generation – 4G LTE | 2009 | 4G LTE ushered in the era of mobile broadband. |
| Fifth-generation- 5G | 2019 | 5G designed to provide more connectivity than was ever available before |
Why 5G network?
The 5G network will push the mobile ecosystem into a new era. 5G will impact every field and industry. 5G wireless technology is developed to deliver:
- Higher multi-Gbps peak data speeds
- Ultra-low latency
- More reliability
- Massive network capacity
- Higher performance
- Increased availability
- More uniform user experience to more users.
- Improved efficiency
Why 5G network in Nepal?
Still, in Nepal, many people do not have Wi-Fi and use the internet with their cellular data. Now this pandemic has added ghee to the fire, it has made the people more dependent on the internet. As the demand increases the quality of the facility should also be increased. Thus people demand more content and want more speed to load them.
Looking at that situation, we may need 5G connectivity. But also may not need 5G at the moment it is because at the moment 4G service is provided by the network providers. Many people take benefit of it and some are unaware of it. 4G has reached almost all parts of the country but still, people are not using it. Another obstacle is that for implementation of 5G it needs to be auctioned and you should know that the reserve price (minimum price) for the auction of the spectrum is the highest anywhere in the world. Suppose the telecoms manage to overcome all these obstacles then they are faced with a number of logistical challenges and the infrastructure required for the 5G rollout will be extensive.
When will the 5G network available in Nepal?
One thing is sure that is when 5G comes, it will enable enormous capabilities. 5G phones are already available in Nepal but there is no news on 5G networks. so, if the talks or plans have started then still it is going to take time.
To operate 5G in Nepal network operators must
- Test the technology
- Get the necessary radio spectrum from Nepal’s government
- then invest, plan and build out the network infrastructure
So, the final say is 5G access looks like a distant project. Optimistically, Nepal could have 5G access by some time in 2022. But looking at the current situation of the country it may be longer yet.