TITLE:
Evaluation of the Performance of 3G/4G Networks in Guinea According to Regulatory Standards
AUTHORS:
Kadiatou Aissatou Barry, Mamadou Sadigou Diallo, Mohamed Ansoumane Camara, Boudal Niang
KEYWORDS:
Telecommunications, Network Performance, 3G/4G, Guinea, Regulatory Standards
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Applied Sciences,
Vol.16 No.6,
June
8,
2026
ABSTRACT: In Guinea, as in many sub-Saharan African countries, ensuring that mobile networks comply with regulatory standards is a major challenge to providing high-quality service. Despite these regulatory standards, coverage and service quality remain uneven across different parts of the country. This article evaluates the performance of 3G/4G mobile networks in the country’s eight administrative regions using field measurements conducted with the Atlas Guinée and nPerf apps. Atlas Guinée collects indicators such as network coverage rate, call reception rate, SMS reception rate, and download speed. Meanwhile, nPerf measures network coverage speed. The data is then analyzed using Excel and compared to regulatory thresholds. The results show that, in terms of 3G coverage, Orange meets these benchmarks only in Conakry (85%), Labé (98%), and Nzérékoré (80%), while Cellcom’s coverage rates fall well below the benchmark in all eight regions. As for MTN, it meets the set threshold only in the Conakry region. For 4G, Orange is the only provider to meet the threshold in Conakry, with 76% coverage. In terms of call and SMS quality, all operators meet the thresholds in all regions. For 3G download speeds, Orange reaches nearly 2 Mbit/s, while MTN and Cellcom range from 700 Kbit/s to 1.9 Mbit/s. For 4G, Orange offers speeds between 16.16 and 22.57 Mbit/s, while Cellcom and MTN show limited performance. Overall, Orange offers better performance, but coverage remains uneven across regions.