Accra, June 03, GNA- The government has been urged to prioritise immediate interventions to ensure stable electricity supply to support Ghana’s rollout of the Fifth Generation (5G) mobile broadband services.
The country, having granted a license to Next-Gen Infrastructure Company, is expected to roll out 5G services from the third quarter of 2024 towards a fully digitised society by 2030 and deliver affordable services to users.
In a press release copied to the Ghana News Agency on Monday, June 3, the Africa Center for Digital Transformation (ACDT) recognised the importance of such network infrastructure to the country.
The Center indicated that 5G was designed to support the fast networking speeds of Internet of Things (IoT), including medical devices, and called on the government to address the power crisis to ensure its successful implementation.
A 2021 research published by the European Scientific Journal noted that a 5G site has power needs of over 11.5 kilowatts, up nearly 70 percent from a base station deploying a mix of 2G, 3G, and 4G radios.
It attributed this to 5G base stations requiring several new, ‘power hungry’ components, including microwave and millimeter-wave transceivers, fast data converters, as well as multiple input/output antennas as the reasons.
It is against this background that Kwesi Atuahene, Executive Director, ACDT, urged the government to “focus its immediate effort on the upgrading and expansion of electricity infrastructure to improve reliability and reduce the frequency of power outages.”
He encouraged the government to explore renewable energy solutions such as solar, and wind power to supplement traditional hydropower sources and enhance the resilience of the power grid.
Kwesi Atuahene also called for the strengthening of the capacity and efficiency of backup power systems for the 5G network infrastructure, including the deployment of advanced battery technologies and efficient generator systems.
He noted that the current power outages could degrade the quality of service for 5G users, resulting in slower data speeds, dropped calls, and cause communication disruptions.
That, the Executive Director of ACDT said could have an impact on a range of sectors dependent on 5G connectivity, such as healthcare, manufacturing, and transportation.
He called on stakeholders, including government agencies, private sector entities, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to work together to address this power crisis.
That, he said should be done before opening a conversation about unblocking the transformative power of 5G telephony services for Ghana’s sustainable development.