# Somtel: the Dahabshiil phone company, eDahab and the DARE1 cable

> Somtel in facts: founding, Dahabshiil ownership, eDahab mobile money, the DARE1 cable, the 2024 5G launch, partnerships and market share.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/businesses/somtel/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## The short version

Somtel is a telecommunications company headquartered in **Hargeisa** that provides mobile voice, data and mobile money in both [Somaliland](/en/states/somaliland-1991-to-2026/) and Somalia ([Somtel, Regions, 2017](http://www.somtelnetwork.net/regions/); [Wikipedia, Somtel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somtel)). Wikipedia gives its founding year as **2009** and its ownership as **95 percent [Dahabshiil](/en/economy/hawala-and-money-transfer-companies/) and 5 percent public shares**, and says the company is registered in the British Virgin Islands ([Wikipedia, Somtel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somtel)). The Dahabshiil group bought its majority stake in 2008 ([Wikipedia, Communications in Somalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_in_Somalia)). It is listed as part of the Dahabshiil group portfolio ([Somtel, Group portfolio](https://somtelnetwork.net/Dahabshiil)).

## eDahab

Somtel and the Dahabshiil group launched the **eDahab** mobile wallet in Somaliland ([Somaliland Press, archived 2015](https://web.archive.org/web/20150402144805/http://www.somalilandpress.com/somalilandsomtel-launches-e-dahab-mobile-money-services/)). In 2018 the *Somaliland Sun* described eDahab as changing how markets settle payments ([Somaliland Sun, 20 October 2018, cited in Clingendael 2019](https://kpsrl.org/sites/kpsrl/files/2020-03/transnational-capital-in-somalia%20updated%20report.pdf)).

## The DARE1 cable

DARE1 is a **5,400 km undersea cable** linking Djibouti, Mogadishu and Mombasa, with up to 30 terabits per second of capacity. Its owners are **Djibouti Telecom and Somtel**. In October 2018 the two firms announced that their supply contract with the cable maker TE SubCom had come into force ([SubTel Forum, 2018](https://subtelforum.com/djibouti-telecom-somtel-te-subcom-dare1/)). Somalia's National Communications Authority lists Somtel as co-owner of the DARE1 landing ([NCA, submarine cables](https://mail.nca.gov.so/what-we-do/submarine-cables)).

## 5G and other links

- In **November 2013** O3b Networks agreed to supply satellite capacity to Somtel ([O3b, archived 2014](https://web.archive.org/web/20140102233642/http://www.o3bnetworks.com/2816)).
- Somtel's networks run on GSM, 3G (2100 MHz) and 4G LTE (800 MHz) ([Wikipedia, Somtel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somtel)).
- In **January 2024** Somtel and eDahab announced a 5G network, reported as the first in the Somali regions ([DatacenterDynamics, January 2024](https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/somtel-launches-first-5g-network-in-somalia/); [The Star, 1 January 2024](https://the-star.co.ke/news/2024-01-01-somtel-launches-first-5g-network-in-somalia)).

## Market share

The Clingendael Institute's 2019 study said Dahabshiil, through Somtel, had about **16 percent** of Somali SIM cards, against about 81 percent for Hormuud, Telesom and Golis together, and that Dahabshiil was the second biggest competitor in Hargeisa, Garowe and Mogadishu ([Clingendael, Transnational capital in Somalia, June 2019](https://kpsrl.org/sites/kpsrl/files/2020-03/transnational-capital-in-somalia%20updated%20report.pdf)). In July 2014 Hormuud, NationLink and Somtel agreed to set up a joint company so their customers could call across networks ([Wikipedia, Communications in Somalia, citing TeleGeography](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_in_Somalia)).

## Sources disagree

- **First 5G.** Somtel's January 2024 launch was billed as the first; Hormuud also announced 5G in several towns in 2024 ([DatacenterDynamics](https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/somtel-launches-first-5g-network-in-somalia/); see [Hormuud Telecom](/en/businesses/hormuud-telecom/)).
- **Founding year.** Wikipedia gives 2009; Dahabshiil's stake dates from 2008 ([Wikipedia, Somtel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somtel)).

See also [Dahabshiil](/en/businesses/dahabshiil/) and [Who connects Somalia](/en/economy/who-connects-somalia/).

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