Finally! Accurate Mobile Network Coverage Maps Show Connectivity Reality

The article argues that traditional mobile coverage maps often exaggerate service—typically by drawing perfect circles around towers that ignore terrain and vegetation—making it hard to find viable, underserved markets. It highlights new, much more accurate maps created by Vanu (with FHI 360) for all of Africa and parts of Asia, generated from open-source tools and data.

A case from Harar, Ethiopia shows how circle-based maps overstate coverage by ~90,000 people; the Vanu maps reveal precisely where signal is weak or absent, enabling realistic market sizing. With low-cost small base stations (e.g., Fairwaves, Nuran, OpenCellular, Sysmocom, Vanu), even villages of ~500 people can be profitable if ~20% subscribe at ~$2/month.

The piece also explains how accurate maps unlock wholesale business models for rural connectivity.