Note that this article is about Equatorial Guinea located on the West coast of Africa with about 1.3 million inhabitants. It's not about Guinea (aka Guinea-Conakry) or Guinea-Bissau which are easy to mix up.
Basics[]
In Equatorial Guinea two GSM-based networks are operating:
- Getesa (formerly: Orange, Getesa-Orange)
- Muni
There is also a CDMA-based provider that is not compatible with usual GSM-devices, listed at the end of this article:
- Gecomsa
Mobile phone adaption was rather slow in this country, that has now more than 500,000 subscribers. 2G and 3G are available on 900 MHz and 1800 MHz. At the beginning of 2020 there is no 4G/LTE coverage yet, but both Getesa and Muni are preparing a launch.
SIM cards used to be hard to purchase for foreign residents, as they were only sold in very few shops. This has become easier, but you still have to bring your passport, a copy of this document and two passport sized pics of you to an official shop of the operator for registration. Top-up vouchers are sold in the streets.
Prices are given in this article are in 'F' for francs. This means the Central African CFA franc (XAF) used in Cameroon, Central African Rep., Chad, Rep. Kongo and Gabon as well.
The international access code for Equatorial Guinea is +240, followed by nine numbers for mobiles.
Getesa (formerly: Orange, Getesa-Orange)[]
The Getesa network was called Orange until 2018. The French operator left the country in a long legal dispute 2014-18.
Equatorial Guinea’s government lost a Paris Court of Appeal case against a fine imposed in 2014 by the International Court of Arbitration for reneging on a 2011 agreement to buy Orange’s Getesa 40% stake in the event of a new entrant launching (a clause it failed to honour after the 2012 launch of majority state-owned cellco Gecomsa). In October 2016 the government finally agreed to pay a total amount of EUR 150 million including interest to Orange
Orange was soon rebranded first to Getesa-Orange and in 2018 to Getesa, that is now fully state-owned. It's still considered the best operator in the country.
Availability[]
A new SIM card costs 2000 F with the same balance. As a foreigner you can buy a SIM card only in an official office of Getesa. Copy of ID and two photos are required.
Data feature packages[]
For data you need to purchase a package that is called Paquetes de datos de Prepago:
| Data | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 30 MB | 24 hours | 500 F |
| 65 MB | 24 hours | 900 F |
| 160 MB | 24 hours | 1800 F |
| 320 MB | 24 hours | 2500 F |
| 500 MB | 24 hours | 3300 F |
| 250 MB | 7 days | 3000 F |
| 500 MB | 7 days | 6000 F |
| 1 GB | 7 days | 9000 F |
| 2 GB | 7 days | 12,000 F |
| 1 GB | 1 month | 10,000 F |
| 2 GB | 1 month | 16,000 F |
| 4 GB | 1 month | 30,000 F |
| 6 GB | 1 month | 40,000 F |
| 8 GB | 1 month | 50,000 F |
| 10 GB | 1 month | 60,000 F |
To activate packages dial *100#.
More info[]
- APN: internet
- To check balances dial 333 or #222#
- Dial 333 to change language.
- Website in Spanish: https://getesa.gq/
Muni[]
Muni is the only private competitor to the state-owned networks. It's no.2 behind Getesa with a lower coverage on 2G and 3G only. A 4G/LTE launch is planned for 2020.
Availability[]
Their SIM card is available in the official stores (list) for 1500 F. Be sure to have your passport copy and a photo with you.
Data feature packages[]
For data you need to purchase a package that is called Pacotes Internet Móvel.
| Data | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 15 MB | 1 day | 500 F |
| 100 MB | 1 day | 2500 F |
| 200 MB | 7 days | 5000 F |
| 500 MB | 7 days | 10,000 F |
| 1 GB | 30 days | 20,000 F |
| 2.5 GB | 30 days | 40,000 F |
Activation is by *123# and option 3.
They also offer two combo packs with data, domestic voice and SMS:
- for 1 day: 15 MB, 5 mins, 50 SMS for 1000 F
- for 7 days: 200 MB, 25 mins, 250 SMS for 7500 F
Activation is by *123# and option 4 'Mi uno'.
More info[]
- APN: Muni
- To check balances dial: *555#
- Website in Portuguese: http://www.muni-eg.com/
Gecomsa (CDMA-only)[]
Gecomsa is another state-owned provider that's on CDMA-only which is not compatible with usual GSM devices and hence not suitable for travellers. It started in 2012 as joint venture between the Guinea government and the state-owned ZTE manufacturer from China.
It's not shown in detail as its has a rather limited coverage and you will probably need to buy a new CDMA-empowered device to use it.
- more information in Spanish: http://www.gecomsa.com/