Mobile network ecosystem
There are three main mobile operators in Libya: Libyana, LibyaPhone and Almadar. The market share is dominated by Libyana (over 55 percent) and Almadar Aljadeed (44 percent), and all of the three companies are owned and run by the state.
Mobile network coverage is available on less than 20 percent of the 1,777,060 square km of the country's total area, but this is to be expected as more than 80 percent of the population lives in urban areas which make up nearly 20 percent of the country's territory. But this also proves to be a challenge for those travelling around the country as there is no phone reception once they are outside of these populated areas. This is particularly true for southern parts of the country, so if one is to travel on the road to Kufra or Sabha there is hardly any phone coverage for most of the journey. This is different for those travelling along the coastal line strip, as most urban concentration falls there.
Almadar focuses on providing premium services and recently introduced H+ services, which was widely appreciated and viewed as a step forward for all the telecom industry. It is still relatively more expensive compared with other options, but it offers the most stable and flexible connection on the market.
Its competition Libyana offers LTE/4G services but has been struggling with its overly subscribed network and its Internet is considered the worst out of all available services in Libya, but it has the cheapest tariffs and costs, as well as the most widely spread network coverage across the country.