MTN South Africa has achieved a perfect score of 4.0 out of 4.0 in the TMForum Autonomous Network Levels Assessment Validation (ANLAV) for IP Network Optimisation, a recognition that reaffirms the operator’s leadership in intelligent and automated transport networks across Africa.
The assessment, conducted in partnership with Huawei, marks a major milestone in MTN’s evolution toward a Next-Generation Transport Network. This forms part of the company’s broader vision for a Converged Transport Network (CTN) – an advanced architecture that brings together Microwave, IP, and Optical domains under a unified, intelligent, and autonomous architecture.
MTN’s perfect performance demonstrates world-class maturity in network automation, fault management, and optimisation. The operator’s system now has the ability to detect congestion and path faults in real time and automatically reroute traffic with zero manual intervention. Using artificial intelligence and knowledge graphs, the network can also identify root causes of potential service degradation and proactively recommend capacity expansions, significantly improving reliability and uptime.
Further innovations include advanced telemetry that provides hop-by-hop visibility into latency, packet loss, and bandwidth, giving MTN engineers predictive insight to address issues before they affect customers. The system simultaneously optimizes multiple service level agreements – including bandwidth, latency, packet loss, and bit error rate – ensuring a consistent and high-quality connectivity experience. Every optimisation action is verifiable in real time through visual dashboards, offering complete transparency and traceability of network performance.
For South Africans, this achievement translates into a faster, more resilient, and more reliable digital experience. By leveraging AI-driven automation, MTN can minimise downtime, improve voice and data quality, and ensure uninterrupted connectivity for millions of customers. It also strengthens South Africa’s digital infrastructure at a time when stable, high-performance networks are essential for learning, business, and everyday life.
“This recognition reflects MTN’s continued investment in cutting-edge technology to ensure that our customers enjoy the most reliable and intelligent network in South Africa,” said Zoltan Miklos, General Manager for Access Planning and Architecture at MTN South Africa. “Our autonomous network evolution allows us to plan, anticipate and resolve issues before they impact users — a crucial step in managing network performance in order to deliver superior digital experiences for all.”
Miklos added that the achievement underscores how MTN is setting new global standards in network performance. “Automation and intelligence are redefining network performance globally,” he said. “MTN South Africa’s achievement showcases how African innovation and collaboration can set new benchmarks in network excellence.”
Wang Hui, President of NCE Data Communication Domain, Huawei Data Communication
Product Line, said, “Congratulations to MTN South Africa on being awarded the world’s first Level 4 Autonomy Network certification in IP field, a milestone that reinforces its leadership in innovation among global carriers. Huawei remains committed to empowering networks with AI technologies. Through deepened collaboration with MTN South Africa, we will deliver sustained value to customers while accelerating the intelligent evolution of next-generation networks.”
The recognition also aligns with MTN’s Ambition 2025 strategy, which places customer experience and technology leadership at the heart of its growth plans. By advancing toward a truly self-optimising and self-healing network, MTN is setting the stage for faster service innovation, intelligent resource utilisation, and a stronger, more inclusive digital future for South Africa.
Through this milestone, MTN continues to demonstrate that network excellence is not only about speed and coverage – it’s about intelligence, resilience, and reliability that empower every South African to connect confidently to what matters most.
