Obtaining a frequency licence.
Deploying a professional radio network in Côte d'Ivoire generally requires a frequency assignment issued by ARTCI. Here is when it is required and how the application process works.
Four points to remember before deploying.
You do not buy a frequency: ARTCI grants you the right to use it, in a given area, at a given power and for a given purpose.
A licence-exempt frequency is shared and power-limited. A licensed frequency is assigned to you, protected from interference and subject to a fee.
As soon as communication becomes critical to operations, an ARTCI licence is all but unavoidable.
Frequency plan, sites, power levels: a clean technical file reduces back-and-forth, and therefore lead times.
Why a licence? Spectrum is a limited public resource, managed in Côte d'Ivoire by ARTCI, the Telecommunications/ICT Regulatory Authority. Two organisations transmitting on the same frequency in the same place make each other inaudible: assignment organises sharing and protects your frequency.
Compliance: operating professional radios without the required licence exposes you to penalties. Compliance is part of the project from the outset.
Licence-exempt or licensed frequency?
This is the first decision, and it determines the equipment, the range and the budget.
For an occasional, non-critical need
- Open bands, with no individual licence, within the framework set by ARTCI.
- Limited power, hence reduced range.
- No exclusivity and no recourse in case of interference.
For a professional network
- A frequency assigned to your organisation alone.
- Power and coverage sized by the survey.
- Protection against interference, in return for an annual fee.
Common pitfall: starting on a licence-exempt frequency “to try it out”, then running into range limits and interference as soon as activity grows. Ask the question from the outset: how much reliability do you need?
How the application process works.
An assignment request is not a form: it is a technical file.
- 01Scoping the need
Area to cover, number of users, actual use and field constraints: these determine the applicable regime.
- 02Survey & frequency plan
Band, transmitter sites, power levels and frequency plan matched to the target coverage: the centrepiece of the application.
- 03Compiling the application
Company administrative section and technical section: equipment, sites, transmission characteristics.
- 04Submission & review
Submission to ARTCI, answers to requests for clarification, coordination of the frequencies available in the area.
- 05Assignment & commissioning
Licence issued to your organisation, then programming of the terminals on the assigned frequencies.
The application rests on a survey, not on an estimate.
The assignment request describes the sites, the power levels and the area to be served. These elements come from the coverage survey: propagation modelling, then field measurements. You receive the coverage maps and the report, which you keep.
What a complete application contains.
The exact documents are set by ARTCI and vary with the intended use. A company application is built around three sections.
- Trade and Companies Register (RCCM)
- Taxpayer account number (NCC)
- Signed formal request
- Proof of business activity
- Technical manager's contact details
- Description of the planned network
- List and part numbers of the equipment
- Precise location of the sites
- Requested bands and power levels
- Coverage and frequency plan
- Intended use (voice, data)
- Number of terminals
- Operating area and hours
- Security constraints
- Continuity requirements
The technical section is the leading cause of applications being sent back during review. We compile and follow up the application on your behalf, but the licence is issued to your organisation, which remains its holder.
What to expect.
Fees may apply to the processing of the request, depending on the type of network.
The amount varies with the band, the area and the number of frequencies.
An incomplete application goes back for review; a clean one moves forward. We invest the time upfront.
No figures before the survey: amounts and lead times are set by ARTCI and depend on your configuration. We give you an estimate once the need has been scoped.
Three mistakes we see regularly.
They almost always stem from making decisions in the wrong order.
The equipment is ordered, then someone looks for a frequency to run it on. Choose the band and the use first, the terminals second.
Owning a radio gives no right to a frequency: “radio purchased” is not “radio licensed”.
An approximate frequency plan lengthens the review, and the annual fee is often left out of the budget.
What we are asked most often.
Do simple walkie-talkies require a licence?
For very short-range use on a licence-exempt band, generally not. As soon as range, power and operational reliability are at stake, as is the case for a business, an ARTCI assignment becomes necessary.
Who holds the licence?
The user company. As an authorised Motorola Solutions partner, we prepare and follow up the application on your behalf, but the licence is issued to your organisation.
Can a network licensed elsewhere be used in Côte d'Ivoire?
No: a licence is national. A network operated in Côte d'Ivoire falls under ARTCI, whatever licences are held elsewhere.
Does SIZEG AFRICA handle the entire application?
Yes: scoping, frequency plan, compiling the application, following the review through to assignment, then programming the terminals. You remain the holder; we take care of the technical side.
This guide is for educational purposes. It does not replace the official texts and procedures of ARTCI, the sole competent authority, nor the survey specific to your project.
We determine the regime and prepare the application.
Describe your site and your use: we call you back within 24 business hours and tell you what is necessary, and what is not.