Digitel South Sudan claims to have launched the country's first 5G trial.

The telco has outlined its intentions to improve South Sudan's digital divide with the technology.

According to Eye Radio, a local publication, the telco carried out the Non-Standalone 5G trial last week in Juba, the country's capital.

The telco partnered with ZTE to carry out the trial which used 60 MHz of spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band. Digitel said on Facebook that the trial registered a download speed of 1.2 Gbps.

"We want to use technology to improve the products and services we bring our people," said Digitel executive VP De Chan Awol. "We know very well that South Sudan has a lot of places that doesn't have connectivity."

It's noted that only 12 percent of the country has access to Internet services, making the country, which has a population of around 11 million, one of the least connected places in the world.

Digitel, which offers 2G, 3G, and 4G LTE services, has not yet given a date for when it plans to launch 5G services, though said that it will provide 5G services beyond just the capital city.

Founded in 2020, Digitel is the only South Sudan-owned telco in the country, competing against South African telco MTN and Kuwait-based Zain Telecom.