Ghana’s travel connectivity market has a new local player. We 2 Stars, one of Ghana’s licensed international operators, has launched AkwaabaSIM together with BTS and ZIM Connections, positioning the service as Ghana’s first travel eSIM solution of this kind.

For travelers, the idea is simple: buy the eSIM before departure, activate it digitally, and avoid the usual airport routine of hunting for a SIM kiosk, relying on hotel Wi-Fi, or switching physical SIM cards. For We 2 Stars, however, the launch is more strategic. It marks the company’s move from an international operator and voice connectivity partner to a retail digital connectivity.

Akwaaba means “welcome” in a local Ghanaian language, which gives the product a smart local identity without making it feel too touristy. The service is now commercially available and is aimed at three groups: Ghanaians traveling abroad, visitors coming into Ghana, and travelers moving across Africa or worldwide who want a simpler connectivity option.

Why this launch matters

At first glance, AkwaabaSIM looks like another travel eSIM product entering a crowded market. But the Ghana angle makes it more interesting.

Travel eSIMs have mostly been led by global consumer brands, marketplaces, and app-first providers. Airalo, Holafly, Nomad eSIM, Ubigi, GigSky, Yesim and others have trained travelers to expect instant data without visiting a store. What is different here is that a Ghanaian international operator is putting its own brand on the experience, supported by BTS and powered by ZIM Connections’ digital travel eSIM platform.

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That matters because travel eSIM is no longer only a consumer convenience story. It is becoming a new revenue layer for telecom companies, MVNOs, wholesalers, airlines, fintechs, OTAs and travel brands. GSMA Intelligence has noted that consumer eSIM adoption has been slower than once predicted, but travel remains one of the use cases that makes eSIM easy to understand. You do not need a complex telecom explanation. You land, you need maps, WhatsApp, ride-hailing, hotel messages and payment apps. That is the moment eSIM solves.

Ghana is also a strong use case. The country recorded more than 1.28 million international visitor arrivals in 2024, and its travel profile is not only leisure. It includes diaspora travel, business travel, regional African movement, events, tourism and the important December travel season. Connectivity is part of that experience now, not an optional extra.

The partnership behind it

AkwaabaSIM is built on ZIM Connections’ platform and enabled by BTS. The launch also expands an existing relationship between We 2 Stars and BTS, which had already worked together in international voice.

That is one of the more important details in the announcement. Many legacy telecom relationships still sit inside wholesale voice, roaming, numbering and interconnect. Travel eSIM gives those partnerships a more visible retail layer. Instead of only moving traffic behind the scenes, operators and connectivity companies can now launch branded digital products directly to travelers.

“ZIM Connections is pleased to provide the platform behind AkwaabaSIM and support We 2 Stars in launching a branded travel eSIM experience. Our platform enables partners to bring travel eSIM services to market quickly, with a seamless digital journey for users and the flexibility to scale across destinations and customer segments.”

Richard Asare, CEO of We 2 Stars, said:

“Our collaboration with We 2 Stars has grown from a strong voice partnership into a broader relationship focused on innovation and new services. AkwaabaSIM shows how BTS enables operators to expand beyond traditional wholesale voice and create new revenue growth opportunities.”

Giulia Acchioni Mena, Co-Founder and COO of ZIM Connections, added:

“Our collaboration with We 2 Stars has grown from a strong voice partnership into a broader relationship focused on innovation and new services. AkwaabaSIM is a strong example of how BTS enables operators to expand beyond traditional wholesale voice and create new revenue growth opportunities.”

Javier Mariscal, VP Africa at BTS, also underlined the same point: AkwaabaSIM is not just a travel product, but a way for operators to move beyond traditional wholesale voice into new digital services.

A useful product, but not for every traveler

AkwaabaSIM should appeal most to travelers who value convenience over experimentation. If you are flying into Ghana, leaving Ghana, or moving across several countries, buying your data plan in advance is usually easier than waiting until arrival. It also reduces one of the most annoying travel moments: landing with no working data and needing five apps immediately.

It may be less attractive for travelers who already have strong roaming packages from their home operator, or people who need a local Ghanaian phone number for calls, SMS verification, mobile money registration, or longer stays. Like most travel eSIM services, the key question will be what plans are available, how competitive the pricing is, what networks are used, and whether the experience remains smooth after the first purchase.

READ MORE: BTS Group Invests in ZIM to Expand into Global eSIM Connectivity Solutions

That is where AkwaabaSIM will need to prove itself. The brand story is good. The local relevance is strong. But travel eSIM users compare quickly. If pricing, coverage transparency, speed expectations and refund rules are not clear, they will simply move to a global marketplace.

The bigger signal

The more interesting story is not only that Ghana now has AkwaabaSIM. It is that more operators and telecom infrastructure players are realizing travel eSIM can be packaged as a branded digital service, not just a wholesale connectivity product.

BTS and ZIM Connections have already been active in this direction, including a travel eSIM partnership focused on Japan through SBTS and ZIM Connections. AkwaabaSIM now brings a similar model into Ghana, but with local branding and a clearer Africa-facing angle.

For Alertify readers, this is the trend to watch. The travel eSIM market is moving from “which app sells the cheapest data” to “which brands can own trusted connectivity moments.” That opens space for operators, tourism brands, airlines, banks, hotels and regional travel platforms to create their own connectivity layer.

Conclusion

AkwaabaSIM is not trying to reinvent travel eSIM. It is doing something more practical: localizing it.

That may be its strongest advantage. Global eSIM marketplaces are useful, but they often feel detached from the destination. AkwaabaSIM gives Ghana a branded travel connectivity product with local meaning, operator backing and a platform model that can scale beyond one route or one country.

The challenge will be execution. Travelers will not reward a product just because it is first. They will reward clear pricing, easy activation, reliable networks, responsive support and honest plan details. In that sense, AkwaabaSIM is entering the same arena as global eSIM players, but with a different kind of credibility.

If We 2 Stars, BTS and ZIM Connections get the user experience right, this launch could become more than a Ghana-first announcement. It could be a useful example of how African operators and international connectivity partners can turn travel eSIM from a side product into a real digital growth channel.