1 °c
London
Monday, April 19, 2021
No Result
View All Result
FurtherAsia FurtherArabia FurtherBrazil FurtherRussia
FurtherAfrica
  • Countries
    • Angola
    • Botswana
    • Cape Verde
    • DRC
    • Eswatini
    • Ethiopia
    • Kenya
    • Malawi
    • Mauritius
    • Mozambique
    • Namibia
    • Nigeria
    • Rwanda
    • South Africa
    • Tanzania
    • Uganda
    • Zambia
    • Zimbabwe
  • OpenTalk
  • Understanding
  • Videos
  • Weekend
  • About
FurtherAfrica
  • Countries
    • Angola
    • Botswana
    • Cape Verde
    • DRC
    • Eswatini
    • Ethiopia
    • Kenya
    • Malawi
    • Mauritius
    • Mozambique
    • Namibia
    • Nigeria
    • Rwanda
    • South Africa
    • Tanzania
    • Uganda
    • Zambia
    • Zimbabwe
  • OpenTalk
  • Understanding
  • Videos
  • Weekend
  • About
No Result
View All Result
FurtherAfrica
No Result
View All Result
Home Africa

Ethiopia may no longer hold monopoly over telecommunications

Staff by Staff
October 14, 2019
in Africa, Communications, Economy, Ethiopia, Finance, Government, Infrastructure, Telecom
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
TNM extends coverage to 200 new sites in Malawi
Share via QRWhatsappShare on FacebookShare on TwitterLinkedInPinteresteMail

International companies such as MTN Group Ltd., Orange SA and Vodafone Group Plc’s African unit are among the ones interested in expanding in Ethiopia, seen by many as the last major country on the continent closed to independent operators. Having the second-highest population in Africa and featuring low levels of Internet traffic, these and other companies are eager to enter this market with such great potential.

According to Balcha Reba, director-general at the Ethiopian Communications Authority, as the population of 100 million continues to grow it is a requirement that Ethio Telecom must be privatised, since that will increase the options for customers, generate investment and, as such, the quality of the service will be better. “We have a monopoly. That’s our problem”, Reba said.

Once the market is more mature and competitive, the government of Ethiopia (which will hold 51% of the telecommunications company’s shares after it has sold 49% of its share in 2020) may give up majority control over its monopoly at a later stage.

Balcha went on, saying: “Whenever a company’s privatised, the 49% also have their say”. Among some of the company’s equipment suppliers figure names such as Huawei Technologies Co. and Ericsson AB, which could be reviewed when the sale of the minority stake takes place.

In order to foreign carriers operate successfully in the territory, it is required that the sale that will take place next year also boosts the country’s scarce foreign-exchange reserves. That’s needed when it comes to paying for imports, he added. Besides that, a new communications law forces outside players to consent to “lawful surveillance” in regard to customer information.

Aside from the two mobile phone network licences scheduled for March 2020, the government may issue more licences in the long term, while also contemplating the possibility of issuing mobile banking licences. The country’s central bank is currently trying to remove restrictions, since international operators have discovered a lucrative way of offering financial services in many African regions where there’s little banking infrastructure.

This month, the country will begin to have 5G technology, though it must first decide on the frequency band, he stated.

With more than 50 million subscribers and annual sales of around 45.4 billion birr (1.5 billion dollars), Ethio Telecom is the largest telecommunications company in the country.

Related

Tags: 5GBalcha RebaEthio telecomEthiopiaEthiopian Communications AuthorityTelecommunications Operatorsэфиопияエチオピア埃塞俄比亚
ScanSendShare320Tweet200Share56Pin72Send
Previous Post

African port development could break investment logjam

Next Post

Battery Minerals to process graphite in Mozambique

Staff

Staff

Related Posts

gas processing plant Angola
Angola

Angola to launch oil and gas licensing round on April 30

by Duarte Marques da Cruz
April 19, 2021
Where To Invest In Africa 2020 – RMB Report
Economy

Sub-Saharan Africa’s economic growth set to recover in 2021 – IMF

by FurtherAfrica
April 19, 2021
Fintech

South African fintech Peach Payments secures funding with plans to expand across Africa

by TechGist Africa
April 19, 2021
Aviation

Air Zimbabwe creditors to be paid through 1 to 1 Zimbabwe/US dollar ratio

by Staff
April 19, 2021
South Africa Green bond
Energy

Renewable energy ensuring economic and climate resilience for Southern Africa

by FurtherAfrica
April 19, 2021
Next Post
Tanzania miners call for dialogue on new laws

Battery Minerals to process graphite in Mozambique

Volkswagen Rwanda starts ride-hailing service

Volkswagen Rwanda starts ride-hailing service

Mining nationalism rises in Africa – What you need to know

Mining nationalism rises in Africa – What you need to know

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

2021 AFSIC
2022 Indaba Mining

FurtherAfrica Partners

The Exchange Club of Mozambique Taarifa Rwanda
CrudeMix Africa TechGist Africa Farmers Review Africa
Botswana unplugged Financial Insights Zambia Africa Oil & Power
Harambee Africa Novafrica  

Subscribe to FurtherAfrica

Enter your email address to receive notifications of new articles on your email.

Join 73,051 other subscribers.

FurtherAfrica

© 2021 FurtherMarkets

FurtherAfrica is a FurtherMarkets Limited platform

  • Countries
  • OpenTalk
  • Understanding
  • Videos
  • Weekend
  • About

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Countries
    • Angola
    • Botswana
    • Cape Verde
    • DRC
    • Eswatini
    • Ethiopia
    • Kenya
    • Malawi
    • Mauritius
    • Mozambique
    • Namibia
    • Nigeria
    • Rwanda
    • South Africa
    • Tanzania
    • Uganda
    • Zambia
    • Zimbabwe
  • OpenTalk
  • Understanding
  • Videos
  • Weekend
  • About

© 2021 FurtherMarkets

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?