Great Expectations In Mobile Telephony; The MTN Acquisition Of Areeba
by Nana Kwesi Sarpong2007-07-09 17:18:54 | Viewed 2018 times
In July last year, the Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN) Group Limited of South Africa acquired Investcom LLC, owners of Scancom Ghana, operators of the Areeba, in what many referred to as the biggest African business story of the year.
In an ear of mergers and acquisitions, this was considered one of the biggest deals ever recorded for an African company, MTN having paid US$5.5 billion for Investcom.
For Ghana, the acquisition of Areeba by MTN is expected to take the provision of cellular telecommunications service to new heights. Already, US$150 million has been invested into network improvement initiatives, which should come as good news to subscribers. The rapid development of the network has certainly put pressure on the company as far as quality of service is concerned. Having a renowned, world class player like MTN now taking over also brings the assurance of the corporate capacity to take the company to new heights of performance.
MTN started as a South African company but is now operating in 21 countries across Africa and the Middle East. It has become the leading telecommunications company in the emerging markets. In Nigeria and South Africa, MTN is the number one cellular telephony provider. The company also has operations in places like Iran and Afghanistan and has built up a subscriber base of 44 million.
A multinational telecommunications giant of this stature is definitely capable of coping with the challenges of the quality of service of the Areeba network.
Speaking to journalists at a workshop in Accra, the corporate service executive, Mawuena Dumor, gave the assurance that MTN was making the necessary investment to enhance overall network quality. Subscribers should expect to enjoy the expected optimized network as a result of the installation of new hardware, she said.
As part of the enhancement programme, MTN inaugurated more than 280 base stations in the last quarter of last year to strengthen the network’s infrastructure.
Ghana, like many other African countries has seen an upsurge in the use of mobile telephones. An International Communications Union’s recent survey indicated that Africa’s use of mobile telephone grew by 65 per cent, double the world use rate and no doubt Areeba’s subscriber growth rate which has moved from about 955,000 in December 2005 to the current 2.9 is a testimony to the Africa growth rate.
Apart from the track record of MTN in respect of telecommunications technology and service, it is important to take a look at the track record of the organization in respect of corporate social responsibility.
Since its establishment in 1993, MTN has been alive to its corporate social responsibilities and therefore created a framework for such initiatives. MTN Foundations have been set up in all countries of its operations. These foundations are made up of independent personalities who can oversee the use of the resources MTN makes available for projects that can bring about improvements in the lives of communities in which MTN is working. In Ghana, indications are that an MTN Foundation will soon be launched. Already a stakeholders’ forum has been held to kick off the establishment of the foundation.
To be continued...
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