MTN has announced that it is focusing its strategy on the African markets. “As part of our ongoing portfolio review, we believe the group is best served to focus in the future on our pan-African strategy,” says MTN Group CEO, Rob Shuter.
“We will, therefore, be exiting the Middle East in an orderly manner over the medium term. As a first step, we are in advanced discussions to sell our 75% stake in MTN Syria.”
The news comes after the telco announced that it added 11 million subscribers in the first six months of the year to reach a total base of 262 million. By the end of June 2020, MTN had 102 million active data users and 38 million active Mobile Money users.
Despite lockdown restrictions impacting network rollout, MTN Group invested R10 billion in capital expenditure across our markets and brought a further 54 million people into 3G and 4G coverage. The focus on the affordability of data saw the average rate per megabyte reduced by 34%.
The group made progress on the asset realisation programme, concluding the disposal of the tower company investments in Ghana and Uganda for R8,8 billion.
“While we expect the remainder of the year to be shaped by the ongoing challenges presented by the pandemic, we believe that MTN will remain comparatively resilient and is poised to sustain its growth over the medium term,” says Shuter.
“As we navigate the pandemic and its effects, we have prioritised looking after our people, customers and networks while focusing on efficiencies”, adding that work-from-home programmes continue for MTN staff; Y’ello Hope Packages are helping ease customers’ financial pressures, and MTN’s support for various other initiatives aims to limit the impact of COVID-19 on society.
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