Airtel wins licence for 2G and 3G services Rwanda.
Rwanda's Utilities Regulatory Agency has awarded Indian operator Bharti Airtel a licence to operate 2G and 3G services in Rwanda.Airtel plans to invest more than $100 million in its operations in Rwanda over the next three years.
Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and managing director, Bharti Airtel, described Rwanda as "a key telecom market with immense growth potential" that will strengthen its footprint in East Africa.
Dr. Ignace Gatare, Rwanda's Minister of ICT, said the deal was "the largest investment out of India into Rwanda".
Airtel will compete with two other mobile operators, MTN and Tigo, in Rwanda. The country's second mobile operator, Rwandatel, had its licence revoked by the Utilities Regulatory Agency earlier in the year for allegedly failing to fulfil its licence obligations.
Rwanda is amongst the fastest growing telecom markets in Africa and retains significant potential for further growth, with a mobile penetration of just 38.4%, as of July 2011, according to the National Statistics Institute of Rwanda.
With the Rwandan licence, Airtel has a presence in 17 countries in Africa.
2012 ITP Business Publishing Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company
 Printer friendly
 Cite/link
 Email
 Feedback
| |
| Publication: | CommsMEA |
|---|---|
| Geographic Code: | 6RWAN |
| Date: | Sep 11, 2011 |
| Words: | 191 |
| Previous Article: | KHC-Batelco to complete Zain KSA due diligence. |
| Next Article: | Lebanon gets first mobile TV app. |
| Topics: | |