India’s Bharti Airtel has launched commercial services in Rwanda, becoming the African country’s third mobile network.
In a statement, Bharti said that it had taken just 83 days to build-out the network from start to finish, describing this as “the fastest Greenfield launch in the history of sub-Saharan Africa.” It plans to invest US$100 million in the unit over the next three years and generate “direct and indirect employment opportunities.”
The launch extends Bharti’s footprint in Africa to 17 markets, following its US$9 billion acquisition of Zain Africa in 2010.
“It will be our endeavour to bring world-class and affordable services to our customers in Rwanda and add value to the economy,” commented Manoj Kohli, CEO of Bharti’s international operations.
The launch was also welcomed by Rwanda’s Prime Minister, Dr. Pierre Damien Habumuremyi. “We are looking to partner with the private sector to provide good quality, accessible and affordable telecommunications services,” he said.
“As Rwandans begin engaging in business ventures and looking for regional partners, telecommunications companies – like Airtel – that are able to provide access to a pan-African wireless network, become a crucial part of expansion.”
Bharti was awarded licences by the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency (RURA) last year to operate both 2G and 3G mobile services. According to Wireless Intelligence, the market is currently a duopoly between MTN (2.9 million connections in Q4 2010) and Tigo (1.2 million). Market penetration is calculated at just 37 percent.
