In an effort to improve its telecom capabilities, Ghana has inked agreements to develop 4G and 5G infrastructure with Tech Mahindra, Reliance Jio subsidiary Radisys, and other suppliers.
The Next-Gen Infrastructure Company (NGIC), supported by the government of Ghana, is working with Tech Mahindra, Nokia, and Jio's subsidiary Radisys to construct the infrastructure required to provide reasonably priced 5G mobile services.
Ghana aims to follow India's lead in telecom penetration, according to Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, the minister of communication and digitalization for the West African nation. She told reporters that India was a "strategic choice" because of their similar demographics.
"The Jio model was launched only a few years ago, so the learnings are still fresh, and your (India's) demographics are just like ours," she continued.
Local telcos will use the shared infrastructure to roll out the services in the upcoming six months, with NGIC receiving 5G spectrum. The total contract value, according to reports, exceeds USD 200 million.
Ghana is a member of the 33-nation Smart Africa alliance, according to Ekuful, and other nations on the continent will be closely observing the launch to see if they can replicate the same locally.
Airtel's Position In Africa
Airtel Africa successfully navigated the rough market, expanding to conduct business in 14 countries and solidifying its position. But there's another obstacle in the works.
Reliance Industries (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani is making a new entry into the African telecom market, but in a different capacity. Ambani is well-known for upending the telecom landscape in India with the launch of Reliance Jio in 2015.
Airtel Africa Financials
Due to currency devaluation, Airtel lost Rs 2,544.4 crore in foreign exchange.
25 per cent of Bharti Airtel's reported EBITDA for the fiscal year 2024 came from Africa. The Nigerian naira, which is the telco's biggest supplier in Africa, is currently worth roughly 30 per cent less than it was a year ago when compared to the rupee, according to the report.
Due primarily to the depreciation of the Nigerian naira, Bharti Airtel reported a 31 per cent decline in consolidated profit to Rs 2,072 crore for the March 2024 quarter on Tuesday.
Yesterday, airtel's share was trading around 1380 on closing time.
