TIDMVOD
Vodafone Group Plc
24 May 2021
24 May 2021
Global Partnership for Ethiopia welcomes licence award to
operate telecom services in Ethiopia
An international consortium named the Global Partnership for
Ethiopia has been awarded a licence to operate telecom services in
Ethiopia. The impact investment consortium aspires to support
Ethiopia's digital transformation and positively enhance the lives
of its citizens.
The partners in the consortium are led by Safaricom Plc, a
member of the Vodafone Group, and will establish a new operating
company in Ethiopia which aims to start providing
telecommunications services from 2022. In addition to Safaricom,
the partnership includes: Vodacom Group; Vodafone Group; Sumitomo
Corporation - one of the largest international trading and business
investment companies; and CDC Group - the UK's development finance
institution and impact investor.
Ethiopia is home to over 112 million people, making it the
second largest country in Africa by population. It is one of the
last countries in the world to introduce competition in the telecom
industry, a rigorous process started by the government in 2019 as
part of its Economic Reform Agenda, with the support of the
International Finance Corporation. The reforms aim to increase
jobs, reduce poverty and grow the local economy in an inclusive and
sustainable manner.
The Global Partnership for Ethiopia was created to bring about
transformational economic and social impact in the country. The
provision of accessible, affordable and high quality mobile and
internet connectivity by the Partnership will enable greater social
inclusion as millions more Ethiopians access quality telecom
services. Increased connectivity in Ethiopia will also boost the
economy, impacting over 1 million jobs with digital training and
skills, and bringing about productivity improvements for countless
micro-entrepreneurs and small and medium sized enterprises.
Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom, said: "We are excited for the
opportunity to work with the people of Ethiopia to set up telecom
networks to deliver a digital lifestyle. In past years, we have
seen the power of digital transformation and its impact on our
customers. We believe by working with all stakeholders in Ethiopia,
we can deliver a similar transformation while achieving a
sustainable return to our shareholders."
Shameel Joosub, CEO, Vodacom Group, said: "The consortium
partners have a great track record for delivering transformative
technology services, particularly when it comes to health,
education and agriculture, built on quality telecom networks. We
want to make a real difference to the lives of Ethiopians through
promoting widespread digital inclusion as part of Vodacom's pledge
to connect the next 100 million Africans by 2025."
Nick Read, CEO of Vodafone Group, said: "This is a significant
development for Ethiopia, which is one of the last very large
markets in the world to introduce telecom competition. We want to
play a transformational role in ensuring Ethiopia's huge economic
and developmental potential is realised through the deployment of
next generation connectivity and digital services, creating an
inclusive and sustainable digital society."
Toshikazu Nambu, Executive Vice President & Chief Digital
Officer, Sumitomo Corporation, said: "Sumitomo Corporation operates
a variety of businesses across the world, and the media and digital
sector is one of the most important areas for us. We plan to bring
our ample experience in Asia and Japan and know-how for cutting
edge digital transformation to a really emerging country, Ethiopia.
We would like to realise a better life for the people of Ethiopia
based on our corporate message, 'Enriching lives and the world',
and contribute to the further development of Africa."
Tenbite Ermias, CDC's Head of Africa, said: "Modern, stable and
flourishing economies are built on reliable affordable digital
infrastructure, and access to global trade. We are ready to roll
out a state-of-the-art network that will bring vital economic
opportunities to tens of millions of Ethiopians, from urban
dwellers to farmers, and to businesses large and small. This
outcome has the power to unlock development over time and is great
news for Ethiopians across the country".
- ends -
For further information:
Vodafone Group Safaricom PR & Corporate Communications
Media Relations Phone: +254 722 005211
GroupMedia@vodafone.com PRComms@Safaricom.co.ke
Investor Relations
IR@vodafone.co.uk
Vodacom Group Media Relations CDC Group
MediaRelations@vodacom.co.za Andrew Murray-Watson
123 Victoria Street, London,
SW1E 6DE
T. +44 (0) 20 7042 1569
M. +44 (0) 7515 695232
E. amurray-watson@cdcgroup.com
About Vodafone
Vodafone is a leading telecommunications company in Europe and
Africa. Our purpose is to "connect for a better future" enabling an
inclusive and sustainable digital society. Our expertise and scale
gives us a unique opportunity to drive positive change for society.
Our networks keep family, friends, businesses and governments
connected and - as COVID-19 has clearly demonstrated - we play a
vital role in keeping economies running and the functioning of
critical sectors like education and healthcare.
Vodafone is the largest mobile and fixed network operator in
Europe and a leading global IoT connectivity provider. Our M-Pesa
technology platform in Africa enables over 48m people to benefit
from access to mobile payments and financial services. We operate
mobile and fixed networks in 21 countries and partner with mobile
networks in 49 more. As of 31 March 2021, we had over 300m mobile
customers, more than 2 8 m fixed broadband customers, over 22m TV
customers and we connected more than 123m IoT devices.
We support diversity and inclusion through our maternity and
parental leave policies, empowering women through connectivity and
improving access to education and digital skills for women, girls,
and society at large. We are respectful of all individuals,
irrespective of race, ethnicity, disability, age, sexual
orientation, gender identity, belief, culture or religion.
Vodafone is also taking significant steps to reduce our impact
on our planet by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by
2025 and becoming net zero by 2040, purchasing 100% of our
electricity from renewable sources by 2025 and by July 2021 in
Europe, and reusing, reselling or recycling 100% of our redundant
network equipment.
For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com , follow us
on Twitter at @VodafoneGroup or connect with us on LinkedIn at
www.linkedin.com/company/vodafone .
About Safaricom (a member of the Vodafone Group)
Safaricom is the leading telecommunication company in East
Africa. Our purpose is to transform lives by connecting people to
people, people to opportunities and people to information. We keep
over 38 million customers connected and play a critical role in the
society, supporting over one million jobs both directly and
indirectly while our total economic value was estimated at KES
358.6 Billion ($3.58 Billion) for the 12 months through March
2021.
Listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange and with annual
revenues of over KES 250 Billion ($2.5 billion), Safaricom provides
connectivity through wide range of technology, 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G in
aggregate covering over 99% of Kenya's population.
We run the world's largest mobile payment system and Africa's
largest Fintech - M-PESA, the world's first mobile money transfer
system. By empowering over 28 million customers to transact, save
or borrow money through their mobile phone, M-PESA has driven
financial inclusion in Kenya to more than 82% of the adult
population from a low of 25% and generates over KES 82.65 Billion
($826 Million) in revenue per annum.
Safaricom is an equal opportunity employer, actively recruiting
staff from different backgrounds reflecting the communities that we
serve. We are committed to equal gender representation at all
levels. Our target is to achieve 50:50 senior management gender
parity by 2025.
As part of our ongoing commitment to the Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs), we continue to work towards improving energy and
resource efficiency in our network and facilities to reduce carbon
emissions and our fuel consumption. We remain committed to becoming
a Net Zero carbon-emitting company by 2050. For more details please
visit www.safaricom.co.ke
About Vodacom (a member of the Vodafone Group)
Vodacom is a leading African communications company providing a
wide range of communication services, including data, mobile and
fixed voice, messaging, financial services, enterprise IT and
converged services to 123.7 million customers (including
Safaricom). From our roots in South Africa, we have grown our
mobile network business to include operations in Tanzania, the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (the DRC), Mozambique, Lesotho and
Kenya. Our mobile networks cover a population of over 295.8 million
people. Through Vodacom Business Africa (VBA), we offer business
managed services to enterprises in 47 countries. Vodacom is
majority owned by Vodafone (60.5% holding), one of the world's
largest communications companies by revenue.
About Sumitomo
Sumitomo Corporation ("SC") is a leading Fortune 500 global
trading and business investment company with 135 locations (Japan:
22, Overseas: 113) in 66 countries and regions. The entire SC Group
consists of more than 900 companies. SC conducts commodity
transactions in all industries utilizing worldwide networks,
provides customers with financing, serves as an organizer and a
coordinator for various projects, and invests in companies to
promote greater growth potential. SC's core business areas include
six business units: Metal Products; Transportation &
Construction Systems; Infrastructure; Media & Digital; Living
Related & Real Estate; and Mineral Resources, Energy, Chemical
& Electronics, and one initiative: Energy Innovation.
Our corporate message, "Enriching lives and the world", was
created to encapsulate our vision for sustainability in the next
100 years. Our business, as well as our relationship with our
stakeholders, has expanded on a global scale. Our mission is to
grow sustainably alongside society, pursue development for the
world, and enable better lives for all.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.sumitomocorp.com/en/jp
About CDC Group
CDC Group is the UK's first impact investor with over 70 years
of experience of successfully supporting the sustainable, long-term
growth of businesses in South Asia and Africa. CDC is a leading
player in the fight against climate change and a UK champion of the
UN's Sustainable Development Goals - the global blueprint to
achieve a better and more sustainable future for us all.
The company has investments in over 1,200 businesses in emerging
economies and a total portfolio value of $6.2 billion. This year
CDC will invest over $1.75bn in companies in Africa and Asia with a
focus on fighting climate change, empowering women and creating new
jobs and opportunities for millions of people.
CDC is funded by the UK government and all proceeds from its
investments are reinvested to improve the lives of millions of
people in Africa and South Asia. CDC's expertise makes it the
perfect partner for private investors looking to devote capital to
making a measurable environmental and social impact in countries
most in need of investment.
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