African titans Vodacom, MTN battle for lucrative Ethiopia deal
Balcha Reba (2nd left), director-general of the Ethiopian Communications Authority, shows a proposal from a bidder during the big opening ceremony for the telecommunications licences award, in Addis Ababa on April 26, 2021. Ethiopia announced it had received two bids for licences that would end the government’s monopoly in the telecoms sector. PHOTO | AFP
The battle for the lucrative Ethiopian telecommunications market has narrowed down to consortia led by two of Africa’s telecom giants, Vodacom and MTN Group, setting another stage for their sustained competition for the continental market.
The bids of the two consortia led by Safaricom on the one hand, and MTN Group on the other, were opened by the Ethiopian Communication Authority (ECA) evaluation committee last week.
