AirtelTigo - Afrikan Heroes

Airtel Leaves Ghana, Sells Business To Ghanaian Government

April 17, 2021

The Government of Ghana, Bharti Airtel (Airtel), and Millicom International Cellular S. A. (Millicom) (through their respective subsidiaries) have announced that the definitive agreement for the transfer of ‘AirtelTigo’ (Airtel Ghana and Millicom Ghana) to the Government of Ghana on a going concern basis has been signed. The Ghanaian government would buy all of AirtelTigo’s shares, as well as all of its clients, properties, and liabilities, under the proposed agreement.

According to the agreement, the deal will include a smooth acquisition by the Ghanaian government, after which AirtelTigo will become a State body and function as such.

The unsustainable non-controlled JV will be handed over to the GoG, who are committed to reviving the business by making appropriate investments and operating it while safeguarding the interests of the company’s clients, workers, and other stakeholders. The deal is conditional on the mutually agreed-upon terms being met, and Airtel, Millicom, and GoG will work quickly to complete it.

Telecoms survey 2017.gif — *Source: Geopoll*

A Battered Presence In Ghana

In 2017, Airtel and Millicom combined their Ghana operations, creating the country’s second-largest mobile carrier.

The regulator approved the merger on the condition that the Ghana government have the ability to purchase a share in the new company in the future.

Airtel has previously stated that in markets where it is not among the top two players, it would consider acquisition options, including exit.

AirtelTigo is a joint venture between ‘Airtel’ and ‘Millicom’ wherein Airtel holds a non-controlling 49.95% share in AirtelTigo. But the joint venture has fallen behind MTN and Vodacom in the West African country.

According to Airtel’s quarterly results ending September 30, 2020 the company’s Ghana operations had 5.1 million customers. Over the past four years, the company has been losing money, and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (Ebidta) for the quarter dropped to $1.1m from $1.3m in the previous quarter ending June 30. During the quarter, overall revenue remained unchanged at $15m, and data customers as a percentage of total customers fell to 56.2 percent from 59.4 percent in the previous quarter.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
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Airtel leaves Ghana Airtel leaves Ghana

Airtel Plans to Quit Ghanaian Market

October 28, 2020

Airtel Africa which operates in Ghana under that joint venture – AirtelTigo – has announced that it will sell its assets and leave the West African country as certain government policies have been detrimental to its business model in that country.

“The parties are in advance stages of discussions for conclusion of the commercial agreement for the transfer of AirtelTigo on a going concern basis to the Government of Ghana,” Airtel said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The proposed deal would result in the government of Ghana acquiring 100% shares of Airtel Ghana Ltd, also known as AirtelTigo, along with all its customers, assets and agreed liabilities.

AirtelTigo is a joint venture between ‘Airtel’ and ‘Millicom’ wherein Airtel holds a non-controlling 49.95% share in AirtelTigo. Airtel had merged its Ghana operations with Millicom in 2017, resulting in the second largest mobile carrier in the country. The merger was approved by the regulator subject to the condition that African country’s government will have the option to pick up a stake in the new entity in future.

But the joint venture has fallen behind MTN and Vodacom in the country. Airtel has previously said that it will look at consolidation opportunities, including exit, in markets where it is not among the top two players. According to the quarterly results ending September 30, Airtel said its Ghana operations had a customer base of 5.1 million. The company has successively been posting losses for the past four quarters and the Ebidta for the quarter fell to Rs 8.8 crore from Rs 9.9 crore in the previous quarter ending June 30. Total revenue remained stagnant at Rs 118 crore during the quarter and data customers as a percentage of the total customer base also saw a dip to 56.2% during the period from 59.4% in the June quarter.

Bharti Airtel’s Africa operations clocked in a net profit of $88 million for the second quarter this fiscal, down 8.3% on-year, hurt by higher net finance costs. But consolidated revenue stood at $965 million, increasing 14.3% from corresponding quarter last year.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry