Recent press

MTN Group records strong operational delivery and strategic progress in Q3

04 November 2021

Author: amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group records strong operational delivery and strategic progress in Q3

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group is today pleased to announce a solid set of third quarter operating results, plans for a public offer of shares in MTN Nigeria, progress in finalising a passive infrastructure deal for MTN South Africa as well as in our work to create shared value across our 20 markets, with ESG at the core.

For the quarter to end-September 2021, the Group also reduced debt and holding company leverage, recorded strong financial results in line with medium-term guidance and advanced the delivery of our Ambition 2025 strategy.

“It’s been a busy quarter, and I’m particularly pleased with the sustained operational momentum across our businesses,” said MTN Group President and Chief Executive Officer Ralph Mupita.

“Material progress was made in accelerating the deleveraging of the holding company balance sheet, and our asset realisation programme and portfolio optimisation priorities are progressing well. The process of structurally separating our fintech and fibre assets remains on track.”

He added that the debt reduction led to S&P upgrading MTN’s standalone credit rating to investment grade – a level last achieved five years’ ago.

At period-end, the group subscriber base was 272m.

Driven by continued strong growth momentum in major markets Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa, MTN Group’s service revenue ramped up 19.1% to R125 billion in the first nine months of the year. Data and fintech service revenue increased by 34.5% and 35.0% respectively. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 24.1%, with margins expanding 2.1 percentage points to 45.0% on a constancy-currency basis.

We advanced financial inclusion, reaching 51 million Mobile Money customers in 16 markets, processing almost 20 000 transactions a minute, with the value of transactions up 67.2% year-on-year to US$175.5bn.

As part of our asset realisation programme, the listing of IHS was an important milestone, creating a liquidity platform for the future to deleverage further. Our further localisation in Uganda with the intention to sell 20% of the Group’s holding in MTN Uganda is in progress.

We are also announcing a public offer of just under 3% of shares in MTN Nigeria as part of the statement of intent communicated previously to further localise 14% of the Group’s holding in MTN Nigeria over the medium term. MTN South Africa is making good progress with a sale and leaseback of its towers.

Aligned to our commitment to achieve net zero by 2040, we started working with the Science-Based Targets initiative to reduce our emissions in line with climate science. In joining Business Ambition for 1.5°C, MTN became part of the UN-backed Race to Zero campaign. In recognition of the strides made in governance practices, our MSCI ESG rating was upgraded to ‘A’ from a rating of ‘BBB’.

Looking ahead, Mupita was encouraged that the number of new COVID-19 cases across Africa had started to slow, but said the pandemic continued to impact lives and livelihoods and demand for mobile services: “It highlights the vital importance of telecommunications as people rely on these services for information and to work, learn and entertain from home. We as MTN are well positioned to deliver and will invest in line with our capital allocation framework to capture these opportunities.”

MTN Group’s deleveraging progress recognised with S&P rating upgrade

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group is pleased to announce that progress in reducing our holding company debt has been recognised by rating agency S&P Global Ratings, which has upgraded the Group’s standalone credit rating to investment grade.

S&P has revised MTN’s standalone credit profile to bbb- from bb+, citing progress made in deleveraging the balance sheet and on the expectation that MTN will not return to higher levels of leverage. A standalone rating excludes S&P’s view of government influence and sovereign risk.

“We are very encouraged that our work to reduce debt has been recognised, with a move up to investment grade,” says MTN Group Chief Financial Officer Tsholofelo Molefe. “Faster deleveraging of our holding company balance sheet is a critical element of our Ambition 2025, and today’s announcement is another important indicator that we are on track with the delivery of our strategy.”

The last time MTN Group had an investment grade rating was five years ago, in 2016. By reducing debt, MTN has greater financial flexibility to take advantage of the attractive growth opportunities that we have identified. Central to reducing debt is our asset realisation programme which aims to realise proceeds of more than R25 billion by 2025.

In line with our Ambition 2025, our medium-term guidance includes a target to achieve leverage ratio of the holding company of less than 1.5x. At the end of June 2021, MTN’s holding company leverage improved to 1.4x from 2.2x at end-December 2020. This was supported by significant progress in upstreaming cash from our operating companies, including from Nigeria.

On Friday, S&P also affirmed MTN’s BB- long-term issuer credit rating, with a stable outlook.

To access the published SENS, please click here

MTN Group is the leading African company on the Forbes World’s Best Employers 2021 list

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group is humbled to be recognised as the leading African company on the Forbes World’s Best Employers list for 2021. 

As part of the survey, employees from across 58 countries were asked to rate multi-national employers on aspects such as image, economic footprint, talent development, gender equality and social responsibility.

The complete list features 750 companies. For MTN, this year’s rankings represent a significant improvement in various areas. Overall, we’ve improved from position 419 in 2020, to 132 in 2021. We have also moved up nine places in the global telco rankings, to the second spot.

“This acknowledgement comes at a time when our sector is at the forefront of the changes that are happening in the world,” says MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita. “In a year when we launched our ‘Ambition 2025’ strategy and ‘Live Inspired’ employee value proposition, we are excited that this accolade – as with many others we’ve received – will serve to re-affirm and inspire people around our ambitions.” 

“We are humbled to receive this influential global recognition by Forbes,” says Paul Norman, MTN Group Chief Human Resources Officer.

“As people have found it difficult to be together physically, we’ve had to step up as an industry to connect them with each other, connect companies with their people and customers, and of course, enable the delivery of new and essential services to communities. To achieve this, we’ve relied on our people, their skills, innovation and can-do spirit that continues to shine bright alongside our brand.” 

Through our Live Inspired EVP, we aim to provide our employees with future skills, create a diverse and inclusive workplace and contribute to a sustainable environment.

To view the full Forbes World’s Best Employers 2021 list, please go here

MTN Group receives recognition on the Fortune’s Change the World list

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group has received recognition on the 2021 Fortune Change the World list. The Change the World List is a global ranking of the top 53 companies that make a measurable progress addressing pressing social problems as part of their business strategy.

“MTN is humbled to be recognised on the Fortune Change the World list. We are committed to changing the world through meaningful contributions to the societies across the markets in which we operate,” says MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita. “Our networks, products, and services are supplied with the intention of closing the digital divide by facilitating digital communications and financial inclusion.”

The publishers of the Change the World list have noted that many of this year’s honourees are battling to reverse the neglect of some societal needs, as magnified by the pandemic. These companies are investing in the long-term health of their businesses by supporting those on the lower stages of the global economic ladder, including distributing COVID-19 vaccines in low- and middle-income nations.

Since the start of the spread of COVID-19, MTN has remained committed to playing a part in the ongoing fight against the pandemic through our global mask wearing awareness campaign #wearitforme and #onemorepushafrica. Heeding the call for vaccinations across the African continent, MTN donated US$25 million to support the African Union’s COVID-19 vaccination programme. The donation to Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) will help secure up to seven million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for health workers on the continent.

Also noted during the pandemic, the urgent need to stay connected, saw data traffic soaring by 110% in 2020. MTN was able to address gaps in connectivity by improving the affordability of its services, whilst providing digital and financial solutions to consumers and businesses, and helping to drive digital inclusion to the most vulnerable and marginalised communities on the African continent.

For MTN, better connectivity doesn’t mean less eco-responsibility. MTN works with its partners to make sure we limit our environmental impact and safeguards biodiversity around every cell tower we build. MTN has also set science-based targets of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 47% by 2030 and achieving net-zero emissions by 2040. 

For us, this is about being part of the long-term solution, harnessing the power of partnerships to act swiftly to address the challenges brought on by the pandemic, whilst prioritising our people, customers, and communities, as well as looking after our businesses and the environment. It is for this reason, we continue to believe in the power of collective action to make a meaningful difference, focusing our efforts where needs are greatest.

Read more:

These companies are changing the world

How a pan-African company is connecting the world—responsibly

MTN announces appointment of seasoned executive as Digital and Fintech CFO

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Adekunle Awobodu as our new Chief Financial Officer for Digital and Fintech.

Kunle is a seasoned business and finance professional who has spent most of his career at MTN, including serving as CFO for MTN Nigeria and for the MTN Irancell joint venture.

“We are thrilled that Kunle has joined the dynamic DigiFin team and look forward to what we know will be a valuable contribution,” says MTN Group Chief Digital and Fintech Officer Serigne Dioum.

In his 22 years in management roles, Kunle has built processes, teams and dealt with regulatory and compliance issues. Most recently, from 2019 to 2021, he was an Executive Consultant at MTN Nigeria, where he led Oracle implementation and provided support to the CEO and CFO on various financial, tax and accounting matters.

Kunle is a certified General Accountant and has a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Banking from the University of Lagos, as well as a Master’s in Finance from the University of Leicester. He also holds several professional certifications.

As CFO for Digital and Fintech, effective 15 September 2021, Kunle’s responsibilities include ensuring the growth of these platforms in line with the Group’s strategic intent – Ambition 2025: Leading digital solutions for Africa’s progress.

MTN Uganda announces intention to float 20% of its shares on the Uganda Securities Exchange

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka
  • This will potentially be the largest IPO on the Ugandan market and will be delivered primarily through a digital paperless/ green platform which is the first of its kind in East Africa.
  • The offer and listing of MTN Uganda is in line with MTN Group’s localisation plans to drive local ownership in the markets within which MTN operates.
  • It is also in line with the policy objectives of the Government of Uganda as articulated in the National Broadband Policy (2018)and the Uganda Communication (Licensing) Regulations S. I No. 95 of 2019.

MTN Uganda is pleased to announce our intention to proceed with an initial public offer (IPO) and subsequently list on the Uganda Securities Exchange (USE).  This follows the requisite approval by the Capital Markets Authority and Uganda Securities Exchange for MTN Group to sell 20% of its shareholding in MTN Uganda to the public. MTN Group owns 96% of MTN Uganda.

The listing is in line with the Group’s strategic priority to create shared value, partly through ensuring broad-based ownership in its operating subsidiaries. It is also in line with the provisions of MTN Uganda’s NTO licence, which require its listing by end-June 2022.

“The intention to float announcement is a major step towards delivering on our plan to list on the USE,” said Charles Mbire, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, MTN Uganda. “It is a reaffirmation of our long-term commitment to expand investment opportunities for Ugandans and we look forward to continuing our engagement with the CMA and USE to take forward the IPO and the listing.”

MTN Group Vice President for Southern and East Africa Yolanda Cuba called the planned listing a milestone: “Over the last 23 years, the people of Uganda have embraced MTN as their own and given us the legitimacy to operate throughout this country. We are reciprocating by inviting Ugandans to share in the ownership of the success that we have built together.”

In 1998, licence in hand, MTN Uganda commenced the rollout of our infrastructure and services. We provided affordable access to the people through a widespread voice and data network, investing UGX3.5 trillion in infrastructure development across the 134 districts of Uganda, both rural and urban. To facilitate universal access, we continue to contribute 2% of our gross annual revenue to the Uganda Communication Commission.

Over the years, MTN Uganda has prioritised the expansion of rural coverage. We currently cover 97% of the country’s population and have over 6,000km of fibre connectivity to provide the voice and data bandwidth that connects more than 15 million subscribers not only within the country but also across the world.

The growth in mobile penetration in Uganda from 0.27% in 1998 to 67% as of March 2021 is proof of MTN’s contribution to democratise mobile telephony. The fruits of this are evident in the widespread adoption of key technology platforms powered by high-speed connectivity, which enable the creation, distribution, and consumption of a wide range of digital services.

MTN Mobile Money (MoMo) has also revolutionised the financial landscape. Formal financial inclusion has nearly doubled from 28% in 2009 when MoMo was introduced in Uganda to 58% as of 2018.

MTN Uganda contributes an annual average of approximately UGX700 billion to the government treasury through taxes paid on our own account and as a withholding agent of government, making us the largest taxpayer in Uganda for the past decade.

We have over 1,000 direct employees and employ another 150,000 indirectly. Through our widespread distribution network, we provide a livelihood to more than 500,000 people, making MTN one of the largest employers in the country.

MTN ranked as Africa’s most valuable brand – again

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

For the second year in a row, MTN Group has been named the most valuable African brand in the Brand Finance Africa 150 rankings, which assigned the group a brand value of US$2.7 billion – US$1.0 billion above the next most valuable brand.

A report on the 2021 survey’s findings states that “the telecoms giant dominates on home soil too, this year holding onto its decade-long reign as South Africa’s most valuable brand”.

Brand value is defined as the “net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market”.

Brand Finance Africa said the value of the continent’s top 150 brands fell by a combined US$5.5 billion in 2021, largely because of the COVID-19 pandemic creating uncertainty and impacting brands’ ability to do business as usual. In 2020, it had assigned MTN a brand value of US$3.3 billion.

MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita said the latest accolades were achieved thanks to the hard work of MTNers across the continent and their commitment to bringing to everyone in 17 African markets the benefits of a modern connected life.

“We are both humbled and inspired by the confidence our customers and broader stakeholders continue to place in the MTN brand. At the core, a brand is about exceeding promises, expectations and delivering true value,” Mupita said.

“MTNers know this is the work that needs to be done every day, everywhere, as we remain focused on our core belief that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life.”

2Africa – Now the longest subsea cable in the world

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

The 2Africa consortium, comprised of China Mobile International, Facebook, MTN GlobalConnect, Orange, stc, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone and WIOCC, announced today the addition of a new segment – the 2Africa PEARLS branch – extending to the Arabian Gulf, India, and Pakistan. This extension will bring the total length of the 2Africa cable system to over 45,000 kilometers, making it the longest subsea cable system ever deployed. 

Now connecting three continents, Africa, Europe and Asia terrestrially through Egypt, 2Africa creates unique connectivity by adding vital landing locations in Oman (Barka), UAE (Abu Dhabi and Kalba), Qatar (Doha), Bahrain (Manama), Kuwait (Kuwait), Iraq (Al-Faw), Pakistan (Karachi), India (Mumbai), and a fourth landing in Saudi Arabia (Al Khobar). The new 2Africa branch joins recently announced extensions to the Canary Islands, the Seychelles, Comoros Islands, Angola, and a new landing to south-east Nigeria.

As with other 2Africa cable landings, capacity will be available in PEARLS landings at carrier-neutral facilities or open-access cable landing stations on a fair and equitable basis, encouraging and supporting the development of a healthy internet ecosystem.  

To further support a burgeoning global digital economy, the expanded system will serve an even wider range of communities that rely on the internet for services from education to healthcare, and businesses, providing economic and social benefits that come from increased connectivity. As announced in May 2020, 2Africa was planned to directly bring seamless international connectivity to 1.2 billion people. Today, with 2Africa PEARLS, 2Africa will be providing international connectivity to an additional 1.8 billion people–that’s 3 billion people, representing 36% of the global population.

Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) will deploy the new system utilizing new technologies such as SDM that allow the deployment of up to 16 fiber pairs, double that of older technologies and bringing greater and more cost-effective capacity.

EDISON Alliance Members Commit to 1 Billion Lives Challenge

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka
  • The EDISON Alliance, through the 1 Billion Lives Challenge, announced today it would accelerate digitally inclusive solutions for 1 billion people through harnessing commitments from governments, companies and other organisations globally.
  • The 1 Billion Lives Challenge brings together digital inclusion commitments in health, finance and education while spotlighting new financing mechanisms to accelerate the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
  • The initial wave of commitments has been made by American Tower, Apollo Hospitals, Giga, the Governments of Bangladesh and Indonesia, Mastercard, MTN, Qualcomm, Southern Communities Initiative, Tony Elumelu Foundation, University of Cape Town in South Africa, Verizon, Western Union, Women in Tech and many more to come.
  • Read more about the EDISON Alliance and the World Economic Forum Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2021

The EDISON Alliance aims to improve the lives of 1 billion people through the 1 Billion Lives Challenge by increasing affordable digital access to healthcare, finance and education by 2025. Although 85% of the world’s population lives in areas covered by 4G, only half are online. Cost, not coverage, is the critical barrier to connectivity. In low-income countries, home to 650 million people, mobile broadband is 18 times more expensive than in developed countries, as a proportion of average income.

Derek O’Halloran, Head of the Platform for Shaping the Future of Digital Economy and New Value Creation at the World Economic Forum, said: “Most of the world’s population live within the coverage of broadband infrastructure. However, the lack of relevant, affordable services means that still 47% of people cannot participate and do not benefit from the internet. This challenge is about more than infrastructure – it is about the collaboration and investment needed across different industries, governments and civil society to bring safe, meaningful services to people’s lives. Today we launch the 1 Billion Lives Challenge to catalyse the commitments and silo-breaking partnerships needed to make this happen.” 

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how critical it is to access healthcare, education and financial services online. Yet, deep inequalities persist in the affordability of digital access between least-developed and most-developed countries. The data clearly demonstrate the need for quick and decisive mobilisation of resources and commitments to closing the digital divide. With focused resources and a coordinated response, the 1 Billion Lives Challenge aims to drive change and harness businesses, organisations and governments together to reimagine a digitally inclusive future.

“As we emerge from the COVID19 pandemic, it’s never been clearer that digital accessibility, affordability and usability are critical to participate in everything from education and banking to receiving basic healthcare,” said Hans Vestberg, Chairman and CEO, Verizon. “Through the EDISON Alliance, we aim to create a more digitally inclusive world by connecting 1 Billion Lives to this fundamental core of our society.”

By spotlighting and accelerating concrete commitments, the 1 Billion Lives Challenge aims to:

  • Accelerate the delivery of digital services for unserved and underserved populations
  • Inspire more public commitments to digital inclusion
  • Demonstrate that universal digital inclusion is an achievable goal
  • Support Alliance organisations in the achievement of their digital inclusion goals
  • Develop global relationships and sustainable, scalable models for further impact to 2030

The three sectors of health, finance and education are key areas of focus for the EDISON Alliance. Two billion people still lack access to healthcare, 1.7 billion remain unbanked and 265 million children have no access to education. Enhancing internet access to this enormous unserved population will help ensure they are not left behind in realising their basic rights. 

“The EDISON Alliance’s 1 Billion Lives Challenge seeks to embed digital inclusion into the design of policies, infrastructure, and services to address the disproportionate impact that exclusion from the digital economy has on women and other underserved populations,” said Paula Ingabire, Minister for ICT and Innovation, Rwanda.

The Alliance supplies ongoing guidance and research on leading best practices to empower policy-makers and relevant stakeholders with mechanisms to make informed decisions and pioneer innovative ways of financing digital inclusion. These tools are key enablers to help achieve the 1 Billion Lives Challenge and include the Shared Principles for an Inclusive Financial System, the Guidebook for Digital Inclusion Bond Financing and the EDISON Navigator, an online tool currently being designed to provide users easy access to curated information on best practices and lessons learned in digital inclusion approaches. 

The 1 Billion Lives Challenge brings together leaders of global businesses, international organisations and governments who have pledged to improve a quantified number of lives through digitally inclusive services. The initial wave of existing and new commitments assembled to meet this challenge includes:

  • American Tower: American Tower is building 2,000 Digital Communities over the next five years to improve the quality of life for economically disadvantaged or underserved global communities by supporting connectivity worldwide through community education, healthcare access, financial inclusion and career development.
  • Apollo Hospitals: Apollo Remote HealthCare Intervention programs have provided health care services to about 16 million people across various projects as of July 2021. The aim and target for these programs is to impact an additional 20 million people in resource constrained communities by the year 2025, thus touching the lives of at least 36 million people.
  • Bangladesh: Digital Bangladesh, a vision of the government of Bangladesh, is creating unprecedented public-private partnerships to accelerate bottom-up socio-economic development. The initiative will connect over 5,000 rural and urban local government institution-based one-stop service centres with fibre optic by 2022 and 200,000 public facilities (including over 100,000 schools and more than 18,000 health clinics) with fibre, 4G/5G, and the country’s second satellite by 2025. A whole-of-government citizen-centric platform MyGov has been launched to simplify, decentralize and digitize 90% of G2C services by 2023, with most payments going cashless by 2025.
  • Giga:Giga is a global initiative, led by UNICEF and ITU, to connect every school to the internet and every young person to information, opportunity and choice. This translates to a goal to achieve universal school connectivity. By 2030, Giga hopes to connect 2.8 million schools and over 500 million children.
  • Indonesia: Indonesia is accelerating the development of telecommunications infrastructure to support the growth of the digital economy, aiming not only to provide more than 12,000 villages with 4G cellular networks by the end of 2022 (10 years faster than the initial plan) but also to connect 150,000 public facilities with internet access through the launch of the Satellite of Republic of Indonesia I (SATRIA I) in 2023.
  • Mastercard:Last year, Mastercard reached its five-year goal of bringing 500 million previously unbanked people into the financial system, through more than 350 innovative programmes across 80 countries. But that is not enough, especially now that a global pandemic has made the contrasts of the digital divide even more stark. Mastercard is doubling down on its original commitment, taking everything they have learned so far and reaching to bring another 500 million people into the digital economy by 2025, for a total of 1 billion individuals. It is also committing to help 50 million small and micro merchants, with a direct focus on providing 25 million women entrepreneurs with solutions that can help them grow their businesses.
  • MTN:MTN has committed to include financially 100 million people and 2 million SMEs by the end of 2025.
  • Qualcomm: By 2025, Qualcomm is committed to enrich the lives of 27 million people by continuing to bring technology to underserved communities around the world through their Qualcomm® Wireless Reach™ programme and engage 1.5 million students and teachers across the globe in their strategic STEM initiatives.
  • Southern Communities Initiative (SCI):Led by Robert F.Smith, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners; Rich Lesser, CEO of Boston Consulting Group and Dan Schulman, President and CEO at PayPal,SCI aims to drive more investment into six southern communities in the United States that are home to half of all African Americans, reducing the digital divide in nearly four million households over the next 10 years (about 3 million households, or 9 million people, by 2025). SCI is also working to dismantle systemic inequities and the digital divide, and increasing access to education, connectivity and jobs.
  • Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF): Through the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme, a $100 million commitment by leading investor and philanthropist Tony Elumelu, the foundation has empowered over 10,000 African entrepreneurs from across all 54 African countries with funding, training, mentorship and access to key networks. It is inspired by his philosophy of Africapitalism that positions the private sector, and young entrepreneurs in particular, as key players in eradicating poverty and transforming Africa. Through its TEFConnect platform, the foundation aims to support up to 10 million Africans by 2030.
  • University of Cape Town, South Africa:The universityis committed to digital inclusion in Africa. Through its “one student, one laptop” initiative, the university aims to provide 3,000 high-quality laptops every year to students on financial aid. In addition, the university’s Online High School programme aims to provide quality education to 1,000 students every year through connected, digital technologies and an open, freely available self-paced curriculum.
  • Verizon: Verizon is dedicated to economic, environmental and social advancement, and has committed $3 billion to help those who need it most across a five-year span through 2025. This includes 10 million youths provided with digital skills training by 2030, 1 million small businesses provided with resources to help them thrive in the digital economy by 2030, 100% net-zero operational emissions by 2035, 500,000 individuals prepared for jobs of the future by 2030, and $3 billion in green bond issuances (three bonds issued at $1 billion).
  • Western Union: Through the global pandemic, the international flow of remittances has remained more resilient than other private capital flows. In the post-pandemic economic rebuilding that lies ahead, there will be significant need for innovation and technology to keep financial support flowing across borders, particularly to developing countries. When this money moves fluidly, good things happen. A child goes to school, a business expands, emergency aid arrives the moment it is needed. That is why Western Union is committed to enabling 300 million people to digitally connect to the global economy through mobile wallets by 2025.
  • Women in Tech: Women in Tech is committed to empower 1 million women and girls in STEM by 2025 across 6 continents through skilling, mentorship, advocacy and community support. In addition, our social impact fully online school HER Digital Academy aims to provide 100.000 students quality education in web development programs and digital technology, building skills and confidence to best equip them for the future of work. Women in Tech is an international non-profit organization on a mission to close the gender gap and to help women embrace technology.

Visit the website to learn more and join the 1 Billion Lives Challenge.

MTN GlobalConnect launches 5G International Roaming with Smart Communications, Inc. Philippines in South Africa

Posted on by amogelangmaluleka

MTN South Africa network will be the first mobile operator in Africa to provide access to 5G technology to customers from the Philippines through its international roaming agreement with the Philippines’ leading mobile services provider, Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart). The agreement delivers on MTN’s and Smart’s commitment to keeping its travelers connected and providing them with access to 5G; both at home and when travelling as capable devices become available.

Customers of Smart in South Africa can enjoy 5G roaming access when they subscribe to Smart’s GigaRoam 1GB roaming plan for only P999 valid for 5 days. To subscribe, simply access https://roam.smart.com.ph or the GigaLife app.

“This is part of Smart’s commitment to bring our world-class services anywhere in the world by expanding our 5G roaming coverage in Africa, after our successful rollout with 46 partners in Europe, USA, Middle East and Asia,” said Ray Arsenal, AVP and Head of Roaming Partnerships.

“We’re excited to launch 5G roaming in South Africa with Smart’s network because of what it means for customers,” said Arne Casteleyn, General Manager – International Roaming, MTN GlobalConnect. “With MTN Y’ello Connect Roaming Hub and our central Roaming team, we never stop innovating, developing and deploying faster roaming services to provide our customers with access to a next-generation network. Furthermore, providing 5G services to our visitors coming to Africa is crucial to get the same data speeds as at home and to harness trends such as the Internet of Things (IoT). We continue to ramp up the roll out of 4G, VoLTE and 5G roaming with the world’s top operators which proves MTN’s commitment to provide excellent roaming services to its travelers as travel restrictions ease with mass vaccinations.”

Established in 2018, MTN GlobalConnect is based in Dubai and its team is made up of more than 25 nationalities.