The end of duopoly

Airtel, yesterday, ended the duopoly of MTN and Tigo in the local telecoms industry with a mega launch at the company’s newly-constructed headquarters near the Amahoro national stadium in Remera.Prime Minister Dr Pierre Damien Habumuremyi welcomed the country’s third telecom operator, describing it as a boost to the government’s development agenda.The government has set sights on having at least eight million Rwandan mobile phone subscribers and five million internet users by 2016.At the moment, statistics indicate that Rwanda has a 41.6 per cent mobile penetration rate, according to the latest figures from the national regulator, Rura. Airtel’s arrival will be seen as a major boost for the government’s target of 60 per cent mobile penetration rate by the end of 2012. Airtel Rwanda is a subsidiary of Bhart Airtel, which is headquartered in Delhi, India, with a presence in 19 Asian and African countries, including Rwanda’s neighbours Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.The company, which acquired its mobile license, last year, and is expected to invest over US$100 million in three years to operate second generation (2G) and third generation (3G) mobile services; fixed line; and a high speed broadband internet connectivity; acquired former Rwandatel’s masts, which are widely spread out in the countryside.Under Vision 2020, Rwanda seeks to build a knowledge-based economy and to become a regional services hub. The country has made significant investments in the ICT infrastructure, including the laying of the optic fibre cable, for more reliable, affordable and faster internet connectivity.“As more Rwandans undertake business ventures and look to building strategic partnerships across the region, companies, such as Airtel, that are able to provide access to a pan-African wireless network become a crucial part of expansion,” noted Premier Habumuremyi.“We are especially excited about the prospect of connecting Rwanda with the rest of the East African region and indeed with the rest of Africa,” he said.The country places high premium on information and communication technology with the government actively promoting the use of modern platforms such as social media networking sites, especially Facebook and Twitter, to reach out to the masses and the wider world. Habumuremyi reaffirmed government’s commitment to Private Public Partnerships as the fastest way to achieving socio-economic progress.The government is banking on the power of ICT to help give the country a middle-income status by 2020.Speaking yesterday, CEO, Bhart Airtel International and Joint Managing-Director, Manoj Kohli, said: “We have done most of our investments in rural areas…this means that we are becoming a rural-focused company.”He said unlike most telecom firms, Airtel was committed to transforming the lives of the rural folks.“We are delighted to launch our operations and bring Airtel to the people of Rwanda, we believe that Rwanda is an extremely promising market and this launch further strengthens our foot-print in the eastern Africa region,” he said.Manoj added that Airtel will endeavour to extend world-class and affordable services to its Rwandan clients, adding that the company plans to launch its money-transfer service, Airtel Money, in May.Airtel country manager, Marcellin Paluku, said the company’s simcards go for Rwf500, while airtime ranges between Rwf100 to Rwf5, 000. But users can also buy airtime for as little as Rwf50 through the vendor-to-you system (also known locally as ‘me-to-you). The company has built a reputation of setting the most affordable call rates in the region.

National

The end of duopoly