MTN Ghana has entered into a long-term roaming agreement with AT (formerly AirtelTigo) and is close to finalizing a similar arrangement with Telecel, as disclosed in its recent first-quarter performance report. The telecommunications company emphasized the importance of infrastructure sharing to achieve universal access and accelerate Ghana’s digital transformation.
Stephen Blewett, CEO of MTN Ghana, reflected on the company’s quarterly performance, highlighting its commitment to the Ambition 2025 strategy despite economic challenges that have impacted operations. He pointed out that the company’s efforts have led to a robust first quarter in 2024, with a 32.4% year-on-year increase in service revenue and a strong EBITDA margin.
MTN Ghana saw growth in its mobile customer base, which rose by 1.2% to 27.8 million. There was also a significant increase in active data subscribers, up by 15.3% to 16 million, and a rise in active Mobile Money (MoMo) users by 16.1% to 15.6 million.
Financially, the telco’s service revenue surged by 32.4% to GHS3.8 billion, EBITDA grew by 31.6% to GHS2.1 billion, and the EBITDA margin slightly decreased by 0.4 percentage points to 55.9%. The company invested GHS1.2 billion in capital expenditures for the quarter, with GHS852.2 million excluding lease capex. MTN Ghana also contributed GHS1.7 billion in direct and indirect taxes, up from GHS1.1 billion the previous year.
Looking forward, Blewett anticipates a challenging macroeconomic environment for the remainder of 2024, with high inflation, currency fluctuations, and forex shortages potentially affecting economic growth and the cost of living. He stated that the government expects inflation to be between 13% and 17% for the year, with a gradual return to the medium-term target range of 6% to 10% by 2025.
Despite these challenges, Blewett affirmed MTN Ghana’s dedication to executing its Ambition 2025 strategy, focusing on cost efficiency to protect margins and maintain liquidity.
The company plans to drive growth through strategic investments in infrastructure to enhance connectivity quality. MTN Ghana is also committed to improving its platforms like myMTN, ayoba, and the MoMo app to offer better services, meet the rising demand for data, especially in rural areas, and promote smartphone usage among the general population. Additionally, the company aims to address the need for high-speed internet in the home broadband market.
Blewett emphasized the company’s intention to expand the mobile money ecosystem by growing partnerships with financial institutions, agents, and merchants. This expansion will enhance customer convenience for money transfers, merchant payments, savings, and access to micro-loans, micro-insurance, and international remittance services.
