Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (07 July 2022)
Safaricom Ethiopia, in a media briefing at Adore Addis, announced its plans to begin phase one of its operation in Dire Dawa next month and its intention to cover 24 other cities by April 2023. Mr. Mathew Harrison, Chief of External Affairs at Safaricom, outlined the company’s chief accomplishments over the past year and its steps going forward.
In explanation of their first-choice city, Harrison said, “We choose Dire Dawa because it has a more advanced network and we are confident of the quality we have done over there.” From launching its first commercial service in Dire Dawa in August, Safaricom plans to reach 25% of the population by April next year. The company has already tested its product and services through its staff and is already talking with the National Bank of Ethiopia to get involved in mobile money services.
As Harrison asserted, the company has been busy building a strong foundation and was focused on infrastructure building. Accordingly, Safaricom has built its own towers and transmission network including 2 data and 29 distribution centres and a 24/7 call centre equipped with multiple languages. The business has so far spent USD1 billion on investments and USD300 million on equipment and license fees.
To allow for smooth and quality operation, the firm has also collaborated with Ethiotelecom and laid the groundwork for the two companies to share infrastructure and intends to construct a tower close to Ethiotelecom and station its individual intelligence there. In addition, Safaricom has attained over 120 Ethiopian partners and stakeholders from both the private and the public sectors as a result of its campaign to build networks, forge win-win alliances, and work as a team.
With regard to workforce, Safaricom has employed 550 employees as of today, of which 320 are Ethiopians. Indicative of the company’s steadfast efforts to create career opportunities for young Ethiopian people, the firm has trained and employed 50 graduates, with a view to recruiting 100 more from different regions of the country.
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