Africell Group is a mobile technology company providing voice, messaging, data, mobile money and other integrated telecoms services to almost 20 million subscribers across Africa.
| Website | www.africell.com |
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Company overview
Africell was founded in 2001. It has US ownership and is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. The company has approximately 10,000 direct and outsourced employees and currently operates in four countries – The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola.
Africell is a market leader in The Gambia and Sierra Leone, with approximately 60% market share of the telecoms sectors in each. In Democratic Republic of Congo, Africell has between 20 and 25% market share in the provinces in which it is active. There has been significant subscriber growth in all markets since 2010. As of January 2023, Africell has almost 20 million subscribers. Its Africell Impact Foundation was launched in July 2022.
Africell is among the fastest-growing mobile telecommunications companies in Africa. The group is undergoing rapid expansion due to strong demographic trends in Africa (in terms of age, education, urbanisation and other factors), deepening telecoms penetration in most African countries, and the increasing availability of affordable smartphones. In addition to investing in mobile network operations and telecommunications infrastructure, Africell’s strategy involves developing fintech products and services such as micro-payments, micro-insurance and micro-finance which – in addition to helping individual customers – have a multiplier effect on wider economic growth in Africa.
In January 2021, it was announced that Africell had won a competitive international tender process for a telecommunications license in Angola. Africell launched services in Angola in April 2022, the first new or independent operator in two decades to do so.
History
Africell was founded in 2001 by US entrepreneur Ziad Dalloul. Africell launched its first commercial operations in The Gambia in 2001, before entering Sierra Leone in 2005 and building up a solid market leadership position in both West African countries. Since then, Africell Group has expanded south and east, into Democratic Republic of Congo (2012) and Uganda (2014). Africell’s strategy is to move into markets in which it can “make a positive difference” in terms of reducing prices, covering more territory, and improving internet speed and reliability. In January 2021, after winning a competitive international public tender process, Africell declared its plans to establish a mobile network and start commercial operations in Angola by the end of 2021. Africell ended services in Uganda in October 2021, having been present in the country since 2014.
In 2018, it was announced that Africell group had secured a $100m loan facility from the US Government’s International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). DFC’s substantial investment in Africell followed a strict due diligence process and reflects a policy goal of the US government to significantly increase its commercial investments in Africa. In May 2022, Secretary of State Antony Blinken highlighted Africell as an example of US investment in sub-Saharan Africa making “real impact” and advancing “security and transparency” in the region.
Africell launched the Africell Impact Foundation in June 2022.
