MTN, Africa's largest cellphone company, has kicked its Myanmar bid up a gear by launching an "awareness" campaign aimed at persuading citizens in the South East Asian country that it should be selected for one of two licences.
In a statement issued this morning, the group says its awareness drive aims to "demonstrate its credentials as a 'transformation' global mobile telecommunications mobile operator worthy of a licence to offer world-class telecoms services to the people of Myanmar".
MTN has been pre-qualified to compete for a telecommunications licence in Myanmar, along with 11 other companies, and is now preparing to submit its formal bid before 3 June for one of the two nation-wide telecoms licences.
About 90 operators initially expressed interest in gaining a licence to run a network in Myanmar, which has about 60 million citizens, but a cellphone penetration of less than 5%.
According to Wikipedia, Myanmar has been through a series of political and economic reforms since elections in November 2010. Two years ago, the end of formal military rule in the country, previously known as Burma, came about. The previously high levels of Internet censorship have also been trimmed.
MTN CEO and president Sifiso Dabengwa has said the current network quality is also bad, and two SIMs are required: one for local calling and another for international calls. He said the country offers an "excellent" greenfields opportunity, although the terrain is difficult as it is mountainous and there is much water.
In a statement, Simphiwe Cele, MTN's country representative in Myanmar, says the operator is equal to - or bigger - than some of foreign bidders it is competing against in Myanmar.
MTN has partnered in Myanmar with Amara Communications, a subsidiary of IGE, a company with interests in various sectors, including telecommunications tower construction, SIM card distribution, electricity generation, and oil and gas exploration.
The operator has also partnered with M1 Telecom, which is part of M1 Group, an international conglomerate with interests in telecommunications, real estate, fashion and travel.
Share