Investcom takes GSM to Afghanistan

Johannesburg, 27 Jul 2006

Beruit-based Investcom is offering GSM mobile telecommunications commercially in Afghanistan.

The company, recently acquired by South African cellular group MTN, opened a network that covers Kabul, Mazar, Kunduz and Jalalabad. The service will soon be expanded to other cities across the country, MTN confirmed in a statement.

"We are very excited to have launched GSM mobile telecommunications services after several months of preparation," says project director in Afghanistan, Mohamad Toufic Ramadan.

Investcom subsidiary Areeba Afghanistan was awarded a 15-year licence in September 2005 and is the third mobile operator in Afghanistan.

Areeba Afghanistan is one of 10 Investcom operations in Africa and the Middle East. Investcom operates GSM networks, mostly under the Areeba brand, in Syria, Ghana, Yemen, Benin, Liberia, Cyprus, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry, Sudan and Afghanistan, which has a mobile penetration of about 3%, with a population of about 30 million.