MTN awards R106m call centre contract

Johannesburg, 27 Jul 2006

South African mobile operator MTN has awarded a call centre contract worth R106 million to the Dialogue Group, which is headed for a listing on the JSE`s Alternative Exchange.

The contract, to be run over 18 months, will be provided through a joint venture with black-owned Tlhalefang Placements.

The joint venture, called Interaction Call Centres, will recruit, train and manage the call centre operators. It will result in 400 new jobs in the KwaZulu-Natal region, says MTN in a statement.

The 400 new employees will increase the number of agents in MTN prepaid call centres to over 1 000 nationally, which should reduce call waiting time to 20 seconds per enquiry, says the cellular operator.

MTN`s call centre agents in Durban, Polokwane and Johannesburg manage four million calls a month, dealing mostly with customer education issues, functionality instructions and technical issues.

Interaction MD Kopano Mangena says waiting times have already been reduced. "Since we started, the agents have increased the calls answered per hour to 22 from 14, a 50% increase in a short space of time. This is a positive start."

Government has selected the local call centre, business process outsourcing and offshoring industry as a key sector in which to create jobs and spur SA`s growth to 6% a year by 2010.

MTN says industry estimates indicate the sector could create between 65 000 and 100 000 jobs, attracting between $90 million to $175 million in foreign direct investment.

"Telecommunications accounts for the second-highest share of the call centre market, behind financial services, in SA," says Maanda Manyatshe, MD of MTN SA.