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Addis Ababa, June 24, 2017 — Safaricom Ethiopia has announced that its 90-day active subscriber base has reached 10 million customers nationwide, marking a significant milestone nearly four years after receiving its telecommunications license.
Wim Vanhelleputte, CEO of Safaricom Ethiopia, shared the update during a press briefing, highlighting the company’s substantial contribution to Ethiopia’s telecom sector and economy.
“In these four years of operations, Safaricom Ethiopia has invested over 300 billion birr in building and expanding its network and services,” he said.
Of the 10 million active customers, 7.1 million are regular users of mobile data services, reflecting Ethiopia’s growing demand for internet connectivity and digital services.
Safaricom Ethiopia currently employs around 900 staff members, of whom 97 percent are Ethiopian nationals. The company has also supported the wider economy by creating temporary employment opportunities for over 20,000 people through its operations and related projects.
“We are adding an average of 31,000 new customers every day,” Vanhelleputte noted, underscoring the strong momentum in subscriber growth.
He added that approximately 75 percent of Safaricom Ethiopia’s customers are considered regular, active users of its services.
While celebrating these achievements, the CEO also acknowledged challenges the company has faced in Ethiopia’s competitive landscape.
“Over the past four years, we have faced challenges given that our main competitor is government-owned,” he remarked, in reference to Ethio Telecom’s dominant market position.
Despite this, Safaricom Ethiopia continues to collaborate with its rival through infrastructure-sharing agreements. The CEO confirmed that the company will pay $3 million to Ethio Telecom for network infrastructure rental. He also indicated that Safaricom Ethiopia remains committed to fulfilling its tax obligations via the government’s Telebir platform.
Safaricom Ethiopia’s rapid growth is seen as a sign of the country’s liberalizing telecom sector, which is opening up new opportunities for investment, competition, and expanded connectivity for millions of Ethiopians.
