In a major step towards the privatisation of Ethiopia’s state-owned telecommunications giant, Ethio Telecom has set the price for its share offering at 300 birr ($2.54) per share. The company is preparing to sell 100 million shares through its mobile payment service ahead of an anticipated stock market listing, as revealed by the firm’s CEO, Frehiwot Tamiru, on Wednesday.

This move marks the beginning of Ethio Telecom’s journey towards greater private ownership, with a 10% stake in the company being offered exclusively to Ethiopian citizens. CEO Frehiwot stated, “This is a historic moment,” reflecting the significance of this first step in opening up the country’s economy.

The establishment of a stock exchange in the coming month and the gradual privatisation of state-owned enterprises are central to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s strategy of attracting more private investment into Ethiopia. The partial sale of Ethio Telecom represents a pivotal moment in this broader plan, with the government intending to divest a further 45% of the company to international investors in the future.

Ethio Telecom, which previously held a monopoly over Ethiopia’s telecommunications market, serves a population of approximately 120 million. This dominance was challenged in 2022 when a consortium led by Kenya’s Safaricom was granted Ethiopia’s first private telecoms licence, marking the start of commercial operations by foreign players in the market.

Ethio Telecom has continued to perform well in recent years, with the company reporting a 22% revenue increase to 93.7 billion birr ($1.63 billion) for the fiscal year ending in June. Net profits also saw a significant rise of 21%, reaching 21.79 billion birr. Subscriber numbers grew by 9%, with the company now serving 78.3 million customers.

Telebirr, Ethio Telecom’s mobile payment platform, has also seen remarkable growth, with user numbers surging from 34.3 million to 47.55 million. The platform processed transactions worth an impressive 1.81 trillion birr, highlighting the increasing adoption of digital financial services across the country.

Frehiwot highlighted these successes, saying, “We have managed to earn 75.8 billion birr during the budget year, up from 61.3 billion birr in the previous year.” She credited the company’s strong performance to its “Lead” strategy, launched in 2022, which introduced 203 new products and services during the fiscal year.

Ethio Telecom has not only exceeded revenue targets but also increased its foreign exchange earnings by 20.7%, reaching $198.2 million, which surpassed its goal by 117.5%.

Looking Ahead as the Ethiopian government prepares to list Ethio Telecom on its new stock exchange, the telecoms sector remains a central focus of the country’s economic reform efforts. While challenges remain, the partial privatisation of Ethio Telecom signals a shift towards greater market liberalisation and the possibility of more private sector involvement in the near future.