Bharti Airtel plans to go big in Rwanda by investing $100 million in the country over the next three years in a looming fresh round of rivalry in regional telecoms wars that could unsettle traditional giants. The Indian owned telecommunication company was licensed last year by the Rwandan government and it will roll out its services this year. In the Rwandan market, Bharti will take on MTN, which is not only the country’s leading mobile phone services provider by market share, but also the strongest operator in sub-Saharan Africa in terms of scale, network reach and profitability.
Rwanda is just one of the markets on the continent where MTN and Bharti square off. These two companies, the top two players in Africa’s mobile phone services industry — accounting for 28 per cent and 13 per cent of the revenues respectively according to reported figures for the 2010 financial year — will go neck and neck in an attempt to dominate the fast growing telecom market in Africa.
Bharti, according to Morgan Stanley seems to be gaining ground on MTN, and that by 2015, Bharti will have 15 per cent of the industry revenues, a two percentage point rise of the 2010 figures, while MTN will drop to 24 per cent.
— Airtel ruins the party with Africa telecoms wars - Business |theeastafrican.co.ke