The Malawian telecoms regulator awarded the third telecoms license to Malcel last August. Since then, the company has been working to deploy its network and launch its activities. Previous attempts to introduce a third operator to the market have ended in failure.

Malcel Plc, which holds Malawi’s third-largest mobile operator license, plans to roll out 5G in cities and 4G LTE in peri-urban areas, with 1,300 sites to be installed in the country over its five-year period. first years of operation. This was stated by Bonface Ndawala, Managing Director of the company, in an interview with Africa Telecom Review .

“  We will deploy a brand new and robust network with clear voice calls, fast data speeds, fair pricing of our services, and most importantly, a great customer experience  ,” Mr. Ndawala said. “  In the long term, Malawians should expect innovations and solutions that will meet their daily needs  ,” he added.

Last August, the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) awarded the country’s third telecoms license to Malcel. This initiative should promote competition in a market controlled by Airtel and TNM. The regulator had already tried in vain in the past to introduce a third player on the market with companies such as Malawi Mobile Limited, Global Advanced Integrated Networks (G-Mobile) or Celcom.

Malcel plans to launch its commercial activities in Malawi from the fourth quarter of 2023. The company notably aims to become the main operator of digital services in Malawi as well as the largest fintech company in the country with its MCASH platform. To this end, the company plans to invest 280 million USD in the Malawian telecom market over the next five years.

Source: Agence Ecofin