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Angola
COMPANY PROFILE
Investing for the long term Africell is the first new or independent operator to launch services in Angola in two decades. Sam Williams, Head of Communications, Africell Group, tells Vaughan O’Grady why the company chose to enter this market and what it believes it can offer Angolan end users.
The characteristics of many African countries make them good places to go with a disruptive mindset. Angola exemplifies this. www.communicationsafrica.com
Photo: Africell
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HE ARRIVAL OF Africell in the Angolan market was notable for a number of reasons – the most significant perhaps being that it brought competition to the Angolan mobile communications for the first time in some 20 years. But as Sam Williams, Head of Communications, Africell Group, told us, this by no means put the new entrant at a disadvantage – precisely the opposite, in fact. He said, “The characteristics of many African countries make them good places to go with a disruptive mindset. Angola exemplifies this. It is a vibrant country with a telecoms sector that does not match its ambitions. Limited competition and investment have resulted in unreliable services, high prices and consumers hungry for change. In environments like this, innovative new operators who promise something different and approach consumers on a more respectful level can enjoy a lot of success.” But that’s not all. Commercially, there are opportunities right across the spectrum. It’s true that many commentators fixate on the promise of 5G. It is undoubtedly a potent technology and one that the Africell network is ready to deliver when the time is right. However, the 5G fireworks shouldn’t blind operators to the fact that in many parts of Africa
Africell currently operates in Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone and The Gambia.
(including Angola), other solutions continue to present equally if not more attractive opportunities in many communities. Williams explained, “More established services like 2G, 3G and 4G still have a hugely beneficial impact, connecting communities and putting transformational tools into millions of pockets. Getting the basics right in addition to bringing more advanced solutions is perhaps the most important thing we can do as a new operator seeking to earn the trust and favour of a new consumer population in Angola.” And of course Africell is the first new or independent operator to launch services in Angola in two decades. It’s a market ready for disruption because its telecoms
sector has been a de facto monopoly for such a long time. However, Williams pointed out, “This doesn’t equate with the fact that, in other respects, the country’s economy is among the most developed in sub-Saharan Africa. Limited competition and investment in the telecoms sector has been an unnecessary drag. It has meant that some innovations experienced elsewhere in the region – including in less affluent countries – have not yet come to Angola.” He continued, “The present government wants to change this – hence it invited Africell to launch services. Our mandate to transform Angola’s digital landscape includes the goals of driving down prices, improving service quality, and establishing
ourselves as a technology platform which supports other activities.” The business model is an interesting one. Africell is not, said Williams, providing mobile products and services in a traditional transactional sense, but instead is offering a digital “platform” on which other technology-enabled activities – such as mobile money, education, content creation and consumption, access to healthcare and more – are possible. The high-tech data centre Africell opened in Luanda last year is perhaps the shiniest evidence of this. Innovators and entrepreneurs in Angola can host, integrate and run their applications at a low cost, removing one of the main obstacles to successful Communications Africa Issue 2 2022
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