Telecommunication giant, Mobile Telecommunication Network MTN, is mooting the possibility of exiting three markets on the continent.
A report by Business Insider Africa says the South Africa headquartered mobile operator, with established has a presence in 19 African countries and the Middle East, have opened discussions on potential “orderly exit” of its operations in Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry and Liberia.
According to the report, these changes will reduce the tally to five operating countries in the group’s West and Central Africa (Weca) segment of its portfolio.
The report however did not give exact reasons for the market exit but MTN financial reports indicate it might be facing numerous challenges across the West and Central Africa region.
MTN CEO, Ralph Mupita had pointed to signs of inflation and currency devaluation across several markets, with the the company’s EBITDA margin said to have declined by 1.7 percentage points year on year to 33.1% as a result of pricing pressures, fintech channel subsidies and macroeconomic challenges, including local currency devaluations and higher inflation at the end of the 2022 financial year.
Bloomberg says the three stated countries are not major contributors to MTN’s revenue, accounting for only 1.6% of its total revenue in 2022.
