Airtel Africa and MTN Group decide to exchange networks in Nigeria and Uganda

In an effort to reduce costs while simultaneously expanding service coverage, MTN Group (MTNJ.J) and Airtel Africa (AAF.L) said on Wednesday that they had reached an agreement to share mobile phone network infrastructure in Uganda and Nigeria.

Although there is a steady demand for digital and financial services from mobile operators in Africa, network construction and maintenance are costly, particularly for fast 5G connections.

Ralph Mupita, the CEO of MTN Group, stated in a statement that “there are opportunities within regulatory frameworks for sharing resources to drive higher (operational) efficiencies and improve returns.”

According to Sunil Taldar, CEO of Airtel Africa, the deal will prevent costly infrastructure from being duplicated.

In rural or sparserly populated areas, where building separate networks may not be financially feasible, sharing infrastructure enables operators to increase the coverage of their networks more rapidly.

MTN and Airtel Africa stated that they will investigate potential prospects in other areas, including as Congo-Brazzaville, Rwanda, and Zambia, when deals in Uganda and Nigeria are finalized.

They noted that commercial and technical agreements for the sharing of fiber infrastructure, the sharing of radio access networks, which account for the majority of network deployment and operating costs, and, if required, the building of fiber networks are among the agreements being considered.

“This engagement does not preclude the parties from collaborating with other operators in any respective market,” the businesses stated.