Online Reporter
Nqobile Bhebhe, Zimpapers Business Hub
The Postal and Telecommunications sector registered mixed performance during the third quarter of 2025, characterised by growth in mobile subscriptions, data usage and revenues, against rising costs and subdued capital investment, the latest sector performance review shows
The mobile telecommunications market remained largely resilient, with Econet and NetOne recording subscriber growth of 2.39 percent and 1.90 percent respectively, while Telecel experienced a contraction of 4.54 percent over the same period.
Overall, the sector recorded growth in mobile connectivity. “The sector recorded a 2.13 percent increase in active mobile subscriptions from 16,089,628 to 16,432,685. Resultantly, mobile penetration rate increased by 2.19 percentage points from 102.64 percent to record 104.83 percent in the quarter under review.”
This growth reflects continued reliance on mobile services as the primary mode of communication across the economy.
Fixed-line services remained largely stable. “Active fixed telephone subscriptions increased marginally by 0.29 percent from 300,753, to reach 301,613 while fixed tele-density remained at 1.92 percent.”
The marginal growth underscores the continued dominance of mobile platforms over traditional fixed telephony.
Internet and data services continued to expand, albeit at a modest pace.
The total number of active Internet and data subscriptions increased by 1.27 percent from 12,827,031 to 12,990,447 during the quarter.
Consequently, Internet penetration rose by 1.04 percentage points from 81.83 percent to 82.87 percent, driven largely by mobile broadband uptake.
Usage trends pointed to strong growth in traffic volumes.
Total mobile voice traffic increased significantly by 10.3 percent, rising from 4.21 billion minutes to 4.65 billion minutes in the quarter under review.
Data consumption also surged. “Mobile Internet/data traffic increased significantly by 10.72% from 130.14 Petabytes recorded in second quarter to 144.09 Petabytes.”
This growth reflects increasing adoption of digital services, social media, streaming and mobile financial platforms.
Financial performance showed moderate revenue growth amid escalating costs. “Total revenue for Mobile Network Operators grew by 8.35 percent from ZWG 6.71 billion to record ZWG 7.27 billion, whereas aggregate operating costs increased heavily by 19.71 percent from ZWG 3.48 billion to ZWG 4.16 billion.”
Capital investment weakened during the quarter, with total capital expenditure declining sharply by 67 percent from ZWG 1.53 billion to ZWG 508.9 million, suggesting a slowdown in network expansion and infrastructure upgrades.
However, within other segments of the sector, operating costs declined by 12.54 percent, while capital expenditure increased by 9.19 percent, indicating selective investment and cost containment strategies.
