Netone, Econet in landmark agreement

Sunday Mail Reporter

The country’s two largest mobile network operators — Econet and NetOne — have signed an infrastructure sharing pact that will widen network coverage, particularly in rural areas.

Millions of Zimbabweans who subscribe to the two networks are expected to benefit from the development through enhanced services and efficiency.

It is also anticipated that the agreement will lead to reduced operational costs.

In the statement to The Sunday Mail yesterday, NetOne chief executive officer Mr Lazarus Muchenje said infrastructure sharing dovetails with President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030, which seeks to propel the country’s economy towards an upper middle income status in the next eleven years.

“This agreement allows NetOne and Econet to optimise the utilisation of scarce foreign currency as it eliminates the duplication of infrastructure,” he stated.

“This is a watershed agreement which supports Vision 2030, which is to create a middle-income status economy, through improved accessibility of ICTs across the country.”

Econet chief executive Mr Douglas Mboweni said the agreement was “a giant step” that was long overdue.

“We are happy to have signed this agreement, something we have wanted to do in a very long time.

“We consider this to be a very fair arrangement and believe it represents a giant step in our collective endeavour to bring connectivity and ICT services to all Zimbabweans,” he said.

The agreement defines the site-sharing parameters among the two operators, including arrangements on sharing towers, commercial and back-up power supply, back haul transmission and security.

Econet and NetOne serve more than 90 percent of the country’s close to 13 million active mobile network subscribers.

The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe has been encouraging telecoms operators to share infrastructure as this is a viable business model.