MTN Sudan BFM 83

MTN SUDAN

UNLOCKING SUDAN’S POTENTIAL

MTN SUDAN

SUDAN IS A COUNTRY THAT HAS ENDURED A GREAT DEAL OF HARDSHIP, BUT AS MTN SUDAN SHOWS US, THERE IS ALSO A HUGE AMOUNT OF POTENTIAL HERE.

UNLOCKING SUDAN’S POTENTIAL PROJECT MANAGED BY: TREVOR GRETSINGER MTN Group Limited, formerly M-Cell, is a South African multinational mobile telecommunications company, operating in 21 African, European and Asian countries.

M

alik K I Melamu is the CEO of the Middle East and North Africa region, and he counts MTN Sudan as one of its success stories.

“We’ve been here since 2006, building a GSM operation slowly but surely,” Melamu tells us. “I arrived here in 2016 when the company had been operating for ten years. This November we launched our celebration of 15 years in Sudan.”

MTN Sudan is the second operator in Sudan with a market share of 37% of the traditional communication and data sectors. The company has also evolved digital and fintech operations alongside an enterprise business unit offering communication solutions for large business operators. The

2 | BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE

company boasts a network deployment of around 2,400 sites across Sudan. However, Melamu insists that there is still more work to do.

“Sudan at the moment enjoys mobile penetration levels of approximately 74%, so one of the big challenges is to get as many people as possible to have access to the internet,” he says.

“We’re providing data services through 2G but also 3G, and we have our 4G deployment growing really, really fast. The big challenge is obviously how to get more access to data to implement. We’re at about 35% and we hope to have 42% penetration next year.”

STEPPING IN TO HELP

MTN Sudan’s priorities aren’t confined to opening up internet access to as many people as possible, however.

“We’re self-governed and are known as an honest operator because we have a very tough risk management and

compliance system,” Melamu points out. “It’s given us a good name in the country along with our strong corporate social responsibility offering.”

MTN’s CSR work has included an initiative the company funded to assist the prevention of unnecessary blindness.

“It requires only a very small surgical intervention,” Melamu says. “We’ve so far driven 143,000 such operations in Sudan.”

This is just one of MTN Sudan’s projects, however. The company has performed a pivotal role in flood relief and is helping to prop up the inadequate medical infrastructure in the country in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

Melamu tells us, “Last week we launched a new initiative to set up telemedicine with our data network. So doctors in isolation can remotely assist doctors on-site in various hospitals. I’m very proud that we’re known as such a caring company.”

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

MTN SUDAN

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE | 3

Breathtaking Luxury Step into the 5 stars Al Salam Hotel Khartoum, Ideally located just a few minutes away from Khartoum International Airport via the stretch of Africa Road, a short drive to Downtown Khartoum, and a walking distance from Afra Mall. Al Salam Hotel Khartoum is perfectly situated for both business and leisure. Experience a unique blend the traditional Sudanese hospitality.

The hotel epitomizes the exceptional hospitality in Sudan, featuring 233 rooms and suites elegantly designed with the comfort of the guests in mind. Supported by an excellent array of services and fitted with the latest sophisticated equipment.

Al Salam Hotel is outfitted with a variety of facilities making it the perfect place both for business and leisure. The hotel offers two distinctive food and beverage venues including Nuba Restaurant and City Café. In addition to, gifts shop, business center and a selection of meeting spaces, boardrooms, a ballroom, all with a pre-function area, suitable for all kinds of occasions and meetings.

Al Salam Health & Fitness Club offers you a fully equipped gym, outdoor swimming pool, steam and sauna rooms, in addition to a variety of massages to choose from.

At Al Salam Hotel your comfort comes first.

Special Needs At Al Salam Hotel, we anticipate your needs and place utmost importance in ensuring the safety and comfort of every guest. Our hotel has been thoughtfully laid out to ensure easy reach and several members of our team have undergone training to take care of the requirements of our special needs guests.

General Hotel Features • Valet parking provided

HOTEL FACILITIES:

• Service animals are permitted

• Al Salam Health & Fitness Club

• Accessible route from hotel entrance to accessible guest rooms

• Salam Club Lounge

• Evacuation wheel chairs

• Business Center with professional secretarial support • 2 Food and Beverage outlets

Accessible Areas

• Wireless internet connection in all rooms, suites and public areas

• Business Centre and Salam Club Lounge

• Laundry and dry cleaning facilities

• Restaurants

• Doctor on call

• Meeting room and ballroom

• Car limousine rental & Valet parking • Multilingual employees

Accessible Room Features • Wheelchair accessible doors

PLEASE NOTE that Credit cards cannot be used as a method of payment in Sudan.

• Lowered access for room amenities and mini bar items • Flashing light for alarm

Al Salam Hotel, Africa Road, Khartoum, Sudan Tel: +249 187 007 777 Fax: +249 187 007 788 Email: info@alsalamhotel.com / reservation@alsalamhotel.com www.alsalamhotel.com

• Audible emergency alarm • Grab bar for toilet (Only in the public area) • Staff proficient in sign language

Secure VSAT services, whenever & wherever you need them.

A Strong VSAT services provider, comprising highly experienced local/regional integration and development professionals who have an enviable reputation in design, delivery, support and maintenance of Innovative VSAT Solutions • 3 Satellites covering Ka, C and Ku bands • 24/7 NOC services from our Khartoum Teleport • Local and Regional coverage serving North, East and West Africa

Our Services: • Telecom/Enterprise Backhauling • Rural Coverage Sites.

• Earth Observation & Imaging • Internet Connectivity • TV/Radio Channels Broadcasting • VoIP Services • VSAT Sites Integration • VSAT Managed Services • Consultancy Services

Sudasat, Building #40/9, Omak St, Riyadh, Khartoum, Sudan | Tel: +249 18 321 6860 | Email: info@sudasat.net | www.sudasat.net

MTN SUDAN

Malik K I Melamu, CEO, MTN Sudan.

BRINGING DATA TO SUDAN

Another arena where MTN is making great progress is in building Sudan’s nascent fintech market.

“We are pioneers in Sudan, driving fintech. The MTN Group has a fintech operation in 16 of its 21 countries. Mobile money is a big driver, offering participation in the formal economy to the unbanked so they can make digital payments,” Melamu explains. “In Sudan, we’re at the cusp of a full-blown mobile money launch thanks to twoto-three years of pushing from MTN Sudan. That is an area we are very proud of.”

The perception in the market is that MTN Sudan offers the best data internet quality in the country, is a pioneer in driving internet quality, fintech and other mobile services, and has very rigorous compliance.

But working in Sudan also brings unique challenges with it.

6 | BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE

“There are phenomenal challenges around the economy.

Sudan is a country with hyperinflation,” Melamu says.

“When I arrived in Sudan in 2016 the inflation rate was 17%, the following year the inflation rate was 35%, then 62%, and right now the inflation rate 119%, while in October the inflation rate was 212%. I arrived in the market with the Sudanese pound trading at eight or nine Sudanese pounds to the dollar. As I speak to you today there are 270 Sudanese pounds to the dollar.”

Sudan is in the top five countries in the world in terms of inflation rates, while at the same time it is in the bottom five in terms of data price per gigabyte. It’s a challenging position for a Sudanese data provider to be in.

“I’ve spent this time driving organic growth to keep the business afloat and behind all of those challenges we are still a self-funding operation,” Melamu says. “But the biggest challenge is that economic instability.

Sudan faces sanctions, although it looks like they may be lifted to allow us to trade in the world economic space and access international donor funding. We have a transitional government, a combination of military and civilian, from different backgrounds, with different views, so getting decisions from the government during this transition is a challenge.”

While economically and politically Sudan may present challenges to businesses, Melamu is quick to point out that this is not the whole story.

“The business has grown phenomenally from an operational perspective. The potential in the country is massive,” he insists.

Melamu points to a combination of tariff reviews and a growing subscriber base

that have allowed the company to grow its prepaid revenue from 2016 to the present by over 600%.

“Sudan is a market rich in potential,” Melamu says. “We run a very tight ship with a constant eye on the budget and macro-economics. We’ve managed to be self-funding. I won’t lie, I’m a very tired CEO, but I think the potential in the market is phenomenal.”

One area where Sundan offers a wealth of resources is in its human capital.

“I’ve now worked outside South Africa since 2005, in eight different African countries and I will say the basic skills in engineering and IT found in Sudan, the basic competencies are the best I’ve seen in any African country,” Melamu says.

“There is a strong tradition of maths and science in schools, we churn out huge numbers of engineers and information technology specialists despite having been closed off from the world. We’re blessed with some of the best fundamental skills you’ll find.”

This is why, despite the challenges facing Sudan, Melamu is extremely optimistic about the country’s future.

“The future is outstanding. We still have a journey to get the internet into as many hands as possible. Last year we came up with a smartphone with a cost of $20, so it’s becoming more accessible,” Melamu says. “It’s very cheap by any standards but still out of reach of the majority of people when people are earning less than two dollars a day. In 2019 MTN launched the first African created messaging app Ayoba! which two days ago was voted app of the year in the Africa Digital Awards.

It’s an app where you don’t necessarily have to be on a data bundle to use it, and so opens

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

MTN SUDAN

up access to a lot of customers here. Sudan has been a country that has been a pariah in the world because of sanctions and political challenges, but as a foreigner working on the inside, I think Sudan is just about to come alive. It’s just about to open up to the world.

Over the coming years it will be a place offering a lot of growth, excitement, returns, surprises and creativity.”

“MOBILE MONEY IS A BIG DRIVER, OFFERING PARTICIPATION IN THE FORMAL ECONOMY TO THE UNBANKED SO THEY CAN MAKE DIGITAL PAYMENTS.”

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE | 7

MTN SUDAN

WWW.MTN.SD