Zain Malawi plans investment & 3G launch

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Zain, the leading mobile operator in Middle East and Africa, is all set to face tougher competition as the two newly licensed mobile operators launch operations. The company’s CEO Fayaz King reportedly said that the mobile operator will continue investments in its network to boost the quality of services.
In 2008, the operator made an investment of USD 100 million, and in 2009 another USD 40 million will be invested in new products and upgrades. He said the current operators on the market were experiencing difficulties accessing foreign currency for new investments and wondered how the new players would find the hard currency for their establishment.
He also added that the Malawian mobile market is limited with Zain having a capacity of 5 million subscribers, the company at present only holds 1.5 million subscribers despite Malawi boasting some of the cheapest phone handsets in Africa.
The CEO also disclosed that the company is finalising discussions with the Malawi Communications Authority on plans to introduce 3G technology in the country.