Local mobile phone provider Telecom Development Company Afghanistan will be given a loan of $55 million from Asian Development Bank (ADB), for coverage expansion to parts of the country that have poor or no telecommunications infrastructure. To support the mobile banking system called M-Paisa, the operator, which operates under the name Roshan, plans to use these funds. Focussinng the country’s unbanked population, M-Paisa enables users to transfer money via their mobile phones, without opening bank accounts. Currently, Roshan network serves more than2 million active subscribers as reported at the end of the june. $175 million is the estimated cost for the expansion including capital expenditure into new districts, upgrading equipment and transforming sites to use solar power. Other investors will be funding balance.
Wireless Federation » archive for 'M-Paisa'
ADB to fund Roshan (Afghanistan)
- August 14th, 2008
- 11:05 am
