Gambia’s third mobile network operator, Comium, was officially inaugurated at the weekend by President Jammeh. Comium, a subsidiary of Luxembourg-registered Lebanese holding company the Comium Group, has rolled out a 2.5G GSM/GPRS network since being awarded a mobile licence in early August 2006. It has announced that it will offer a wider range of advanced value-added services than those currently provided by existing operators Gamcel and Africell, which have around 200,000 and 150,000 subscribers respectively. It also claims that it will be the first cellco to offer complete coverage of the country. A Comium spokesperson announced that: ‘Our strategy involves the acquisition of new licenses across west and central Africa, in countries where mobile phone and internet penetration is still limited and where we feel we can bring tangible, sustained value to subscribers.’ Comium has established mobile networks in Liberia and Sierra Leone and is preparing to launch operations in the C´te d’Ivoire. It was involved in Lebanon’s mobile market as the manager of LibanCell (now MTC Touch Lebanon) until 2004 when the Lebanese government sold the management contract to Kuwaiti cellco MTC.

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