www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) has selected two firms for talks to buy a majority stake in Zambia’s fixed-line phone operator Zamtel. The two firms are Angola’s Unitel and Libya’s LAP Green Networks and the talks are expected to start later this month for the purchase of 75 percent of Zamtel.
Despite monopoly rights, Zamtel which is Zambia’s only licensed fixed-line provider of voice and data communications has performed poorly and its revenue for the year to end-December was $100 million. It has also been criticized by opposition politicians and trade unions, who say Zambians should hold a bigger stake in the company.
According to Zamtel, ZDA Director General Andrew Chipwende, the company is expecting to commence concessions with the two bidders for Zamtel by the third week of April and the target is to try and conclude the process by the end of June.