By Standard Digital reporter
Airtel Uganda has today announced new harmonized calling rates to all African destinations
Aritel today announced new harmonized calling rates to all African destinations, cutting costs for Ugandans who communicate with family, friends and business associates across the continent. Starting today Airtel customers can call any destination in Africa for Ush 10/-per second.
Calls within East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC) as well as calls to Nigeria and South Africa will cost even less at Ush 6 per second.
Previously, customers were paying between USh 450-1,500 per minute to call many of the African destinations, making these new rates from Airtel the best available.
Commenting on the new rates, Mr Somasekhar VG., Managing Director, Airtel Uganda, said: “We believe the time for Africa is now and, as such, Airtel is committed to connecting the continent and breaking any cross-border communication barriers through providing affordable communication. Africa has experienced rapid economic growth over the last decade and this offer will allow Ugandans to capitalize on this growth. The lower rates will not only allow Ugandans to talk more, the increased communication will also play a role in promoting trade and commerce across Africa.”
The importance of connecting the Ugandan population to the rest of the continent is recognized by both corporate as well as the government. Speaking at the launch event, Ruhakana Rugunda, Minister of ICT in Uganda explained that the reality of closing the communication divide in Africa is only going to be made possible when we respond to the growing need for people to communicate by providing innovative and advanced ICT solutions that make mobile telephony and other communication available and affordable to all. He added that the launch of Airtel’s One Africa One Rate, which envisages a uniform charge for all calls made to African countries from an Airtel number, will go a long way in bringing African together.
As an added bonus, customers who call the African destinations frequently will stand a chance to win a dream holiday for two every week for next three months. The holiday is the result of a partnership between Airtel Uganda, Fly 540 and Serena Hotels.
Airtel has been at the forefront of driving innovation across Africa not only within the local scene but at international level through the One Network profile that allows customers to communicate at local rates when they travel to at least 17 countries in Africa.
Meanwhile, Airtel ranked amongst Top 100 Global Brands.
Airtel has been ranked ahead of top global brands such as Citi, Sony, MTN, China Telecom, and Volkswagen.
Airtel joined the elite club of global brands by making it to this year’s BrandZTop 100 Most Valuable Global Brands list.
With an overall ranking of 71 and brand value of USD 11.5 billion, Airtel has been ranked ahead of top global brands such as Citi (82), Sony (86), MTN (88), China Telecom (90), and Volkswagen (96).
The BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands study conducted by leading global research firm Millward Brown. It is the only brand valuation that takes into account what people think about the brands they buy alongside rigorous analysis of financial data, market valuations, analyst reports and risk profiles. The ranking is arrived through a continuous in-depth quantitative research on a category-by-category and a country-by-country basis. The research covers some 2 million consumers and more than 50,000 brands in over 30 countries.’
