Orange set to sell mobile division in Uganda to Africell

By Macharia Kamau

French telecoms giant Orange has started a process to sell its operation in Uganda to a Gambia headquartered operator, Africell.

The move brings to a conclusion a strategic review that Orange was undertaking in its Ugandan operation.

The French operator has since the first quarter of this year been undertaking a review of some of its businesses in Africa – including Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

There is, however, no word on when it would conclude the review of its Kenyan operation, Telkom Kenya, despite reports it has notified the National Treasury of its plan to sell its shareholding in the operator.

South Africa’s MTN and Vietman’s Viettel are among the firms that have expressed interest in buying Orange’s stake in Telkom Kenya.

Orange owns a 70 per cent stake in Telkom Kenya while the Government holds the remaining 30 per cent.

Majority stake

In a statement Monday, Orange said it had signed an agreement with Africell for the sale of a majority stake in orange Uganda. Africell has operations in the Gambia, Sierra Leone and DR Congo.

“In the framework of a regular review of its portfolio of assets, today, the Orange Group announced that it has signed an agreement with Africell Holding for the sale of its majority stake in Orange Uganda,” it said.

The transaction is subject to approval from the relevant authorities. It will enable the company in Uganda to continue its development.

“This transaction marks a new step in the Orange group’s asset portfolio optimisation strategy for which Africa and the Middle-East remain a strategic priority.”

Orange Uganda has grown its subscriber base to 620 000 customers as at December 2013 since setting up shop in 2008. The French operators said in March that it was evaluating its two units in Kenya and Uganda to determine the way forward.