STATE-OWNED mobile communications company, NetOne, has recorded an impressive growth in mobile subscription.
According to the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe) sector performance report for the third quarter in 2021, NetOne subscribers increased by 3.4 percent to 13.935.233 by September 30 2021 from 13.481.527 by June 30 2021
Mobile penetration rate increased by 2.2 percent to reach 93.5 percent in the third quarter from 91.3 percent recorded in the second quarter of 2021.
Of the increase in the whole sector, NetOne recorded the highest growth rate of 6.3 percent. Econet recorded slightly above two percent while Telecel recorded an insignificant growth of less than one percent.
“As part of our thrust to positively contribute towards Vision 2030, making Zimbabwe a middle-class-economy, we have taken a deliberate move to increase our subscriber base. Further, this goal is in alignment with the National Development Strategy One, to digitalise the economy and facilitate access to ICTs at village level,” a NetOne’s spokesperson said.
“ICTs are at the heart of development of the Zimbabwean economy and as such we are directing all our efforts towards connecting the unconnected. We continue to invest in infrastructure to make sure that there is increased network coverage to previously marginalised areas.”
The growth trajectory by the State-owned giant was sustained by growth in infrastructure.
The same Potraz quarterly report for the postal and telecommunications sector indicated that NetOne has gained market share of 2G, 3G and LTE by 0.1 percent, 0.4 percent and 2.2 percent respectively.
“We are pleased to let the public know that we are serious about the mandate they have given us, to be their digital communication-solutions partner,” said NetOne chief executive officer, Raphael Mushanawani.
“In the third quarter of 2021 we deployed a total of over 50 new base stations. Recently the company has introduced new innovations on the market driven by smart technologies.
“NetOne has been continuously enhancing its product and services portfolio to suit the lifestyle of its customers.
“If you have been following our journey, we celebrated our 25th anniversary and have further cemented our position as “Your Number One Digital Solutions network. We are happy to have added a number of innovations into the basket this last quarter.”