Audio Attachment:Listen to Ursula Owusu-Ekuful on Peace FM's 'kokrokoo' programme. |
Minister for Communications and Member of Parliament (MP) for Ablekuma West constituency, Ursula Owusu has said Globacom Limited, commonly known as Glo, a Nigerian multinational telecommunications company is facing challenges and Ghana's first 4G LTE company, Surfline a fast and reliable internet service provider is also folding up.
According to her operational challenges and cost of doing business has taken a toll on the companies.
"If you take out MTN, and maybe Vodafon and AirtelTigo, almost all the other telecom operators are suffering . . . with Glo they told us over a year ago that they would love to change their operations because they are looking for someone to cushion them, but in the meantime they wanted to reduce their operational expenses. So they got into an arrangement with AirtelTigo so their customers will roam on AirtelTigo network . . . for now Glo is still doing due deligence with the government to know which decision to take about the company, they haven't finalized it so we are still waiting for them," she explained to Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's 'kokrokoo' programme Friday morning.
With Surfline it is in a similar situation as Glo.
"Over the years they have had challenges . . . we have been aware they are looking for strategic investments and partnerships, we've been helping them a lot but the conversations didn't materialize . . . so for now their expenditures and debts outweigh their revenues and cost of providing services. Even though they shouldn't have shut down their data centres without reference to the regulator, I have heard they've done that . . . so I have asked NCA to work with them to minimize the impact on their subscribers . . . it is in the process of folding up . . ." Ursula Owusu said.
Source: Peacefmonline.com
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It is not shameful for operators of such strategic sector to fold up because of high cost of doing business in Ghana according to the ministers? We shouldnt be parochial about this but rather look beyond these telcos. There are several other businesses folding up or planning to fold up due to bad economic conditions and lack of business friendly policies that eat away capital . Is sad to hear these stories. Because of someone's 10% the whole country suffers.Shameful.
The woman who claimed her 18 years old son could manage Ghana could not manage this situation to ensure that this telcos are operating to provide jobs for Ghanaians,sefa kayi will not speak truth to power this time around,who should curse her now?since she claimed she cursed mahama anytime the light went out.
When solid O&M Companies like KFG were giving GloMobile professional Contract & Project Management advisory they hired Andah to camouflage their inefficiencies and ignored us. GloMobile collapsed in 2012. It just took 10+ years for the Minister to publicly announce it. In 2012 their main BB Sites along Buipe-Tamale Road were down, RTC in Temale 2No. 500KVA Gensets had never worked even though they had brought multiple expats to come and work on it. It was KFG which fixed it for them after Engrs. Promise & Seth had begged us. We did it at no cost to GloMobile even though RTC Tamale was not a KFG assigned Site. GloMobile were their own downfall. The had the infrastructure, they had the money but hired too many incompetent Nigerian Engineers to base in HQ, Accra. So Dan, yes Adenuga will eat but trust me he lost a HUGE fortune in Ghana and Benin just because they didn't value professionalism. GloMobile could have easily challenged MTN but go figure.
Information on social media says Glo is head to head with a certain telecommunications company operating in Ghana currently. This company saw the entry of Glo into the Ghanaian telecommunication space as a threat to their dominance in Ghana so they have used some powerful people to ensure that Glo doesn't succeed in Ghana. What these so called powerful people forgot is/ was that Glo was going to generate employment for the Ghanaian youth both directly and inderectly. Mike Adenuga is the 5th richest man in Africa, Glo's folding up operations in Ghana will not affect the food on his table, he wifi stii fuel his car, pay his water and electricity bills, pay his children / grandchildren's school fees, his family medical bills etc. It is that unemployed masters degree holder who has been roaming in Ghana's streets jobless for years after graduating who would have gotten a job in Glo who is going to suffer. Hear Peter Obi, a Nigerian politician speak " No country can progress when it's politics is more profitable than it's industries. In a country where those in government are richer than entrepreneurs , they manufacture poverty " . This is currently what is happening.