Asia’s richest man set to enter Africa's high-growth telecoms market
TLDR
- Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man, expands telecom empire into Africa through subsidiary Radisys for Ghana-based Next-Gen InfraCo (NGIC).
- NGIC to provide 5G broadband services to mobile operators and ISPs in Ghana, launching by year-end.
- Ambani leverages Reliance Industries' expertise to target Africa's high-growth telecom market and broaden global presence with Radisys.
Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, is expanding his telecom empire into Africa with a new venture. Radisys, a subsidiary of Ambani's Reliance Industries, will supply essential network infrastructure, applications, and smartphones for Ghana-based Next-Gen InfraCo (NGIC).
The plans were revealed ahead of NGIC's launch announcement in Mumbai, India's financial center, today, May 27. NGIC aims to commence operations by the year's end, offering 5G broadband services to mobile operators and internet service providers in Ghana.
This move signifies Ambani's strategic entry into Africa's high-growth telecom market, leveraging Reliance Industries' expertise to capture mobile broadband customers and expand its global footprint through Radisys.
Key Takeaways
Ghana, a West African nation with a population exceeding 33 million, hosts three main telecom operators: MTN Ghana, Vodafone Ghana, and state-run AirtelTigo. NGIC's strategic partnerships, technological capabilities, and ownership of Ghana's sole 5G license are poised to facilitate the development of broadband services on a large scale, a significant expense for individual mobile carriers. The company aims to replicate the success of Ambani's Jio Infocomm in India. Jio disrupted the Indian telecom market in late 2016 with affordable data and free voice calling, leading to closures and consolidations among competitors. Jio's initiative is widely acknowledged for making mobile data accessible to hundreds of millions of Indians. Presently, Jio stands as India's largest mobile operator, serving 470 million users.
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