Zambia has a 4th mobile operator!

Introducing UZI Zambia Limited.

Yup, ZICTA has officially announced that they have given a notification to award a 4th mobile network operator licence to UZI Zambia Limited, based on reviews carried out over the past 2 years. The notification is for a Network Licence under the International Market Segment and a Service Licence under the National Market Segment. The two licences were up for competition after a call for proposals ended last year. Only two proposals were received and UZI has been awarded the licences. I am very certain the other proposal was from Vodafone Zambia. Sad news for them.

UZI Zambia Limited has pledged a US$350 million investment and will see the creation of 450 direct employment opportunities.

In a statement by Ngabo Nakonde, ZICTA’s Manager of Corporate Communications,  the regulator realized the “need for deeper competition on the market with a view to attain improvements in the quality of service offered on the market, attain more competitive pricing outcomes as well as enhance the levels of investment on the market.”

UZI will reportedly be rolling out 4G/LTE and 5G network capabilities to over 100 universal access sites in Zambia.

Who are UZI Zambia Limited?

First of all, even a Google search didn’t help me with an answer but according to ZICTA’s statement their biggest shareholder is Unitel International Holdings BV who have operations in Angola, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe, and Cape Verde. Unitel International Holdings B.V. was formerly known as Jadeium BV. The company is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and was founded in 2015.

Unitel International Holdings B.V. was formerly known as Jadeium BV and is operated by Angolan businesswoman Isabel dos Santos.

Keep an eye out for more updates.