MTN exits Guinea, sells operations to govt

• Published On: 03 January 2025 at 20:23

MTN Group, Africa's largest network operator by subscriber base, has announced the successful sale of its Guinea operations (MTN Guinea-Conakry) to the State of Guinea.

The mobile operator confirmed this in a statement posted on its website on Thursday.

The deal, which was finalised on December 30, 2024, is consistent with MTN's portfolio optimisation and simplification strategy, which is part of its Ambition 2025 goals.

MTN Group President and CEO, Ralph Mupita, stated, "This milestone marks a new phase for MTN Guinea-Conakry under local ownership, and MTN thanks the staff, customers, regulators, and broader stakeholders in Guinea for their support during MTN's operational period in the country.

"Concluding this transaction is in line with the strategy to simplify the portfolio and allocate capital to markets where we can make a difference as MTN and deliver long-term growth and returns."

Mupita explained the rationale for MTN's decision to exit smaller markets during a media briefing in Johannesburg in August 2024.

"Given our risk management framework, some markets are extremely challenging, and we are not the best owners of those businesses. "They are small and unable to fund their own expansion," he explained.

Previously, the operator announced plans to sell its equity interests in Guinea-Conakry and Guinea-Bissau in a 2023 financial report.

According to the report, MTN accepted an undisclosed offer from Telecel, an African-focused telecommunications operator, to acquire its interests in both countries.

MTN stated that the Guinea-Bissau and Guinea-Conakry businesses were classified as held for sale as of December 31, 2023.