Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries ventures into Africa's telecom market
Asia's wealthiest individual, Mukesh Ambani, is set to expand his telecom venture into Africa, specifically targeting mobile broadband customers. Radisys Corp., a subsidiary of Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd., will provide essential network infrastructure, applications and smartphones for Ghana-based Next-Gen InfraCo. (NGIC). The announcement was made ahead of NGIC's official launch in Mumbai. NGIC plans to commence operations by the end of this year with a focus on providing 5G broadband services to mobile operators and internet service providers in Ghana.
NGIC's vision for affordable digital services
NGIC's executive director, Harkirit Singh, shared the company's vision of "building affordable digital services in emerging markets." The company is set to start operations by the end of this year. Other strategic partners supporting NGIC include Nokia Oyj, Indian outsourcer Tech Mahindra Ltd., and Microsoft Corp., which has been increasingly focusing on telecoms business since acquiring two cloud networking firms in 2020.
NGIC's exclusive 5G license and investment plan
NGIC, with its strategic partners, technological prowess, and exclusive possession of Ghana's only 5G license, is poised to build broadband services at scale. This is a significant expense for individual mobile carriers. The company holds the exclusive right to offer 5G services in Ghana for 10 years, although its license is valid for 15 years. NGIC plans to spend $145 million over three years as capital expenditure.
NGIC's stakeholders and ambition to replicate Jio's success
Two African telecom firms, Ascend Digital Solutions Ltd. and K-NET, hold a combined stake of 55% in NGIC. The Ghana government will own just under 10% of NGIC while local mobile operators and private investors retain the remaining shares. Singh, who also serves as Ascend's CEO, stated that the company aims to replicate the success of Ambani's Jio Infocomm Ltd in India, which revolutionized the market with low-cost data and free voice calling.
