Ethiopia government has announced the sell- off of a 40 percent stake of Ethio Telecom to private investors. The move is part of the government’s broader plan to open up the Horn of Africa country’s economy.

 Zinabu Yirga, Deputy Director of Public Enterprises Holding and Administration Agency said during a press conference in the capital Addis Ababa Monday that those interested to invest in the project can now submit expressions of interest (EOI), the first of a series of stages that will lead to picking of a successful bidder.

She added that the government want(s) State-owned enterprises to be competitive and productive, thus explaining the motivation for selling a part of Ethio Telecom to private investors.

Ethiopia is also planning to license private operators to compete with Ethio Telecom as part of the broader opening up of the sector.

 The country has a population of over 100 million people and one of the region’s biggest economies. It’s also considered lucrative and is expected to attract significant investor interest.

Brook Taye, senior advisor at the finance ministry said the 40per cent would be offered as a single stake to a single investor.
 The Ethiopian government recently awarded a license to operate telecommunication services to Kenya’s telco giant Safaricom in a consortium made up of Vodafone, Japan’s Sumitomo and UK finance agency CDC Group.

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