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Rabat – The financial results of Morocco’s largest telecommunications company, Maroc Telecom (IAM), have been relatively positive in the first half of 2020.
In a report released on July 20, IAM boasted a turnover of MAD 18.3 billion ($1.92 billion), marking a global turnover annual increase of 2.7%.
The company also upgraded its mobile internet coverage in Morocco. The internet coverage now includes 99% of Moroccan territory.
In the first half of 2020, IAM’s revenue from mobile data alone increased by 15% in Morocco and 27% in the sub-Saharan African countries where the company has subsidiaries.
Some of the highlights of the first half of 2020, according to the report, are the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency’s (ANRT) MAD 3.3 billion ($346 million) fine.
The regulatory institution condemned Maroc Telecom for anti-competitive practices, relating to the implementation of local-loop unbundling—a process that allows multiple telecommunications operators to use connections from the same telephone exchange, managed by IAM.
Maroc Telecom’s report also mentioned WANA’s withdrawal of its complaint against the company. Telecommunication company WANA, known under its brand name Inwi, had sought compensation of MAD 5.7 billion ($598 million) from IAM for the anti-competitive practices.
According to the report, IAM paid its financial obligations relating to the case within the given deadlines.
Another noteworthy event mentioned in the report is Maroc Telecom’s collaboration with ANRT to develop “general guidelines” for the development of the telecommunications sector in Morocco. The document, originally expected to be ready by 2019, received a deadline extension until 2023.
Internationally, IAM consolidated its African presence through establishing new regulatory texts, notably in Mali, Gabon, Benin, and Niger.
The report also highlighted a decrease in telecommunications spending among Moroccans, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Compared to July 1, 2019, Maroc Telecom now counts 9.1% more clients. The company’s client base includes 23.2 million customers in Morocco and 45.2 million customers in sub-Saharan African countries.
The main reason behind the significant expansion of IAM’s client base, according to the report, is the penetration of the Chadian market. In 2019, the Moroccan conglomerate acquired 100% of the shares in Tigo Chad, a leading telecommunications company in the Central African country.
Maroc Telecom has telecommunications subsidiaries in 10 other African countries. The company’s first expansion outside of Morocco was in Mauritania in 2001, followed by Burkina Faso, Gabon, and Mali.
In 2015, IAM penetrated five new markets at once. The conglomerate created subsidiaries in Cote d’Ivoire, Benin, Togo, Niger, and the Central African Republic.
Chad’s telecommunications market is Maroc Telecom’s most recent economic triumph.
