Former communication and transport minister Geoffrey Lungwangwa has urged the Zambian government to assess the country’s market seriously before issuing a license for a fourth mobile operator.
Lungwangwa believes the government’s plans to license a fourth mobile operator in the country is a good move, but an evaluation of the performance of the three existing operators, namely MTN, Airtel and Zamtel, is necessary.
“The major priority first for government is to assess if the state owned telecommunications company, Zamtel, is serving its purpose to the nation,” Lungwangwa told QFM, a local radio station.
The Zambian government’s consideration of a new mobile operator follows a reversal of a law by the previous administration which banned the establishment of a new operator. This law was initially put in place to protect state-owned Zamtel from facing additional competition.
According to the government, it received several bids from international companies two months ago who seek to invest in Zambia’s telecommunications sector.
