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Broadcast
11th July 2000
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TANZANIA
TELECOM TO BE PRIVATISED
In Tanzania, a consortium of two European companies are poised to
take over the national telecoms company TTCL after the government
sold a 35 per cent stake.
That long awaited move is seen by donors as a sign that the government
really is committed to a difficult privatisation programme. Our Africa
Business Editor Mark Ashurst reports:
"Under pressure from the foreign lenders who prop up its fragile government
finances, Tanzania has moved briskly to relax the government's grip
on key sectors of the economy. Cigarette factories, mining prospects
and retail banks have been sold into private hands and trade barriers
dismantled, almost as briskly as in neighbouring Uganda.
"TTCL, the Tanzania Telecommunications Company Limited, has proved
a more testing hurdle. It is not just a critical part of the national
infrastructure, but also potentially the most lucrative. By selling
a 35 per cent stake to two European companies, the government is counting
on Mobile Systems International and of the Netherlands and Datacom
of Germany to turn the phone utility around."
Only then will more shares be sold, according to John Rumbambe, chairman
of the Tanzania Parastatal Reform Commission:
"The government reserved 14 per cent for international financial institutions
like the International Financial Corporation, ten per cent for local
financial institutions and five per cent for the workers. The government
has decided to retain 36 per cent but in the event these others do
not make it, the shares will remain with the government and a different
way of selling to private individuals will be looked into."
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TTCL's new management have paid $120 million for their share
in the company and pledged to increase the number of phone lines
from the current level of about 140,000 to 850,000.
John
Rumbambe
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"New jobs will be created in the process and the import of new
skills and technologies is part of the deal. But in the longer term,
some of TTCL's old workforce are unlikely to survive.
"Their trade unions have been won over by the promise of share
options for employees. That is a tactical move which has worked in
other privatisations, and one which could salve the conscience of
political veterans in a ruling party still sceptical about the promise
of Tanzania's economic reforms."
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New jobs will be created in the process and the import of
new skills and technologies is part of the deal.
Mark
Ashurst
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| The
Markets: 18:46 GMT |
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FTSE |
6406.80 |
-11.00 |
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Dow Jones |
12525.7 |
-48.11 |
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Nasdaq |
2467.70 |
-9.91 |
| Data delayed at least 15 minutes. |
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| Internet
links: |
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Tanzania
Telecom |
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Mobile
Systems International |
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BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet
sites |
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