Niger will merge its two state telephone companies, fixed-line operator SONITEL and mobile company Sahel Com, in an effort to face mounting competition from private operators, the telecommunications minister said on Friday.
The West African country is one of the poorest in the world, but Internet and telephone access have sharply risen in the past three years.
Three private carriers, Airtel, Orange and Moov, have entered Niger's telecoms market since it ended a monopoly in 2004.
Telecommunications Minister Abdou Mani said the merger aims to streamline the two companies' technical and financial resources.
Mani said the government, which has pumped 85 billion CFA francs ($147.30 million) into SONITEL since 2012, would complete the roll-out the company's fiber-optic network and other new technologies to encourage privatisation of the national carrier.
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/16/niger-telecoms-idUSL8N12G3IY20151016?rpc=401