Page 57 - SAMENA Trends - February-March 2021

ARTICLE SAMENA TRENDS

Ufone puts efforts in digital initiatives for available to customers and are easy to Etisalat Afghanistan part-
SMBs manage. Going forward, the company
Users are now able to access and manage plans to improve its bundle offerings, with nered with the Ministry of
their bundle plans themselves. They can cloud and digital services, and business Education to find a solu-
view their usage, extract their monthly SMSs, among other things. There is huge tion to possible interrup-
bills and make online payments as well as potential for revenue growth in the SME
detailed data usage through Ufone’s Web sector, and the PTCL Group has the ability tions in education. Given
portal, ‘BizEaze’. Ufone also collaborated to meet consumers’ needs in this market. Afghanistan’s device
with PTCL in 2020 to offer SME bundle
plans for mobile connectivity, wireless Ufones’s mobile financial services brand, penetration and connec-
broadband, and fixed connectivity ‘Triple ‘UPaisa’, was a major move to cashless tivity issues, it would not
Play’ bundles. The bundles incorporate payments a mobile app was introduced
a number of off-the-shelf solutions for iOS and Android users, allowing all have been practical to use
that cater to the most critical business essential transactions, including QRbased an existing online model,
requirements of SMEs, from productivity payments. With a simple and user-friendly such as Google Classroom
to collaboration, to marketing and sales interface, the UPaisa app allows its users
and more. The solutions are immediately to avail multiple financial services through or Microsoft Teams. The
one platform. The UPaisa app focuses on company thus rolled out
Ufones’s mobile financial simplicity and enables users to navigate an affordable eLearning

services brand, ‘UPaisa’, with ease. platform that makes the
was a major move to cash- Ufone maintained its ranking as one of the curriculum materials avail-
less payments a mobile top three operators in Pakistan in 2020, in able in text form.
terms of customer satisfaction.
app was introduced for iOS with the Ministry of Education to find
and Android users, allowing Afghanistan gives easy access to a solution to possible interruptions in
all essential transac- healthcare and education education. Given Afghanistan’s device
Etisalat Afghanistan made it easier for
penetration and connectivity issues, it
tions, including QRbased citizens to access healthcare services would not have been practical to use an
payments. With a simple during the pandemic. Access to medical existing online model, such as Google
facilities is limited in the country, which
and user-friendly interface, caused a lot of additional stress for Classroom or Microsoft Teams. The
company thus rolled out an affordable
the UPaisa app allows members of the public who required the eLearning platform that makes the
services of a medical practitioner. In the
its users to avail multiple second quarter of 2020, the company curriculum materials available in text form.
financial services through addressed the problem by rolling out its In 2020, Etisalat expanded its 4G LTE
one platform. The UPaisa Doctor in Your Phone service. services and accelerated the process of
upgrading LTE in Kabul, by adding 35 sites
app focuses on simplicity Additionally, the company supported the during the year, taking the overall LTE
and enables users to navi- education sector during this time. Along penetration to more than 60% of sites in
with the country’s other mobile network
gate with ease. operators, Etisalat Afghanistan partnered Kabul. Etisalat’s 4G network was rolled out
in the Kandahar Province in July 2020.

57 FEB-MAR 2021