The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) said Telecel Zimbabwe will not collapse as it has enough subscribers and running services to sustain its operations.
POTRAZ director-general, Gift Machengete, said Telecel can continue operating provided it got foreign currency. He said:
We do not believe Telecel will collapse, their operating licence is intact and they have enough subscribers and running services to sustain their operations.
Should any mobile network provider decide to stop operations, they are mandated to give ample notice to allow subscribers to move to another network and to also allow subscribers to exhaust their airtime, SMS or data balances.
Machengete said mobile network operators needed to be prioritised in foreign currency allocation by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
According to POTRAZ, between the first quarter of 2017 and the third quarter of 2021, Telecel’s total mobile revenue share was shrinking.
Telecel lost over a million subscribers from 1 646 411 at the end of 2017 to 582 570 at the end of the third quarter of 2021, resulting in a loss in revenue.
Last week, Telecel subscribers struggled to access voice calls and data services for several days after the telecoms firm experienced network challenges.
Telecel Zimbabwe spokesperson, Zitha Dube, said the telecommunications firm is struggling with “spiralling operational costs”.
She said the firm has a strategic plan in place which is awaiting funding from a number of initiatives currently being pursued.
Telecel is engaging the Chinese multinational tech conglomerate, Huawei Technologies.
Meanwhile, the Government, which is Telecel’s major shareholder, has been silent amid the company’s struggles.