Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC) has reported an 8% drop in revenues for its financial year to 31 March 2019 to BWP1.45 billion (USD134.6 million). The fall was blamed on ‘unfavourable trading conditions which saw restrained consumer spending,’ particularly in the mobile sector, where sales were down 12%. The state-backed fixed and cellular operator registered a 25% decline in net profit to BWP162.1 million, while EBITDAdropped 5% to BWP348.6 million.
On a more positive note, the firm is now claiming the widest 4G network coverage in the country, with more than 400 sites in service, delivering mobile data services at download speeds of up to 75Mbps. The fibre-optic network was expanded to reach an additional 87 sites in the year to 31 March 2019, providing fixed connectivity at up to 50Mbps. BTC had 503,000 mobile subscribers at the end of March, up by around 10,000 from a year earlier.