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Safaricom Execs Confirm April Entry


Safaricom Execs Confirm April Entry

The executives of Safaricom Ethiopia Plc have confirmed the company will begin commercial operations in the coming April. They announced the operator is finalising preparations to enter the market during a tour of its new 100 million dollar modular data centre in the Akaki-Qality District last week. The government stipulated the operator has nine months to launch its commercial operations following the award of a full telecom operator's license last June. Failing to meet the deadline in April would entail a fine for the company. However, the operator, which will be using the "07" prefix for mobile calls, is not obligated to launch its services across the country but in defined economic zones. The Global Partnership for Ethiopia Consortium (GPEC), led by Kenya's Safaricom, acquired the 15-year operator's license for 850 million dollars last year. Safaricom is conducting negotiations for a potential infrastructure sharing deal with the state-owned Ethio telecom.

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Association Reports Largely Peaceful Vote, Flags Gender Gaps, Registration Issues

The Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA) says the 7th National and Regional Elections held on June 1, 2026 were largely peaceful, orderly, and transparent, based on its preliminary monitoring report. Deploying 60 observers across 136 polling stations in nine regions and two city administrations, EWLA's Violence Against Women in Elections (VAW-E) mission found strong voter protection measures, with 92.5pc of stations prioritising pregnant women, nursing mothers, the elderly, and persons...


Radar

ESL Prepares to Launch Full Digital Logistics Platform

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Ministry of Revenues Reports High Number of Digital Tax Payments

The Ministry of Revenues reported over 281 billion Br collected through its electronic payment platform in the first 10 months of 2026. Elsabeth Ashenafi said the record digital inflow reflects a steady shift of taxpayers from cash and cheque-based settlements to online systems, supported by ongoing reforms to improve compliance and reduce administrative bottlenecks. Officials attribute the growth to the efficiency and convenience of the e-payment system, which allows taxpayers to file and...