Reading Time: 2 minutesSouth Africa’s Vodacom Group on Monday reported a 10.8% fall in full-year earnings, impacted by start-up loss in Ethiopia, higher finance and energy costs and inflationary pressure. The company, majority-owned by Britain’s Vodafone, co-launched Safaricom Ethiopia in 2022 as part of a consortium, betting that the populous nation will power growth after about five years of investment. Vodacom has a direct 5.7% stake. Group CEO Shameel Joosub said weaker exchange rates across markets including the recent devaluation of the Egyptian pound contributed to the decline in HEPS. He said despite start-up costs associated with operations in Ethiopia, Safaricom has confirmed that its network roll-out was on track in Africa’s second-most populous country after Nigeria.

Source: Ethiopian News May 13, 2024 14:42 UTC