Lebanon must privatise its telecoms sector, Orascom Telecom chairman Naguib Sawiris has stated, according to reports.
Speaking at a lecture in Beirut, Sawiris was quoted saying that privatisation is the only answer, and that Lebanon’s refusal to do so is…
Lebanon must privatise its telecoms sector, Orascom Telecom chairman Naguib Sawiris has stated, according to reports.
Speaking at a lecture in Beirut, Sawiris was quoted saying that privatisation is the only answer, and that Lebanon’s refusal to do so is “damaging”.
Although it has been on the cards for years, privatisation of the country’s telecoms has consistently derailed the process by political infighting and upheaval, as well as poor market conditions.
He added that Lebanon, because it is one of the world’s only remaining state-owned telecoms market, would expect good multiples in any privatisation.
Sawiris criticised the government over the sector’s low quality and 60-70% penetration rate, which he said lagged far behind that of some underdeveloped African countries.
This follows revelations by the country’s privatisation tsar Ziad Hayek that such a move would take at least one year to carry out.
Orascom operates the network of Alfa, while Zain operates that of the other state-owned company, MTC Touch.
