Malawi's second largest telecom operator Telekom Networks Malawi (TNM) claims to have invested MWK70-billion (US$89.4-million) into infrastructure development over the past five years to expand its network coverage.

Chairperson of the company's board Dr George Partridge said the investment underpins the operator's long-term sustainability and remains the foundation of its growth, having already evolved through an optimisation programme and system upgrade of its LTE.

Partridge added that the investment, which supported the evolution of the company's network across 2G, 3G, 4G and 4.5G, culminated in the implementation of converged digital platform in 2017.

According to a report presented to board members, Partridge said in 2018 alone, the company invested MWK19.3-billion in infrastructure development compared to the MWK15.84-billion it invested in 2017.

"Expansion of our connectivity and coverage footprint with regard to 3G and 4G is ongoing. A primary strategic objective is to create a ubiquitous U900 network layer to provide a complete 3G network by 2020," Partridge said.

The TNM published report shows that the company's overall revenue grew 15% to MWK91.18 –billion in 2018 up from MWK79.59-billion in 2017, driven mainly by voice business followed by data.

TNM is the country's second largest operators after Airtel Malawi with 3.4 million subscribers.