Luxemburg-headquartered Millicom International Cellular, which operates under the Tigo brand, has announced a complete exit of the African market.

The company said it wants to fulfill its strategy to focus solely on its Latin America operations, including in Bolivia, Colombia and Paraguay.

It has since signed agreements for sale of its operations in Tanzania and its stake in the AirtelTigo joint venture in Ghana.

In Tanzania, Millicom has agreed to sell its entire operations to a consortium led by Axian, a pan-African group based in Madagascar that was part of the consortium that acquired Millicom’s operation in Senegal in 2018.

In Ghana, the company, along with its JV partner Bharti Airtel Limited, have signed a definitive agreement for the transfer of AirtelTigo to the country’s government. Millicom will receive US$25-million as a result of this agreement.

Millicom CEO Mauricio Ramos. (Image: millicom.com)

Millicom CEO Mauricio Ramos announced that the African assets divestures opens a new chapter in the company’s history.

“Today Tigo is a leading provider of broadband services to consumers, businesses and governments in Latin America where penetration and data speed remain low by the standard of more mature markers.”

“Through our investment-led strategy, we are bringing reliable high-speed mobile and fixed broadband to the communities we serve in the region. With today’s announcement that we are divesting our remaining African businesses, we close a chapter in our history and open another solely focused on Latin America,” said Ramos.

Tigo is Tanzania’s second largest mobile phone operator after Vodacom with over 13 million customers and a market share of 25%, according to December 2020 report by Tanzania Telecommunications Regulatory Authority.

Tigo officials in Tanzania did not respond to an inquiry on the exit announcement by the company.

Since 2017, Millicom has actively divested itself from its operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Senegal and Rwanda.