Tanzania - TTCL and Celtel

TTCL workers petition government to cancel Celtel contract

Workers at Tanzania’s national fixed line operator Tanzania Telecommunication Company Limited (TTCL) have reportedly called on the government to cancel its 25-year shareholding deal with mobile group Celtel International (part of Zain Group) amid concerns it is hampering the development of the telco’s PSTN. IDG News Service quotes Junus Ndaro, general secretary for the Telecommunications Workers Union of Tanzania, as saying that as the parent company of Celtel Tanzania – TTCL’s principal rival in the domestic market – Celtel International has no desire to improve the fortunes of the national PTO. The Workers’ Union is also calling for a review of the state’s contract with Sasktel International of Canada, which jointly manages TTCL. The government has struggled to maintain operations at TTCL and has been forced to enter into joint management agreements due to its financial problems. However, Ndaro claims that ‘Foreign managements have failed to run the company and have failed to show commitment to improving the performance of the company. The government should place the company under local management.’ The union would rather see the government selling a 35% tranche in TTCL through the stock market to provide a valuable cash injection.