Telecoms: Growth Pillars of African Stock Exchanges
African listed telecoms occupy a unique position in the global equity landscape. Unlike their European or American counterparts, African operators are not just connectivity providers — they are financial platforms, inclusion engines, and high-margin assets in rapidly growing markets. This guide analyzes the major telecom stocks across 7 African exchanges, comparing revenue, profitability, subscriber bases, mobile money strategies, and valuations.
Financial data covers latest published fiscal years (generally FY2025). Market metrics are from public sources (MarketScreener, StockAnalysis, company releases).
Tunisia note: Tunisie Telecom is not listed (IPO announced then abandoned). No telecom operator trades on the BVMT.
*SR = Service Revenue. Figures are in each group's reporting currency, without conversion, to avoid artificial FX risk.*
Detailed Company Profiles
Maroc Telecom (BVC: IAM)
Maroc Telecom remains a strong cash-flow generator, though facing tighter competition domestically. Growth is now driven by Moov Africa subsidiaries in sub-Saharan Africa.
FY2025 Key Figures:
•Revenue: 36.7 Bn MAD
•Consolidated EBITDA: 18,493 M MAD (-2.4% YoY — decline in Morocco, growth in subsidiaries)
•Subscriber base: ~77 million (+3.6%), including ~22 M in Morocco
•Drivers: data (mobile/fixed), mobile money in subsidiaries, 5G launch in Morocco
Dividends: the distribution profile is more irregular than a classic "telco bond proxy" — per-share amounts have varied significantly (4.20 MAD, 2.19 MAD, 1.43 MAD across recent years).
5G: ANRT confirmed 5G license attribution in 2025 (tender validated July 25, 2025). A new capex cycle is opening, balancing short-term profitability against market share gains in fixed wireless access (FWA) and B2B.
Sonatel is a benchmark African quality asset: multi-country leadership, high margins, and a structurally important fintech trajectory. It serves as Orange's regional extension in West Africa (Senegal, Mali, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone).
FY2025 Key Figures:
•Consolidated revenue: 1,923.1 Bn XOF (+8.3%)
•EBITDAaL: 921.2 Bn XOF (margin 47.9%)
•Total base: 42.1 million (mobile: 40.3 M)
•Data: 22.5 million clients, of which 21.9 M active 4G
•Orange Money: 13 million active clients, ~3.8 billion transactions
Market shares (remarkably explicit): 55.9% in Senegal, 54.5% in Mali, 76.2% in Guinea, 72% in Guinea-Bissau, 48.6% in Sierra Leone.
2025 Dividend: 1,933 XOF/share (gross), payable from May 25, 2026. Sonatel has historically been one of the BRVM's most consistent yield stocks.
Orange CI is a listed subsidiary of a global group, with a consolidation perimeter including Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, and Liberia.
FY2025 Key Figures:
•Consolidated revenue: 1,197.1 Bn XOF (+10.4%)
•Subscriber base: ~38.5 million
•Dividend: approximately 750 XOF/share (2025), 780 XOF (2024)
Key watch point: FY2025 EBITDA awaits confirmation from consolidated financial statements. This metric is critical for comparing ORAC to Sonatel (margin ~48%) and assessing relative value.
Vodacom is a multi-country asset (Southern Africa + stakes) with greater exposure to South Africa's maturity, but driven by data/fintech in subsidiaries.
5G: Vodacom was among the first to launch 5G in South Africa (2020, temporary ICASA spectrum), reinforced by the March 2022 "high demand" spectrum auction.
•Nigeria contribution: service revenue 61,331 M ZAR, EBITDA 32,488 M ZAR
•FY2025 Dividend: 500 cents (+45%)
The growth thesis rests on: data, digital platforms, and fintech (MoMo). MTN is highly concentrated on a few key markets (Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa).
Airtel Africa is strongly positioned on structural growth: under-penetrated markets, data, and especially Airtel Money.
FY2024/25 Key Figures:
•Revenue: 4,955 M USD
•Underlying EBITDA: 2,304 M USD (margin 46.5%)
•Subscriber base: 166.1 million
•Airtel Money: 44.6 million clients (+17.3%), $136 billion in transaction value
•Total dividend: 6.5 US cents (progressive growth policy)
Airtel Africa is the panel's "best growth value" — the key question is the credibility of fintech growth and the ability to convert to remittable cash.
Safaricom (NSE: SCOM)
Safaricom remains Kenya's champion, now a two-legged group with Ethiopia (Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia).
FY2025 Key Figures:
•Service revenue: 371.4 Bn KES (+10.8%)
•EBITDA Kenya: 205,783 M KES
•Active subscribers Kenya: 37.11 million
•M-Pesa revenue: 161.1 Bn KES (+15%)
•M-Pesa active clients: 35.82 million
M-Pesa remains Safaricom's key asset — an unmatched moat in East Africa. The group was the first to launch 5G in Kenya in 2022.
The most distinctive trait of African telecoms versus global peers is the ability to monetize a financial ecosystem (payments, transfers, merchant payments, micro-credit).
M-Pesa (Safaricom) is the archetype: 161.1 Bn KES in revenue, a significant share of total turnover. Airtel Money is in hyper-growth (44.6 M clients, +17.3%). Orange Money (Sonatel) illustrates the same logic at multi-country scale.
5G in Africa: A Capex/Spectrum Cycle in Waves
5G rollout varies by country:
Country
5G Status
Lead Operator(s)
South Africa
Commercial since 2020 (Vodacom), 2022 auction
Vodacom, MTN
Morocco
Licenses awarded July 2025, deployment underway
Maroc Telecom, Orange, Inwi
Egypt
Licenses 2024, launch 2025
Telecom Egypt + 3 MNOs
Kenya
Commercial since 2022 (Safaricom)
Safaricom
Nigeria
Commercial since 2022 (MTN), 2023 (Airtel)
MTN Nigeria, Airtel
BRVM/WAEMU
Planning phase
—
Tunisia
Not launched
—
The 5G cycle requires significant investment (spectrum + infrastructure) but opens new products: FWA (fixed wireless access), B2B, and IoT.
Regulatory and Tax Risks
Two risk families dominate:
KYC / SIM registration: Sonatel directly cites the impact of identification requirements on its mobile base. Nigeria is the extreme case with strict NCC deadlines on NIN-SIM linkage, creating recurring administrative churn.
Digital transaction taxes: Ghana's e-levy experience (introduced then repealed) illustrates the political sensitivity of taxing mobile payments. In Uganda, studies document the behavioral effects of mobile money taxes — the fiscal regulator can weigh on usage depth and value chain profitability.
Infrastructure and Towercos
African telecoms are progressively migrating to more "asset-light" models via tower sale/leaseback arrangements. MTN Nigeria highlights capex discipline and efficiency trade-offs. In Morocco, TowerCo/FiberCo schemes are being validated by ANRT between operators.
Valuation: Which African Telecom Stock Offers the Best Value?
Three "value" profiles emerge depending on investor type:
Defensive Value / Yield + Moat: Sonatel (BRVM)
The best quality-value combination in the panel:
•High EBITDAaL (margin 47.9%)
•Explicit, dominant market shares (55-76% across countries)
•2025 dividend quantified (1,933 XOF gross)
•Fintech exposure (Orange Money, 13 M active)
•Stable currency (XOF/EUR peg)
Risks: regulation (SIM identification), mobile money taxation.
•FCF 1.2T NGN and dividend resumption (15 NGN/share)
•Post-FX shock inflection point
Risks: "binary" macro/FX, NCC/NIN-SIM regulation.
Growth Value / Fintech: Airtel Africa (NGX/LSE)
The strongest growth in the panel:
•Airtel Money: 44.6 M clients, $136 Bn transaction value
•Underlying EBITDA 2.3 Bn USD, margin 46.5%
•Progressive dividend policy
Risks: diversified but real country risk, FX translation (USD reporting vs local currencies).
Watch List: Orange CI (BRVM)
FY2025 revenue growth (+10.4%) and base size (~38.5 M) suggest a premier asset. FY2025 EBITDA, to be confirmed, is the determining factor for assessing relative value versus Sonatel.
African telecoms are not just network operators — they are financial inclusion platforms and digital growth engines. The sector offers EBITDA margins of 43-53%, subscriber bases in the tens to hundreds of millions, and growth drivers (data, mobile money, 5G) that far exceed those of developed-market telecoms.
Explore African telecoms on Afrivestia and track dividends on the calendar.
*Information provided is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Stock market investments carry risk of capital loss.*
