Telecom Sector Posts Record Shs3.5 Trillion in Revenue in 2020
The telecommunication sector recorded total revenue of $1.007 billion, or Shs3.5 trillion, in 2020, according to the latest communications market performance report, which says that the growth was fueled by, among others, a record rise in domestic minutes of talk, internet downloads and mobile money transactions.
According to the report, which was released by Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), it is the first time that the annual telecommunications sector revenues had crossed the US$1bn mark.
“The record performance was attributed to sustained growth in digital and mobile financial services, jointly accounting for more than 39% of total quarterly revenues,” the report states.
UCC says in the last quarter of 2020, Shs1.144 trillion was recorded, surpassing the Shs1.095 trillion recorded in the third quarter (July to September 2020).
The report says by the end of December 2020, the number of active internet subscriptions had grown to 21.4 million, translating into an internet access reach of more than one active connection for every two Ugandans.
Mobile money accounts have also grown to a total of 28 million, up from 27.7 million accounts at the end of September 2020.
This further translates into a national mobile money penetration of 66 accounts per 100 persons in Uganda.
“The number of mobile money transactions during the quarter crossed the 1 billion transactions mark for the first time ever, surpassing the previous quarterly record of 954 million transactions posted in the months July to September 2020,” the report says.
“This translates into an average of 15 transactions per active mobile money account every month, including agent-assisted deposits, mobile money bank transfers, mobile betting, and merchant payments, among other transaction categories.”
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