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Africell launches 25-year celebrations

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Guests at the Africell 25th anniversary launch party in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on 10 January 2025

Africell, a leading pan-African mobile telecommunications operator, is pleased to announce a year of promotions, projects and events celebrating its 25th anniversary, starting with a spectacular launch party in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Since entering The Gambia in 2000, Africell has grown into a popular mobile brand with almost twenty million loyal subscribers in four distinctive and dynamic African countries. It currently operates in The Gambia and Sierra Leone (where it is market leader), as well as in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola (where it is an emerging challenger).

Africell appeals to a wide cross-section of the populations it serves. It offers reliable, affordable and accessible digital services suited to the needs of a customer base which includes individuals and businesses in both urban and rural communities. Africell’s services include mobile data, voice and SMS, and mobile money, which is delivered through Africell’s proprietary mobile money platform, Afrimoney. These services are enabled by strong and secure core network infrastructure – including 5G-enabled infrastructure in all four markets. Africell employs approximately two thousand full time staff, and creates earning opportunities for the thousands more agents, distributors and contractors who facilitate its activities. Africell’s group headquarters are in London.

“When we commenced operations a quarter of a century ago, we set a long-term strategy that we were determined to stick to”, says Ziad Dalloul, Africell’s CEO, President and founder.

“Despite the many economic, political and cultural transformations that have occurred since then, we have accomplished that goal. Our vision for Africell from the beginning was for it to be a trusted mobile provider serving a relatively small selection of carefully chosen markets that we could make a deep commitment to and have a big impact in. This is exactly what we have achieved, and the same philosophy will inform our approach for the next twenty-five years”.

Africell first launched in The Gambia in 2000. The Gambia was followed by Sierra Leone in 2005, Democratic Republic of Congo in 2012, and Angola in 2022.

The steady expansion of Africell’s geographical footprint has been accompanied by several other changes. In 2015, Africell won investment from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). This paved the way for funding from the United States government (via the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation) in 2019. The Afrimoney brand was unveiled in 2020, and in 2023 Africell created the Africell Impact Foundation as a hub for its cultural and community work. Africell issued a debut corporate bond in 2024. This was a landmark achievement that places Africell among an elite category of African businesses to have tapped international capital markets.

“When I joined Africell in 2001, I couldn’t have imagined that I would still be happily working here twenty-five years later”, says Soma Ann, one of the company’s earliest recruits who now leads Africell’s human resources department in The Gambia. “It has been exhilarating to grow the team from just a handful of people into a big, diverse and collaborative family. Telecommunications is at the forefront of economic development in The Gambia and all of us are proud to have played a part in unlocking its benefits”.

In the past twenty-five years, the telecommunications sector in sub-Saharan Africa has changed dramatically. In 2000, internet penetration on the continent was less than 1%; now, it is almost 50%. In 2000, fewer than 5% of Africans lived within range of mobile signal. Now, that number is more than 80%. Mobile money, which was pioneered in Africa, has gone from nothing to today boasting annual transaction volumes in Africa of just under a trillion dollars. As a result of these changes, African GDP has grown, millions of jobs have sprung up, and Africa is more prominent than ever in global popular culture.

Media relations manager Nancy Joseph was one of Africell’s first cohort of employees in Sierra Leone.

“The impact that Africell has had on ordinary Sierra Leoneans is hard to overstate”, she says. “In 2005, Sierra Leone was still finding its feet after a period of turmoil. The introduction by Africell of high-quality mobile coverage helped the country to turn a corner. Today, Sierra Leone is a nation of smart, tech-savvy, and entrepreneurial people who have embraced the possibilities of digital technology. All of us who have been with Africell since the start of it journey are incredibly proud of this story”.

Africell has also helped to spearhead the movement of ‘social impact’ to the centre of business decision-making. At the beginning of the century, social impact in Africa was understood in humanitarian terms, as an extension of charity. In 2025, by contrast, it is recognised as a core corporate responsibility, and a key method for winning social legitimacy and appealing to customers and investors. Africell has a history of supporting artists, athletes, students, entrepreneurs and health professionals in its operating markets. The launch of the Africell Impact Foundation in 2023 is accelerating these efforts.

Ziad Dalloul admits that the journey has not been easy.
“Africa is a rewarding place to do business partly because it is so challenging. The landscape here is unique. We have had to contend not only with political, economic and regulatory instability, but also with unpredictable factors like natural disasters and disease outbreaks such as Ebola and COVID-19.

“Africell overcame these risks by observing a few simple principles: first, maintain a long-term view and ignore short-term volatility; second, stay out of politics; and third, recognise our duty as a popular brand to stand by ordinary people during moments of crisis. Thanks to this approach, we have earned high levels of public trust and produced impressive returns in an environment that deters many other investors”.

Africell’s 25th anniversary year will be marked by promotions, projects and events including:

  • public celebration events in key cities and towns in Angola, DRC, The Gambia and Sierra Leone
  • an all-new africell.com, to serve as a new hub for Africell content, data, and information
  • the release of several ‘Africell Presents’ films, including a feature length documentary about the ‘Lobito Corridor’ and mini documentaries about Sierra Leone, The Gambia and Angola
  • miscellaneous community-focused health, sports, education and environment initiatives
  • innovative product and service promotions designed to make Africell services even more affordable and accessible

“Africa’s telecommunications sector still has huge scope for growth”, concludes Ziad Dalloul.

“The trajectory so far has been rapidly upward. But the journey won’t be complete until everyone in Africa has access to the same opportunities enjoyed by people elsewhere. We have spent the past twenty-five years building a vibrant business and creating enormous social value. I look forward to working with our customers, government partners and my colleagues to unleash even more of Africa’s awesome potential”.

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