(Ecofin Agency) - Orange Madagascar is ramping up its investments to accelerate the expansion of its telecom network. The company has an ongoing ten-year agreement with NuRAN Wireless to extend its network presence in rural areas with the deployment of 500 sites.

Telecom operator Orange Madagascar announced plans to double its network coverage to reach about 90% of the population by the end of 2024. This ambition was made public by CEO Frédéric Debord (pictured left) during the presentation of the recently acquired comprehensive license.

As part of this project, the company will leverage the opportunities provided by its new comprehensive license acquired in December 2023 for €30 million. The operator will be able to offer services on various platforms, including copper, radio, fiber, or satellite. Orange Madagascar also signed a ten-year agreement in January 2023 with Canadian telecom infrastructure provider NuRAN Wireless to expand its network presence in rural areas with the deployment of 500 2G and 3G sites.

The company stated that it reinvested 400 ariarys (€0.08) for every 1,000 ariarys (€0.2) of revenue into its infrastructure over the past two years "without any aid or subsidies." This investment allowed it to increase its technical site numbers by 60%, enhance transmission capacities, and establish a new North backbone.

"By developing telecommunications infrastructure while democratizing access to high-speed internet, Orange is making a significant contribution to the economic and social development of Madagascar," stated Mr. Debord.

The expansion of the network coverage is expected to reach thousands of additional people and increase Orange Madagascar's market share, especially in a context where 56.2% of the population lacks access to mobile telephony services, according to DataReportal. Moreover, the internet penetration rate in the country stands at 19.7%.