Against all odds, as recorded in 2020, MTN Nigeria’s revenue went up by 15.1 per cent from N1.1.17 trillion in 2019 to N1.346 trillion in 2020.
In the audited results for the financial year ended December 31, 2020, made available to journalists on Sunday, the growth was attributed to the surge in both voice and data service.
The telecommunications firm said data revenue maintained the positive momentum from Q2, prompted by the COVID-19 lockdowns, rising by 51.2 per cent.
The performance in data, according to MTN, was led by a combination of increased subscribers, usage (MB per user) and ultimately traffic, supported by increased network capacity and 4G penetration.
The report disclosed that data traffic rose by 126.5 per cent and average usage by 64.0 per cent. The firm said it added approximately 8.2 million new smartphones to the network, bringing smartphone penetration to 45.9 per cent of its base, up from 41.9 per cent in 2019.
According to it, mobile subscribers increased by 12.2 million to 76.5 million, while active data users increased by 7.4 million to 32.6 million.
MTN explained that its Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 9.7 per cent to N685.7 billion, while
EBITDA margin declined by 2.5 percentage points (pp) to 50.9 per cent Profit Before Tax (PBT) grew by 2.6 per cent to N298.9 billion
According to it, Earnings Per Share (EPS) rose by 0.9 pet cent to N10.1 proposed a final dividend of N5.90 kobo per share.
Outgoing MTN Nigeria CEO, Ferdi Moolman comments: “2020 was a challenging year for all. The unprecedented disruption that the COVID-19 pandemic caused the businesses and people we serve, challenged us in new and demanding ways. The impact continues to evolve. Adoption of our data and digital services accelerated as lockdowns and gathering restrictions were imposed, and work-from-home became the norm for many.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost loved ones due to the pandemic; the toll on lives and livelihoods globally has been profound. To date, Nigeria has recorded 155,417 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 1,905 related deaths, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). MTN Nigeria has also been directly impacted by the pandemic, with 62 employees diagnosed with COVID-19 and 46 recoveries. Sadly, one of our employees succumbed to the virus.”
