Orange Africa is a mobile telecommunications company in Africa and the Middle East, founded in 2021 by OWL Ventures and Vuori, both predecessors to Illustrious. It is currently owned by Crown Cellular (in turn owned by Vuori's founder Kasperi Salovaara) and the consortium Orange Africa Holdings Limited.
History[]
Styhon Battersea Telecommunications Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa Limited was formed out of a merger between Axiata Group, Millicom, Bharti Airtel, Zain Group, Vodacom, Global Telecom Holding/VEON, Africell and MTN Group, integrated with NEQSOL Holding's telecommunications operations, and Vodafone's operations in Oceania, Africa, Asia and Middle East, all under Styhon Battersea's ownership.
Hoot Middle East & Africa was formed out of the consolidation of African assets owned by Orange SA, Altice and Viettel Global, which OWL acquired shortly before founding Orange Africa. Nexttel in Cameroon was merged into Orange Cameroon during the consolidation.
During November and December 2020, Styhon Battersea announced to merge into Vuori, which caused Vuori to consider merging it's African operations with Hoot's African operations. Airtel Africa, Vodacom, Hoot Middle East & Africa, Africell, Moov, Mascom, Maroc Telecom, Touch (Lebanon), Zain, Batelco, Vodafone Africa and MTN Group soon were consolidated into Orange in 2021, under a joint venture between OWL and Vuori.
In February 2021, Orange Africa Holdings Limited absorbed its subsidiary Styhon Battersea Telecommunications Network Development Company and bought an additional 2% stake in the company from Hoot and Crown. They also acquired Mauritius Telecom, Eritel, Evatis, Comores Telecom, MTN Irancell, Almadar Aljadid (Al-Madar), MTC, and Getesa & Gecomsa, which soon were absorbed into Orange Africa, with Mauritius, Eritrea, Djibouti, Comores, Iran, Libya, Namibia and the Equatorial Guinea state respectively joining the consortium - later on, Crown's parent company Lotus managed to buy their stake out in exchange of some Class B shares in itself. During Hoot Telecom's sale of assets, they sold their 34% stake in Orange Africa to OAHL and Crown, with Crown taking the majority. Orange Africa will still operate under the Orange brand through a licensing deal that will expire on December 31, 2024.
In March 2021, MTN Mobile Money, tigo Pesa, Mobi Cash, JazzCash and Flous were merged into Orange Bank, which Orange Africa operates in serving countries under license from Orange. Orange Africa Holdings Limited announced a partnership between Orange Africa and Better Than Cash Alliance to start heavily promoting digital and mobile payments in the Middle East and Africa, to small and regular businesses, later that year.
In August 2021, Vodafone Egypt was sold to VodafoneThree plc.
Ownership structure[]
During the formation of Orange Africa, Hoot and Crown settled on the former getting a majority stake, since they owned all rights to the Orange brand. Orange Africa works as a licensee.
- Crown (55% equity stake; 49% voting power)
- Governments of Saudi Arabia (through GOSI, TeleInvest and PIF) and Vietnam (through Viettel) in association with Crown's parent company Lotus (owning 75% of this venture) and the governments of United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Nigeria, Iran and Qatar, along with investors from the countries (45% equity stake held collectively under Orange Africa Holdings Limited; 51% voting power)
Presence[]
| Country | Year when founded/branded as Orange | Formerly known as | Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | 2021 | Etisalat (2007-2021) MTN (2008-2021) |
1st? |
| Algeria | 2021 | Djeezy (2001-2021) Ooredoo: Nedjma (2004-2013) Ooredoo (2013-2021) |
1st? |
| Angola | 2021 | Movicel (2003-2021) | 1st |
| Bahrain | 2021 | Batelco (1981-2021) Zain: MTC-Vodafone (2003-200?) Zain (200?-2021) |
1st |
| Benin | 2021 | Spacetel (????-2006) MTN (2006-2021) Moov (????-2021) |
1st |
| Botswana | 2003 | Vista Cellular (1998-2003) MASCOM (1998-2021) |
1st |
| Burkina Faso | 2016 | Onatel (1994-2021) | 1st |
| Burundi | 2021 | Lumitel (2014-2021) | 2nd |
| Cabo Verde | 2021 | CV Móvel | 1st |
| Democratic Republic of Congo | 2012 | Vodacom (2002-2021) Africell (2012-2021) Orange DRC: Congo Chine Télécoms (2001-2012) Airtel DRC: Celtel (2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Cameroon | 2002 | MTN (2000-2021) Nexttel (2014-2021) Orange Cameroon: Mobilis (1999-2002) |
1st |
| Central African Republic | 2007 | Moov (2005-2021) | 1st or 2nd? |
| Comoros | 2021 | Comores Telecom (2004-2021) | 1st |
| Chad | 2021 | Tigo (2005-2021) Airtel: Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Republic of the Congo | 2021 | MTN (2000-2021) Airtel: MSI Cellular Investments (1998-2004) Celtel (2004-2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Djibouti | 2021 | Evatis | 1st |
| Egypt | 2016 | Etisalat Misr (2007-2021)
Orange Egypt: Mobinil (1998-2016) |
1st? |
| Equatorial Guinea | 2021? | Getesa and Gecomsa | 1st |
| Eritrea | 2021 | Eritel (1996-2021) | 1st |
| Eswatini | 2021 | MTN (1998-2021) | 1st |
| Gabon | 2021 | Moov (2000?-2021) Gabon Telecom/Libertis (1999-2021) Airtel: Celtel (2000-2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Gambia | 2021 | Africell (2001-2021) | 1st |
| Ghana | 2021 | MTN (1994-2021) AirtelTigo: Airtel (1990?-2017) Tigo (1991-2017) AirtelTigo (2017-2021) Vodafone: Ghana Telecom (1974-2009) Vodafone (2009-2021) |
1st |
| Guinea | 2007 | MTN (2006?-2021) | 1st |
| Guinea-Bissau | 2008? | Spacetel (1994-2006) MTN (2006-2021) |
1st |
| Iran | 2021 | MTN Irancell | 2nd |
| Iraq | 2021 | Asiacell (1999-2021) Zain: MTC-Vodafone (2003?-2007) Zain (2008-2021) |
1st |
| Ivory Coast | 2002 | Ivoiris (1996-2002) MTN (1996-2021) Moov (2006-2021) |
1st |
| Jordan | 1999 | Jordan Telecom (1971-2021; merged with Zain Jordan into Orange)
Umniah (2006-2021; merged into Orange) Orange Jordan (1999-present) Zain Jordan: Fastlink (1994-2007?) |
1st |
| Kenya | 1999 (original) 2021 (current) |
Orange Kenya: Telkom Kenya (2011-present) Airtel: Celtel (2000-2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
2nd |
| Kuwait | 2021 | MTC (1983-2007) Zain (2007-2021) |
1st |
| Lebanon | 2021 | Touch (2004-2021) | 1st |
| Lesotho | 2021 | Vodacom (1996-2021) | 1st |
| Liberia | 2017 | Cellcom (2004-2017) Lonestar Cell (2000-2021) |
1st |
| Libya | 2021 | MTN Libya and Al-Madar | 1st |
| Madagascar | 2003 | Antaris (1998-2003) Airtel: Madacom (1997-2006) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Malawi | 2021 | Celtel (1999-2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Mali | 2006 | Orange Mali:
Ikatel (2003-2006) Sotelma/Malitel: Sotelma (1989-2021) & Malitel (2000?-2021) |
1st |
| Mauritania | 2021 | Mauritel (1999-2021)
Chinguitel (???-2021) |
1st |
| Mauritius | 2008 | Cellplus (1992?-2008)
Mauritius Telecom (company, 1992-2021) |
1st |
| Mayotte | 2017? | 2nd | |
| Morocco (and Western Sahara) | 2016 | Meditel (1999-2016) Maroc Telecom (1998-2021) Inwi (Zain): Wanadoo Maroc/Wanadoo Connect (1999-2004) Maroc Connect (2004-2009) Inwi (2009-2021) |
1st |
| Mozambique | 2021 | Vodacom (2003-2021)
Movitel (2012-2021) |
1st? |
| Namibia | 2021 | MTC (1995-2021) | 1st |
| Niger | 2008 |
Moov (2000?-2021) |
1st |
| Nigeria | 2021 | MTN (1994?-2021) Airtel: Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Oman | 2021 | Oman Future Telecommunications/Vodafone Oman (2018-2021) Ooredoo: Nawras (2004-2015) Ooredoo (2015-2021) |
1st? |
| Palestine (sometimes referred to as Palestinian territories) | 2021 | Ooredoo Palestine | 2nd |
| Qatar | 2021 | Vodafone (2008-2021) Ooredoo: Qtel (1987-2013) Ooredoo (2013-2021) |
1st |
| Reunion | 2000 | 2nd? | |
| Rwanda | 2021 | MTN Rwandacell (Crystal Telecom Rwanda)
Tigo Airtel |
1st |
| São Tomé (and Príncipe) | 2021 | CST | 1st |
| Saudi Arabia | 2021 | Zain (2008-2021) | 1st? |
| Senegal | 2021 | Sonatel (1989-2021)
Tigo: Sentel (1999-2006) |
1st |
| Seychelles | 2021 | Telecom Seychelles (1998-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Sierra Leone | 2017 | Africell (2005-2021) Airtel: Celtel (1998?-2007) Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2017) |
1st |
| South Africa | 2021 | Cell C (2001-2021) MTN (1994-2021) |
1st? |
| South Sudan | 2021 | MTN Sudan (2005-2011?) MTN South Sudan (2011?-2021) Sudani: Sudatel (1993-2011) Sudani (2011-2021) Zain: Mobitel (1996-2007) Zain (2007-2021) |
1st |
| St. Helena and Ascension Island | 2021 | Sure Mobile (????-2021) | |
| Sudan | 2021 | MTN (2005-2021) Sudatel (1993-2021) Zain: Mobitel (1996-2007) Zain (2007-2021) |
1st |
| Syria | 2021 | Areeba (2001-2007) MTN (2007-2021) |
1st |
| Tanzania | 2021 | Vodacom (2000-2021)
Halotel (2015-2021) |
1st |
| Togo | 2021 | Moov (2002-2021) | 2nd |
| Tunisia | 2009 | Orange Tunisia (2009-)
Ooredoo: Tunisiana (2004-2014) |
1st |
| Uganda | 2008 (original) 2021 (current) |
Orange Uganda: Africell (2014-2021) Airtel: Zain (2008-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) MTN: MTN (1998-2021) |
1st |
| United Arab Emirates | 2021 | Etisalat (1976-2021) | 1st |
| Yemen | 2021 | Spacetel (2000-2007) MTN (2007-2021) |
1st |
| Zambia | 2021 | MTN (1994?-2021) Airtel: Zain (2007-2010) Airtel (2010-2021) |
1st |
| Zimbabwe | 2021 | Telecel | 2nd |
They have joint ventures with Ericsson and Siemens to improve Orange's networks in Middle East and Africa.
Subsidiaries and stakes[]
- Roshan (12.25%) - Afghanistan; inherited from Telia Company acquisition
- Expresso Telecom (75%) - Ghana and Senegal
- Tunisie Telecom - 15% stake; Tunisia, acquired in 2020
- Safaricom - 40% stake; Kenya
- 9mobile - majority stake; Nigeria
- Mobily - 27% stake; Saudi Arabia
- Emtel (50%) - Mauritius
- Kenya Postel Directories (60%) - Kenya
- Sabafon (~27%) - Yemen
- Vodacom - South Africa
- Korek Telecom (20%) - Iraqi Kurdistan
- Ufone - 26% stake; Pakistan
- ELTA (55%) - Angolan phone directory company
- Jazz - Pakistan
- Somali Telecom Group
- Orange Ethiopia - a joint venture with Ethio Telecom, through which they will improve mobile services and also offer them through the Orange brand
- Orange Bank Africa