Ethio Telecom posted 85.02 billion birr in revenue in the first half of the current fiscal year, driven by rapid growth in data consumption and mobile money transactions, as the state-owned operator navigated foreign currency shortages and regulatory pressures.
The figure represents an 81 percent increase from 62.06 billion birr recorded in the same period a year earlier, the company said during a media briefing on Thursday.
The century old state owned company on Thursday briefed reporters on its first half performance report.
Frehiwot Tamiru, the company’s chief executive told reporters, the revenue expansion was primarily linked to higher service usage rather than price adjustments introduced in December.
“The growth is not associated with the tariff revision,” she told reporters. “The rise in data traffic shows how customer behaviour is changing.”
According to the company, data usage increased by 46.6 percent during the six-month period, reflecting growing demand for digital connectivity and mobile-based services.
Ethio Telecom also reported foreign currency earnings of 88.19 million US dollars, up 83 percent from the same period of the previous fiscal year, supported by international services and digital platforms.
Network expansion continued during the period, with the total number of mobile sites reaching 10,288 across 133 towns. The operator added 278 new sites in the first half alone, including 130 constructed in rural areas.
Despite the strong performance, Frehiwot said access to foreign currency remains a constraint on financing the company’s expanding infrastructure programme. She also pointed to regulatory challenges, including mandatory infrastructure-sharing requirements, which she said have placed additional pressure on operations.
Mobile money remained a key growth driver. Telebirr now serves more than 58 million customers, with cumulative transactions reaching 6.88 trillion birr across 2.98 billion transactions since its launch.
During the current fiscal year, transaction value reached 1.9 trillion birr, a 94 percent increase from a year earlier, while transaction volume rose 108 percent to one billion transactions.
Ethio Telecom said it paid 35.62 billion birr in taxes during the reporting period, reinforcing its position as one of the largest contributors to government revenue.
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