Safaricom Ethiopia Investment Tops KSh159.6 Billion as Customer Base Grows
Safaricom's total investment in Ethiopia has surpassed KSh159.6 billion, equivalent to approximately $1.23 billion, cementing the operation as Africa's largest single-operator market expansion. The capital figure accompanies the company's recently reported 14.7 million Ethiopian customers and a 2027 EBITDA profitability target.
Safaricom Ethiopia: $1 billion in, and still writing cheques
A $1.23 billion investment from Safaricom alone — inside a total $2.67 billion project — is a number that reframes what 'expanding into Africa' actually costs.
Safaricom paid $850 million just for the telecom licence and another $150 million for the right to run M-PESA. That's $1 billion before a single tower went up or a SIM card was sold.
Anyone watching from another African market should sit with that figure. The Ethiopia entry wasn't a startup play; it was a decade-long infrastructure bet that only a company of Safaricom's size, backed by Vodacom's balance sheet and IFC debt, could absorb. The 14.7 million customers are real progress — but they arrived after years of losses that would have ended a smaller operator.
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- Safaricom Continues Backing Ethiopia as Investment Tops KSh159.6 Billion · techtrendske.co.ke · T2