Where do Ethiopia’s telecom woes lie?

Talk of telecommunications being a tool that would allow Ethiopia to leap towards reaching the level of development other nations are currently enjoying has continued to play with our fantasies. The reality, however, is that Ethiopia remains one of the slowest nations to march towards ICT innovations. So far, what can be seen tantamount to hot air in regards to the amount of investments being made towards ‘Connecting Ethiopia to the Future’, as the state telecom motto continues to claim.

Yes, one can see traces of improvement and that is what they are ‘traces’ that continue to be too little too late for the growing demands by the consumer. The exorbitant rates for certain services provided by the Ethiopian Telecommunication Corporation (ETC), the monopolistic telecom provider actually drives away potential customers rather than entice them. Add to this impermanent network, poor customer care service and defunct call centers one finds oneself hard-pressed to make an educated guess when or if ever Ethiopia would ever bridge the digital divide.

The problem here is that there are no specific visions towards implementing projects or introducing new services based on customer needs. The dichotomy of creating dollars and providing badly needed infrastructure for the masses seems to be overwhelming the state controlled telecom company. Yes, as a state controlled company, one can argue that priority should go towards providing basic services funding for these services and the infrastructure deployed is believed to come through the sale of services which is acceptable only if it does not tax the customer too much and are consistent.
Telecom service rates in Ethiopia are some of the highest even from the region. Even war- torn Mogadishu telecom masts that dot the capital city’s skyline are testimony to the “telecommunications revolution” underway despite the absence of a functioning state since 1991. Phone companies there are engaged in fierce competition for both mobile and landline customers, while new internet cafes are being set up across the nation. It takes no time to install a landline or rent a sim card. All this is in sharp contrast to ETC, which is one of the first telecom companies from Sub Saharan Africa. Ironically, as Ethiopia is set to host the World Information Technology Forum (WITFOR) 2007, one wonders what delegates and technocrats from the rest of the world would make out of Ethiopia’s telecom infrastructure.

why has Ethiopia literally lagged behind in terms of customer satisfaction and the provision of services? Is it a case of funding, commitment, business planning, vision or simply indifference? Is ETC simply satisfied with the pace of growth it is making and continues to do a disservice to the public? These questions should be answered; if we know the problem, we can fix it. If we keep mum, we are preparing grounds for disaster.

Mediocrity should not be ETC’s driving tenet but should, instead, be replaced by striving to make a difference, being customer friendly, rolling out innovations and competitiveness both in price and quality. It is well documented that the Corporation continues to be going through a ‘reform’ process that would eventually lead towards a better performance but what use would reforms and lofty strategic planning be if they are not aided with the resolve to make a difference? A decision has to be made by the government to allow others who can do the job better to enter the telecom sector and provide services that ETC cannot or refuses to provide. Favoring state owned companies to the extent of allowing them to under perform is not accepted as in the end nobody stands to gain anything from this sad state of affairs. Why prolong the suffering anymore???

July 14, 2007