Airtel Africa profit increases by 131%

Airtel Africa has recorded a 131 per cent increase in its profit after tax in Half year period ended 30th September 2021 to stand at $335 million as against $145 million in the corresponding period of 2020.

According to Airtel Africa’s half-year 2021 financial report released to the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), its revenue increased by 25.2 per cent to $2.27 billion as opposed to $1.82 billion recorded in the previous year, most of which was generated from voice revenue.

The board therefore declared an interim dividend of two cents per share as against 1.5 cents/share declared in H1’21; in line with an upgraded dividend policy.

The new policy, according the company aims to grow the dividend annually by a mid to high-single digit percentage from a new base of 5 cents per share for FY 2022, with a continued focus to further strengthen the balance sheet.

Speaking on the financial statement of the company, Segun Ogunsanya, Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Africa said the first half financial performance has been strong, this was despite the first half of last year, and especially Q1, was impacted by the start of COVID-19, noting that even after adjusting for these effects, the revenue growth rates for the half year for the Group and all our service segments are ahead of  FY’21 revenue growth trends, “and in reported terms these are all in strong double digits.

“The risks from COVID-19still remain, with sub-Saharan Africa continuing to experience a third wave of the pandemic. Governments continue to implement balanced measures of lockdowns and restrictions accordingly. But vaccination levels remain low, and we continue to monitor the situation for potential impacts on economies and consumers.

“Operationally we have continued our network modernisation and expansion, aligned with an extension of our distribution capabilities, which have together contributed towards continued strong growth in ARPUs across voice, data and mobile money. We have seen an improvement in our customer growth trends for the Group as we approach stability of net monthly movements in Nigeria.

“Alongside our results we have today launched our sustainability strategy. Airtel Africa has always been a business with a sustainable premise at the heart of our purpose to transform lives across Africa through our promotion of both digital and financial inclusion.

“Our sustainability strategy builds upon this, extending and more comprehensively articulating our sustainability goals and credentials. I am excited by the new initiatives we have launched and I look forward to reporting back on our developments in this area with our first sustainability report next year.”

Ogunsanya therefore noted that as an incoming Group CEO, he has inherited the responsibility to build upon a business with solid foundations, saying “and as I look ahead, I continue to see huge potential across voice, data and mobile money from low penetration levels across Africa.

The continent continues to be a growth story for us despite the pandemic. We will continue to invest in mobile and digital technologies to drive digital and financial inclusion sustainably in Africa. I am pleased with the progress we have made in the last couple of years on delivering value to everyone touched by our network.”

Further look into the statement showed that the company recorded growth in terms of customer base across its various revenue units. Specifically, its data customer base increased from 39.6 million recorded as of September 2020 to 43.9 million customers, representing a year-on-year growth of 10.9 per cent.

In the same vein, mobile money customers increased from 20.1 million to 23.9 million, which represents an 18.9 per cent increase in the space of one year.

It is worth noting that its total customer base as at the end of September 2021 was 122.7 million, indicating a growth rate of 5.4 per cent from 116.4 million recorded in the prior year.