The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, recently finalized agreements for a US$50 million loan package to Sri Lanka's MTN Networks, the country's mobile telecommunications network known by the brand name, DIALOG GSM.
Assaad Jabre, IFC's Vice President of Operations, and Dimitris Tsitsiragos, IFC's Director for South Asia, attended the signing ceremony held in Colombo along with Mr. Tan Sri Dato' Ir Md. Radzi bin Haji Mansor, Chairman of MTN Networks and Telekom Malaysia, and other members of the company's board and top management. Also present were a number of high-level Sri Lankan dignitaries.
IFC's funding, which is its second in the telecom sector in the country, consists of a loan of up to US$30 million for IFC's own account and a stand-by facility of up to US$20 million. This is IFC's largest single investment in Sri Lanka to date and one of the largest in the country's telecommunications sector.
It will partly fund the US$140 million nationwide expansion and upgrading of the leading GSM network in Sri Lanka, a country whose infrastructure has not kept pace with economic growth because of a protracted civil war. The network rollout will help promote economic development beyond the Colombo region and provide more affordable and available telecommunications services. A key reason for the expansion is to reach potential subscribers in the underserved northern part of Sri Lanka where, because of civil conflict, telecommunications infrastructure is weak.
Mr. Jabre said, "We are pleased to support a company that is playing a leading role in expanding access to telecommunication services, especially in the north and east of the country where access has been most limited. IFC sees great potential for private financing to contribute to the rapid development of Sri Lanka's infrastructure, while offering attractive returns to investors. IFC's loan to MTN Networks is a concrete demonstration of this."
Posted to the site on 26th January 2004
Posted to: www.cellular-news.com/story/10486.php