Tuesday
June 14
2022

Airtel Africa, Others Receive Notice to Pay About $180 Million to Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo has ordered mobile-phone companies operating in the African nation to pay a levy estimated at about $180 million a year, people with knowledge of the matter said.

The operators including Orange SA, Vodacom Group Ltd., Airtel Africa Plc, and Africell Holding SAL received invoices sent by the regulator through a consultancy, 5C Energy, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The amount is based on the invoice the firms received for a seven-week period, they said.

Years of corruption and mismanagement has left government finances in Congo, one of the world’s biggest producers of copper and the main source of cobalt, in shambles. That prompted President Felix Tshisekedi’s government to find ways to broaden its tax base and boost its revenue.

Photo courtesy of Fiona Graham/WorldRemit.

Source: Money Control (link opens in a new window)

Categories
Technology, Telecommunications
Tags
digital payments, fintech