Digicel expands into Suriname
The new licence comes as a result of the liberalisation process of the telecommunication market in Suriname, which started four years ago by the Government of Suriname with the drafting of the New Telecommunication Provisions Act. This Act came into effect on Monday of this week. With a population of close to 500,000 Suriname’s mobile penetration is estimated at just over 40 percent.
M.S.H. Hassankhan, Suriname’s Minister of Transport, Communications and Tourism, welcomed Digicel to Suriname and said: “We are entering an exciting new era in telecommunications in Suriname bringing more advanced services at more competitive prices and allowing more people than ever before to access mobile technology.”
Already a direct employer of more than 3,000 people in the Caribbean and Latin American region, Suriname will also benefit from significant direct and indirect job creation that will follow from Digicel’s presence in the marketplace. “Digicel will commence a rapid rollout of it service and give the people of Suriname the opportunity of choosing a service provider that will offer superior customer care, better value for money and wider coverage,” Digicel Group CEO Colm Delves said.
“Digicel is delighted to be entering Suriname and the tremendous opportunity this allows us to deliver a superior alternative.”
Digicel already has a presence in South America through it operations in Guyana and French Guiana. It’s Caribbean and Latin American GSM network extends across the British West Indies, the Dutch Caribbean, the French West Indies and El Salvador, as well as Bermuda.
Digicel Suriname will be headed by Philip van Dalsen, who brings more than seven years experience in mobile and fixed telecommunications management.
Digicel’s investment in the Caribbean and the Central American region exceeds $1.5 billion and in 2006 the company recorded a milestone of subscriber growth in excess of 100 percent.
