Moroccan phone operator hands in $ 48 mln check for 51% of Mauritania's Mauritel

Morocco and Mauritania signed here on Thursday the agreement under which 51% of Mauritania's telecom operator (Mauritel) goes to Morocco's phone operator (Maroc Telecom).

After the accord was signed, a check of $ 48 million was handed to the Mauritanian side, in the presence of Morocco's minister of economy, finance, privatization and tourism, Fathallah Oualalou and Mauritanian ministers of finance, Mahfoud Ould Mohamed Ali and of the interior and telecommunications, Dah Ould Abdeljalil.

The Moroccan phone operator won the international bid launched by Mauritel to sell 51% of its capital.

Endowed with a capital of 6.48 billion Ouguiya (100 Ouguiya equal 3 French Francs), the company employs some 650 persons. In 2000, it posted a turnover of 6.4 billion Ouguiya. In November 2000, it started operating mobile phone services to customers who reached 17,000 in the two major cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou.

The partnership with Maroc Telecom will help extend the mobile phone and land phone services to other Mauritanian regions, improve the quality of services and develop human resources.