Retrenchments Cost BTC P67m

Copper cable theft cost the company P29m Profit after tax falls from P86m to P22m BTC to focus more on data-driven services The controversial retrenchment exercise undertaken by Botswana Telecommunications Corporation Limited (BTC) late last year has come at a huge cost to the telco. BTC embarked on a resource optimisation exercise in May 2023 which concluded in December with the retrenchment of 196 employees. [ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type="show" ihc_mb_who="1,2,3,4" ihc_mb_template="1" ] BTC has announced in its financial results for the half-year period ended 30 September 2022 that the exercise cost it P67 million. “The once-off provision of P67 million for the organisational restructuring drove the increase in the operating expenditure,” BTC Managing Director, Anthony Masunga, says in the report. “The primary objectives of the organisational restructuring include the creation of a more fit-for-purpose organisation that supports the strategic repositioning of the business into the future.” Masunga says additionally, the exercise will ensure that the BTC has the right human capital in the right jobs that will contribute to the company’s future viability and long-term financial sustainability. For the six months under review, Masunga states that the company’s performance was subdued due to difficult macro-economic conditions. He points out that performance was further depressed by the once-off provision for restructuring costs and an escalation in replacement costs for stolen copper from their network. During the period under review, the total impact of copper cable theft amounted to P29 million. “The company has since intensified efforts and increased its capital budget towards building alternative technologies to replace the copper network investments,” Masunga says. The above-stated costs have led to BTC suffering a huge decline in profits. Profit after tax for the period amounted to P22 million, a significant decline from P86 million recorded in the previous corresponding period. Masunga says despite the uncertainty of the economy, BTC will intensify the efforts to improve its financial and operational performance by seizing available opportunities in the market. “Going forward, the company will continue to drive data and value offers in the market as we accommodate the shifts in demand and usage patterns (from voice to data driven services),” he notes. “We will continue to migrate customers off legacy technologies so that they can experience faster and more reliable fixed and mobile data.” In the report, Masunga emphasises that the infrastructure that BTC has invested in - from mobile, fixed, Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) to a data centre - is a great foundation for driving digital services, cloud services and fintech services. “The company will continue to pursue its digital transformation programme and create more value for our customers through our services and innovative solutions,” he says. He states that BTC is focusing on driving its customers to use more of its digital platforms for convenience and the ability to get services and offers anywhere at any time. “The company will further drive its efficiency improvement programme as a way of optimising our cost structure and responding to changing market dynamics,” says Masunga. He notes that efforts to build a digital culture and strengthen BTC’s human capital will continue to position the company to be more responsive to the fast-changing market landscape. [/ihc-hide-content]

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Retrenchments Cost BTC P67m

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