Uganda Telecom Executives in a 'Bliss' While Global Crisis Deepens

By Kato Mivule

Uganda Telecom companies dismissed impact of the current global crisis on their operations in Uganda. A Newspaper report sited one Telecom executive saying that the global economic crisis will not have any impact whatsoever...

Speaking at a press briefing on Monday, Mr Tushar Kant Mahashwari, Warid Telecom’s chief commercial officer, dismissed fears that industry players would scale down on their investments as the economic slowdown continues to bite in the New Year. “The communication sector might feel some effects but will not be impacted seriously because it is a way of life, which is required by everyone,” he said. “In telecoms, we do not hope to see a scaling down of investments in the telecom sector in the short run. Some of the other industries are scaling down but in the telecom we do not hope to see this. We have not felt any impact whatsoever.”
http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/business/Telecoms_dispel_fears_of_investment_scale_down_78574.shtml

However, this Telecom executive seemed to be either ignorant of what is going on globally or simply doing PR by painting a rosy picture that all is well in order not to scare off clients.

On the other side, it shows how some business executives have really not prepared and are not proactive at all... The Telecom executive seems to enjoy his moment of 'bliss' not knowing what the implications of the current global crisis could translate to, in Uganda.

The Telecom Executive forgets that though his company might have a secure line of Credit and might have their books in order, many of his clients depend on funds from outside Uganda to buy services from his company.

If the current economic crisis deepens, many Ugandan clients will loose 'their line of credit' and that would mean less calls and less sales. Cell phones are relatively new and not more than 10 years, and Ugandans still have memories of living without cell phones which they could very well resort to in case the global economic crisis deepens.

The Telecom executive cannot "extend" in any circumstance "free credit" to Ugandans to make phone calls... Rather than dismiss the implications of the current Global Crisis on Uganda, the Telecom Executive is better off becoming proactive and setting measures in place on how to respond should the global economic crisis hit Uganda.