Operational success
Confidence through
performance
2019 was an incredible operational year for Zain, reflected by strong
profit growth across all markets.
Group Key Performance Indicators in 2019
Total Active Customers 49.5 million
EBITDA USD 2.4 billion, up 40%
Consolidated Revenue
EBITDA Margin
Net Income
Sudan
USD 5.5 billion, up 26%
44%
USD 715 million, up 10%
Kuwait
The operation maintained its market leadership, and as the first
player to launch commercial 5G services in the country in June 2019,
Zain Kuwait triumphantly rolled out numerous innovative digital ser-
vices to enterprises and individual customers. The company went
on to attain the largest market share of 5G customers in Kuwait and
enhanced its B2B offerings to the appeal of numerous government
and enterprise entities. The operator made substantial progress in its
digital transformation in line with the country’s 2035 Vision, ending
the year with 2.8 million customers.
Saudi Arabia
The impressive performance of Zain Saudi Arabia was
no doubt the highlight of the year for the Group, with
the operator recording its highest ever financial re-
sults since its establishment. The rollout of the largest
commercial 5G network in the region, combined with
expansion of FTTH services and the launch of numer-
ous data monetization initiatives were instrumental to
its successful turnaround.
The operator bolstered performance and perpetu-
ated the successful digital transformation process
in support of the targets of the Kingdom’s Vision
2030. The operator had 7.6 million customers at the
end of 2019.
Iraq
Zain Iraq has received a formal letter extend-
ing its 2G and 3G license for five years com-
mencing August 2022, with ongoing discus-
sions regarding the granting of 4G spectrum.
Despite the country’s socio-economic issues
during 2019 including currency devalua-
tion, Zain Sudan continued to perform well
in local currency SDG terms, driven by the
rollout of appealing data monetization ini-
tiatives powered by its 4G network. This re-
sulted in impressive annual growth of data
revenue. The operation serves the largest
customer base in the Group with 15.9 mil-
lion customers at the end of 2019.
Jordan
The operation in Jordan maintains market
leadership, serving 3.6 million customers
and recording improved net income in 2019.
Significant investments were made on its
nuclear grade data center, named ‘The Bun-
ker’, as well as 4G and FTTH expansion. The
operator is undergoing many
transformation initiatives for its
planned rollout of commercial
5G services.
Bahrain
2019 was an incredible year
for Zain Group, reflected
by determined operating
performances
Continuing its upward trajectory, and against a backdrop of a highly
competitive landscape and economic and political challenges, Zain
Iraq delivered double-digit increases in both EBITDA and net profit
serving 15.7 million customers. The company’s focus on customer ex-
perience, retention and loyalty initiatives, services expansion across
the country and cost transformation, combined with growth of data
and digital revenue, were key drivers of this impressive performance.
Zain Bahrain is preparing for
the imminent rollout of com-
mercial 5G services in the first
half of 2020. Cost optimization
and other initiatives saw the
operator improve its EBITDA
margin substantially and net
income increased during
2019.
Lebanon
Zain has managed the touch operation in
Lebanon since 2004 on behalf of the Telecom
Ministry, taking the operation to new heights
in terms of network capabilities, efficiency and
rolling out appealing data monetization ser-
vices. Zain remains committed to supporting
the development of Lebanon’s mobile sector.
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