MTN Uganda profit rises 21% to Shs571bn despite market pressures

However, higher operating costs and growing competition in the data market continued to put pressure on its business

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | MTN Uganda has reported a 21.2% increase in profit after tax to Shs571.2 billion for the nine months to September 2026, although the improvement was largely due to the absence of a tax settlement recorded during the same period last year.

The telecommunications company also recorded an 8.5% increase in service revenue to Shs2.8 trillion, supported by growth in its customer base and increased demand for internet and mobile financial services.

However, higher operating costs and growing competition in the data market continued to put pressure on its business.

MTN’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), a measure of operating profitability, increased by 3% to Shs1.5 trillion.

Its EBITDA margin, which measures how much revenue remains after operating expenses, fell to 51.1% from 53.9% a year earlier. The company attributed the decline to higher operating costs and increased investment in its network.

The number of MTN subscribers grew by 12.5% to 26.4 million during the period.

Competition in the data market

Data revenue increased by 12.8% to Shs860.6 billion, but growth slowed in the third quarter to 7.8%, compared with 17.5% in the second quarter.

This happened despite data traffic increasing by 31.9% over the nine months, indicating that customers were using more internet services without a corresponding increase in revenue.

MTN said unauthorised public Wi-Fi resellers offering unlimited internet packages through business fibre and fixed wireless connections were affecting its ability to generate revenue from growing data demand.

The company nevertheless recorded a 58.9% increase in home broadband registrations.

Revenue from financial technology services, including mobile money, increased by 11.6% to Shs902.8 billion. Growth accelerated to 13.3% in the third quarter, while the MoMo application surpassed 832,000 customers.

The company operated in a challenging economic environment, with higher fuel, food and transport costs, as well as foreign exchange pressures, adding to its operating expenses.

Expanding network coverage

MTN Uganda invested Shs397.7 billion in capital expenditure, excluding leases, during the nine months to September.

The investment supported the construction of 255 new network sites and extended the company’s fibre network to more than 40,000 kilometres.

The company said 4G population coverage had reached 94%, while 5G coverage increased to 25.6%.

Sylvia Mulinge, MTN Uganda’s Chief Executive Officer, said the results reflected both the company’s growth and the challenges facing the telecommunications industry.

“The nine-month performance reflects both the resilience of our business and the pressures facing the industry. Demand for data continues to grow, with customers using more data and more people connecting to our network. While data revenue also increased, unauthorised public Wi-Fi resale is limiting our ability to translate this growing demand into revenue growth. We also continue to see encouraging momentum in fintech.

“We are responding through continued investment in our network, innovation in our digital services and a stronger focus on operational efficiency. We also recognise the importance of a sustainable and competitive telecommunications environment that supports continued investment in the country’s digital infrastructure.”

Plans for further growth

MTN Uganda says it will focus on increasing revenue from its growing customer base, improving network services and expanding its digital financial services.

The company plans to improve network quality, expand home broadband services and introduce customer-focused offers to encourage more people to use its services.

It also expects its partnership with MTN Group and satellite internet provider Starlink to help extend enterprise connectivity to areas where conventional network infrastructure is difficult to establish.

In financial technology, MTN plans to expand the use of its MoMo application for everyday transactions.

The services include payments on the Entebbe Expressway and travel bookings through Travel by MoMo. The company also intends to increase the number of agents and merchants supporting cashless payments.

MTN Uganda expects cost controls and improved operational efficiency to help maintain its EBITDA margin at about 50% for the full year.

The company says this will be important as it continues investing in its network while seeking to maintain profitability and deliver value to customers and shareholders.

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