Briefing Paper

The Movitel Miracle – New Dynamism in the Mozambican Mobile Market

Vietnamese backed Motivel has shaken up the Mozambican mobile market with its high investment, low user cost business model — creating the largest 2G/3G network in the country and winning 37% of subscriber-based market share in its first three years of operation. Incumbents, Vodacom and mCel, have resultantly faced increased competition; prices for data and voice have fallen; and mCel has struggled to maintain market share. The Mozambican mobile market is now more dynamic than ever before.