The commitment came after two days of talks in Kampala last week, attended by Libyan Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamed Al-Dairi, Ugandan Junior Finance Minister Aston Kajara, UTL board chair Stephen Kaboyo and officials of LAP Green.
“The majority shareholder is expected to contribute $65 million to help UTL remain operational in terms of upgrading the network and settling liabilities,” Mr Kaboyo told The EastAfrican.
According to findings by sector regulator Uganda Communications Commission early this year, as of December 31, 2013, UTL’s liabilities topped Ush366 billion ($120.5 million) against total assets worth Ush220 billion ($72.5 million).
Shareholders
LAP Green is the majority shareholder, owning a 69 per cent stake of UTL, with the Uganda government owning the remaining 31 per cent stake.
Last week’s meeting followed threats by the Uganda Communications Commission to cancel UTL’s licence, citing the telco’s inability to maintain a sound liquidity status and failure to meet licence obligations.
UTL has been on the decline since 2007, with its market share dropping from about 30 per cent to just under six per cent today.
“We have agreed that within the next 60 days, a rescue plan should be worked out so that the company can be turned around,” said Mr Kajara.
It will, however, be an uphill task for UTL to leapfrog the technology gap because while its competitors have upgraded to fourth generation networks and data play, UTL continues to rely on a second generation network.
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A significant portion of UTL’s liabilities stem from pending interconnection fees to competitors who have secured court orders against the operator.
While UTL was the focus of last week’s meetings, the Libyan delegation also used the opportunity to discuss the fate of other Libyan-owned businesses in Uganda such as Lap Textile Company and the National Housing and Construction Company.
The East African
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