Telecom
Fixit45, CFAO Motors Partner to Improve Auto Spare Parts Buying Experience in Nigeria
Fixit45, Pan African Auto Tech Platform has partnered with Africa’s Auto Giant, CFAO Motors, to make Auto Spare Parts affordable and easily accessible to vehicle owners across the country.
Buoyed by its continued commitment to enabling and facilitating value-creating interactions across stakeholders in the automotive industry, leading auto tech platform, Fixit45, with its sub-brand, Xparts has partnered with Winpart, a subsidiary of one of Africa’s longest operating auto distribution company, CFAO Motors to improve sourcing and distribution of auto spare parts in Nigeria.
While Fixit45 has been building the infrastructure that enhances the quality and meaningful interactions across verticals that include auto repair and maintenance services, fleet management, auto care, refurbishment and upgrades, repair financing, and mechanic workshop solutions, it has developed Xparts, an e-commerce and search platform for auto parts sourcing and delivery.
Winpart, is a leading Independent Aftermarket (IAM) automotive spare parts wholesaler, distributing top-quality certified spare parts, sourced directly from Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEMs) such as Aisin, Bosch, Coopers Fiaam, Cworks, Denso, Dunlop, Kavo, Philips, Riken Tyres, Valeo and catering to fleet customers, retail stores, independent repair workshop network, and end-users across the country.
Speaking at a signing ceremony in Lagos, Patrice Porte, Managing Director, CFAO Motors, noted that CFAO has been committed to delivering value to Nigerian consumers for the past 118 years while adding that its’ knowledge of the African market has enabled the auto giant proffer tailored solutions to customer needs.
“This partnership is a testament to our enduring legacy in this market. We see strong synergies and alignment in terms of strategy and values from both brands.
“We are encouraged that this partnership will afford consumers the opportunity for better services and affordable products.
“This is the beginning of a great story that will positively define the Nigerian after sales market”, he said.
Justus Obaoye, CEO and co-Founder, Fixit45, re-affirmed the businesses’ core mission to enable and facilitate value-creating interaction while emphasizing the primacy of collaborations in moving the industry forward.
“We are a team of young people who are committed to delivering and facilitating quality services and automotive products to end-users.
“In CFAO, we have found a good fit and strategic partner who can help us deliver on our key objectives. For us, a key plank for getting things done is collaboration.
“These collaborations are vital and will help us scale. Customers should expect something that the industry has lacked for a while – quality coming at an affordable price point with guarantees to boot,” Obaoye explained.
This coming together has been dubbed by a few industry watchers as a winning partnership for the auto industry in Nigeria as it brings together a strong legacy brand and a young start-up to make spare parts purchases much more affordable, seamless and efficient in terms of service delivery.
Fast-moving consumer maintenance parts which include car batteries, brake pads, tyres, air filters, cabin air filters, oil filters, bulbs, plugs, radiator cap, and lubricants for light vehicles, commercial vehicles, and trucks will be distributed under this arrangement ensuring that consumers save time with the first-time fit.
Xparts, leverages technology to power convenience utilizing three key selling points: exactness – delivering the exact parts that will fit the vehicle; ability to explore large inventory and a wide assortment of stock parts and express delivery of these parts upon request.
Since July 2021, Fixit45 has been focused on building a platform that provides a seamless, collaborative infrastructure for the aftermarket industry underlying these with moderation for transparency, compliance, and accountability.
Winpart Nigeria is renowned for the quality and reliability of its products.
Telecom
Report Says 71 Percent of Nigerians Don’t Have Access to Regular Internet
A recent report by the Groupe Special Mobile Association (GSMA) revealed that a significant 71% of Nigerians do not have regular access to mobile internet.
“While 29 per cent of Nigerians are regularly using mobile internet, there remains untapped potential; 71 per cent are not accessing these services regularly. An improved policy environment has the potential to help the industry boost coverage and adoption, resulting in 15 million additional internet users by 2028.
However, the sector faces challenges to infrastructure deployment,” the report stated.
The details of the study were disclosed during the report’s launch in Abuja, highlighting a critical gap in digital connectivity amidst ongoing discussions about possible tariff increases by Nigerian telecom operators.
The telecom industry is currently advocating for an increase in tariffs to counter various operational challenges. However, the government is pushing for alternative solutions rather than price hikes.
The GSMA report underscored the challenges hindering the expansion of telecom coverage, which include cumbersome and costly rights-of-way acquisition processes and a complex tax environment. These factors collectively make it difficult for the industry to sustain investment levels.
Despite these hurdles, the report optimistically noted that Nigeria could add 15 million internet users by 2028 with appropriate policy adjustments. It emphasized that achieving universal access to digital connectivity hinges on a wider digital transformation of the Nigerian economy.
The report details the sector’s challenges, stating that “An improved policy environment has the potential to help the industry boost coverage and adoption, resulting in 15 million additional internet users by 2028. However, the sector faces challenges to infrastructure deployment.”
The report also identified key obstacles, such as the rigorous process of securing rights of way and a layered tax regime, which together increase operational costs and stymie sustainable investments. Added financial pressures from rising fuel prices and increased governmental fees further strain telecom operators’ ability to maintain healthy investment flows.
The GSMA report recommended several policy measures to foster a more enabling economic and regulatory environment for the mobile industry.
These include establishing a legal framework to protect critical national infrastructure, simplifying rights-of-way issuance, reducing the tax burden, and cultivating a regulatory climate conducive to robust investment.
“Future policies should be geared towards reducing the cost and complexity of infrastructure rollout to encourage investment and boost the adoption of mobile broadband,” the report advised.
It further highlighted the far-reaching implications of such policy enhancements, noting, “The impact of such actions would go far beyond mobile, driving productivity gains across the economy and creating millions of new jobs in Nigeria.”
Telecom
MTN Group Weighs Down by Nigerian Operations
MTN Group (MTNJ.J), Africa’s biggest telecoms operator, reported on Tuesday an 18.8 per cent fall in first-quarter service revenue, weighed down by the performance of MTN Nigeria
MTN, with 288 million subscribers in 18 markets across Africa, said its reported group service revenue fell to 42.9 billion rand ($2.34 billion) in the quarter ended March 31, from 52.8 billion rand in the same quarter last year.
In constant currency, service revenue, which excludes device and SIM card revenue, rose by 11.1%.
MTN’s service revenue from South Africa surpassed that of Nigeria, its biggest market by revenue, growing marginally by 3% to 10.4 billion rand, while Nigeria tumbled by 52.8% to 10.2 billion rand.
“The macro environment in the first quarter of 2024 remained challenging with ongoing high inflation as well as local currency devaluations in some of our key markets,” Ralph Mupita, group president and CEO said in a statement.
Mupita also cited global geopolitical tensions as a factor impacting the operator’s performance, including the ongoing civil war in Sudan, which severely affected network availability and revenue generation in that business.
MTN was also impacted by subsea cable cuts that resulted in downtime.
Overall reported group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) fell by 28.7% to 17.2 billion rand and rose by 3.9% in constant currency.
Reported EBITDA margin declined by 5.8 percentage points to 37.9% due to rising costs and currency depreciation mainly in Nigeria.
The group revised down its anticipated capital expenditure (excluding leases) deployment for 2024 to about 28 billion rand to 33 billion rand from a target of 35 billion rand to 39 billion rand, largely due to a reduction in expected spending by MTN Nigeria.
Telecom
Airtel Excites Business Owners with Unlimited Speed Plan
Telecommunications network, Airtel Nigeria has introduced a groundbreaking new service for business owners called the Enterprise Business Broadband (EBB) Speed Based Plans 3.0. This specially designed plan offers unparalleled connectivity and flexibility with unlimited monthly plans.
Tailored to meet the diverse needs of enterprises, the new EBB plans feature unlimited internet connectivity options, providing the opportunity to without data limitations. Customers also get a chance to select from three dynamic options, from as low as N20, 000 to N60, 000.
The N20, 000 monthly subscription delivers internet speeds of up to 20Mbps, the N35, 000 subscription offers up to 40 Mbps, and, with the N50, 000 monthly subscription users can experience ultimate reliability and speeds of up to 60Mbps, which is perfect for large organizations with high bandwidth requirements.
Speaking on the new unlimited plan, Chief Commercial Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Femi Oshinlaja emphasized the transformative impact of the new unlimited plan.
“We have seen the early adopters of the Speed Based Plans 3.0 express their satisfaction after using this service and we are confident to say that the uninterrupted internet service is a game-changer for business owners.
“We are committed to continuously providing innovative solutions that empower businesses to thrive in the digital landscape, ensuring unparalleled connectivity and reliability for our valued customers,” he said.
According to Airtel, customers get a complimentary router upon purchase. The speed plan also allows customers to have the flexibility to set data usage limits and control access to specific websites on the router, promoting responsible internet usage.
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