Translations

ROSHAN: Telecommunications for Social and Economic Growth in Afghanistan

7. Community involvement

Sector Telecommunication, Medias, ITC

Year 2019

Country Afghanistan

Transmitter

Context

Founded in 2003, Roshan is the leading telecommunications provider in Afghanistan. As the country's largest private investor and taxpayer, the company is deeply committed to the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan.

In addition to its role as a telecommunications company, Roshan is dedicated to building the Roshan Community by contributing to four key sectors: health, education, trade and social development. Various projects are launched with the Afghan government, NGOs and other institutions to enhance their impact while benefiting from the specific expertise of each of these sectors.

Objectives

Uniting the Afghan people through telecommunications
To improve social conditions and strengthen the position of women in Afghan society
Having a positive impact on communities

APPROACH

Roshan is developing an ethical and sustainable business model by investing in employee training in order to strengthen the skills of its workforce and enable the rise of the country's new generation of young leaders. This model also enables the economic empowerment of women through innovation, through a safe and sustainable working environment.

The company's primary objective is to bring Afghans together and enable them to open up to the world in good conditions. Thus, the mobile technology developed enables them to communicate, access information and carry out transactions in complete security. The Roshan Community has also built various projects that provide essential and sustainable support to communities across the country, such as schools, e-learning centres, drinking water wells and playgrounds.

In addition, Roshan launched the "Telemedicine Programme" to improve social health services. By taking advantage of telemedicine technology and telecommunications infrastructure, this programme extends medical access to remote areas by connecting them to well-equipped and modern hospitals. Roshan is the first to introduce digital money transactions in Afghanistan through the "M-Paisa" payment platform, providing citizens with a more reliable and efficient way to conduct their monetary activities. In addition, it has contributed to the fight against corruption, which in turn has generated more economic activity: government employees have seen their salaries increase immediately by around 30%.

CONTRIBUTION TO COMPANY PERFORMANCE

Fortune Magazine's "Top 50 Companies That Are Changing The World"
"Ten Most Innovative Companies for Social Good", awarded by Fast Company
Their customer support, technology and sales departments were the first in Afghanistan to receive global ISO-9001: 2008 quality management certifications
More than 6.5 million subscribers as well as numerous investors: AKFED (51%), Monaco Telecom (37%), TeliaSonera (12%)
IFC invested $65 million in 2013 for the 3G network developed by Roshan, which sends a positive message to potential future investors
The success of Roshan's social model has led to its export to Burundi, Tanzania and Uganda in 2014

Benefits

Contributes to the long-term development of the country: more than $700 million invested to date in Afghanistan
Accounts for 6% of Afghanistan's GDP
Created more than 40,000 direct and indirect jobs in Afghanistan
Invested on average more than USD 1,500 in training per employee per year
Construction of 10 schools, 35 e-learning centres, 205 drinking water wells, 29 playgrounds and dozens of other similar projects

This Best Practice has been translated voluntarily by an anonymous contributor. If you have any comments, please contact mpaquin@reseau-alliances.org.