Manda Mobile is a new digital service that gives customers a differentiated experience focusing on data as a means to access services, communicate and get support and using MTN Mobile Money as the payment method and top-up. The company inherits the orange color scheme in its branding that Africell Uganda and Orange Uganda left behind.
Technically, Manda Mobile is operated as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). Consequently, it depends on MTN Uganda’s 3G and 4G data networks to deliver telecom services. The most significant setback for an MVNO is counting on others to deliver your core services which comes at a considerable cost of paying a significant part of the revenue to the partnering telecom.
According to Wikipedia, an MVNO will enter into a business agreement with a mobile network operator to obtain bulk access to network services at wholesale rates, then set retail prices independently. An MVNO may use its customer service, billing support systems, marketing, and sales personnel, or it could employ the services of a mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE).
This is not the first MVNO in Uganda — K2 already has such an agreement with Airtel Uganda. In July 2018, Airtel Uganda took to its official Facebook page to announce the brand endorsement agreement with K2 telecom. K2 Telecom subscribers have been assigned a “0708” code, which belongs to Airtel’s former “wife”, Warid Telecom.
Unlike K2, Manda Mobile’s partnership with MTN Uganda assures them of most MTN services. Users can get a Manda SIM card at any Manda agent. The sim costs UGX 5,000. After buying the sim card, one has to download the Manda App to activate data and voice minutes. The only offering the company has is 300 MBs for UGX 1,000 valid for 3 days for mobile data rates and we hope more data bundles will be added in the future.
It should be noted that the Manda App is made by the MTN Group, which means it’s just a scaled-down version of the myMTN app and is available on the iOS and Android application stores. Manda Mobile is still new and very little is known about this telecom company with a scanty online and physical presence.
