KUWAIT: Zain Team Annual Normal Assembly (AGM) used to be held the day gone by at Zain Team’s headquarters in Kuwait, that used to be livestreamed for shareholders and certified events and attended with a shareholder quorum of 75.14 p.c. The AGM authorized the really useful money dividend of 23 p.c (23 fils in line with percentage) for the second one part of 2021, payable to the shareholders already registered within the corporate’s document as of 6 April 2022. The money dividends shall be paid to eligible shareholders taking off 13 April 2022.
This money dividend of 23 fils in line with percentage follows the semi-annual dividend of 10 fils dispensed in the second one part of 2021, thus totaling 33 fils in line with percentage dividend for the 12 months. This 3rd consecutive fee of 33 fils in line with percentage on an annual foundation completes the corporate’s three-year minimal dedication that began in 2019. Zain Team Chairman, Ahmed Al-Tahous stated: The Board of Administrators welcomes all shareholders and affiliated events to the yearly Normal Meeting, and we’re happy to provide the Zain Team annual document, to be had best in virtual structure.
2021 used to be a a hit 12 months relating to riding shareholder worth given the board and control’s center of attention on operational potency, important funding in community upgrades, whilst managing the side effects of the pandemic on our operations. As financial job throughout our footprint normally recovers, Zain is easily ready to take advantage of the more than one alternatives opening as call for for telecommunications products and services continues to upward thrust via people and enterprises alike. Our 4G and 5G networks, knowledge facilities, cloud and different buyer dealing with virtual platforms are all destiny waiting and working at optimum ranges.
Zain appears ahead unlocking alternatives introduced via the 4th Business revolution, setting up a powerful foothold throughout the executive and endeavor sector and offering significant connectivity to the communities we serve. We categorical our trustworthy appreciation for the boldness proven to us via our valued shoppers and shareholders, in addition to via the entire executive ministries and regulatory government throughout our markets given their beef up in overcoming the demanding situations of the rising business dynamics.
Zain Vice-Chairman and Team CEO Bader Al-Kharafi stated: The yearly dividend payout of 33 fils displays a 77 p.c payout ratio, probably the most easiest within the area, offering a transparent indication of the power of Zain’s monetary solvency and cast operational efficiency. It additionally displays the corporate’s skill to execute on its successful expansion plans in spite of the continued demanding situations of the pandemic and have an effect on of unavoidable foreign money devaluations at the trade.
2021 used to be a a hit 12 months relating to riding shareholder worth given the board and control’s prudent execution of our sustainability-conscious 4Sight technique that empowered Zain to be a number one expertise innovator. Selling virtual inclusion is of important significance for governments and companies at the moment and Zain continues in the hunt for new profitable trade verticals within the virtual enviornment.
Given the presence of the pandemic, virtual applied sciences are being relied upon in a rising means to bridge the virtual divide, get ready the group of workers for extra leading edge jobs one day, and increase safe virtual platforms. Zain Team continues to boost up investments in new trade verticals, being probably the most first telcos within the area to supply virtual programs and platforms to beef up enterprises and governments, and it has regularly constructed on that aggressive benefit. We also are growing important worth for shareholders during the unlocking of capital and optimization of infrastructure belongings thru our tower sale and leaseback technique.
There was a surge in call for for broadband get entry to because of the pandemic, and Zain has risen to the problem throughout its markets. The corporate continues to diligently care for different demanding situations together with fluctuations in foreign money alternate charges, further taxes, regulatory tendencies, intensified festival, the upward push of unlicensed competition, and the evolution of acquire patterns and client spending. As we hunt down new expansion alternatives in a sustainable wide awake means, our precedence stays to supply world-class telecommunication products and services to our valued shoppers whilst turning in very good returns to shareholders and keeping up impeccable company governance.
Using monetary efficiency
The forged efficiency in 2021 displays the luck of monetization tasks carried out via control throughout Zain markets. The numerous investments we’ve got made in 5G rollouts in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain; 4G upgrades and new community websites throughout Iraq, Jordan, Sudan and South Sudan; and enlargement of Fiber-to-the-House (FTTH) infrastructure; in addition to spectrum license charges paid have made Zain future-ready to take advantage of the following segment of expansion. All over 2021, Zain Team invested USD 1.1 billion in CAPEX (21 p.c of earnings).
For the full-year 2021, Zain Team generated consolidated earnings of KD 1.5 billion ($5 billion), a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) lower of five p.c. Consolidated EBITDA for the duration declined via 5 p.c Y-o-Y, to KD 628 million ($2.1 billion), reflecting an EBITDA margin of 41 p.c. Consolidated internet source of revenue reached KD 186 million ($616 million), up 2 p.c Y-o-Y and reflecting income in line with percentage of 43 fils ($0.14).
For the full-year 2021, foreign money devaluations in Sudan from 55 in January 2021 to 436 (SDG/USD) finish of December 2021; in South Sudan from 175 in January 2021 to 426 (SSP/USD) finish of December 2021; and a 19 p.c foreign money devaluation in Iraq from 1,190 to one,470 (IQD / USD) led to a foreign currencies translation have an effect on of $962 million in earnings and $479 million in EBITDA.
Particularly, if the $962 million foreign money translation have an effect on on earnings used to be excluded, Y-o-Y earnings would have grown via 13 p.c to succeed in $6 billion, and EBITDA would have grown via 17 p.c for 2021. We proceed to control important foreign money devaluations in those international locations via revamping costs and specializing in monetizing new virtual products and services whilst in the hunt for profitable alternatives within the endeavor phase to capitalize on community rollouts. The Team’s operations accomplished important expansion in virtual provider revenues, producing over $2.1 billion, representing 42 p.c of Zain Team’s consolidated revenues for 2021.
Optimization of tower community
Portfolio optimization is a key element of the 4Sight technique, unlocking capital and allocating assets for more practical and sustainable use. Accordingly, Zain has curious about sharing passive belongings with competition in some markets, thereby decreasing its carbon footprint. In Kuwait and Jordan, Zain has moved to promote its towers and hire them again, whilst in Saudi Arabia, a tower sale may be finished in early 2022. We’ve partnered with TASC Towers to make bigger our tower solution to construct at the luck of the transaction in Jordan.
Revamping the wholesale trade
In 2021, Zain relaunched its wholesale trade, Zain World Attach (ZGC), consolidating the capability, voice and roaming companies throughout Zain working firms, in the end evolving to change into the only interface for all Zain operations. Zain World Attach additionally serves as a useful resource for different world carriers having necessities inside Zain’s footprint. The wholesale corporate seeks to change into a actually regional provider, opening up new earnings streams for the Team thru native, regional, and world actions.
ZainTech providing complete suite of virtual and ICT products and services beneath one roof
We’re assured that the creation of ZainTech in October 2021 will power shareholder worth and beef up Zain’s imaginative and prescient of turning into a number one ICT and virtual way of life supplier. ZainTech unifies Zain Team’s ICT belongings to supply enterprises and governments a novel worth proposition for complete endeavor virtual answers and transformation products and services beneath one roof. The entity will supply a middle of excellence and controlled answers around the ICT stack together with cloud, cybersecurity, large knowledge, IoT, AI, sensible towns, drones, and rising applied sciences. ZainTech leverages Zain’s international achieve, distinctive footprint and infrastructure throughout its operations in addition to different key markets within the Center East to supply a unmarried level of touch for gross sales and personalised buyer handle multi-national companies with more than one issues of presence around the area.
Fostering innovation in fintech
Innovating and scaling cell monetary products and services throughout our working markets is a key center of attention as we intention to meet our fintech aspirations of making the primary telco-led challenger financial institution within the area. Thru fintech, we offer far-reaching advantages to uncovered teams and others. We’re energized via the buyer uptake and transaction expansion we’ve got skilled with ‘Tamam’, our micro-financing arm in Saudi Arabia, ‘ZainCash’ cell cash platforms in Jordan and Iraq, and ‘M-Gurush’ in South Sudan.We will be able to proceed to foster inventions in fintech and feature plans to release fintech products and services in Kuwait, Bahrain and Sudan in 2022.
Zain Ventures helps the entrepreneurial ecosystem
We intention to foster virtual transformation in our working markets via making an investment in leading edge virtual products and services to create alternatives that bridge the virtual divide, make sure trade continuity, and advance socio-economic construction. Accordingly, Zain Ventures used to be established in 2021 to spearhead Zain’s current funding portfolio and diversify its vary of actions.
We expanded our dating with regional and world challenge capital price range, specifically MEVP, Wamda, Colle Capital, BECO Capital and Valor Capital. All through 2021, Zain Ventures invested in and signed a memorandum of figuring out (MoU) with Pipe, a US-based monetary expertise corporate, which claims to be the arena’s first habitual earnings buying and selling platform. We additionally invested in and signed a MoU with Swvl, a mass-transit business chief that gives diverse transit answers; and took part in ZoodPay’s collection B $38 million fundraising, becoming a member of different international and current buyers.
Zain Esports attracting a big gaming group
The Center East is without doubt one of the fastest-growing areas for gaming on this planet and Zain esports goals to foster the expansion of the ecosystem within the MENA area and free up the opportunity of skill. For the reason that established order of Zain esports in November 2020, the entity has held 16 tournaments attracting over 18,000 gaming individuals, over 43 million social media impressions, and 5.7 million engagements on its Twitch, YouTube and different social media channels.
As a just right company citizen, Zain esports co-published a Kid On-line Protection booklet in collaboration with Zain Team Company Sustainability and UNICEF, which used to be dispensed to more than a few esports golf equipment within the area. Gaming is without doubt one of the greatest use circumstances for cell and residential broadband products and services and is destined to lend a hand Zain working firms hook up with the gaming group thru its state of the art infrastructure.
Regulatory insurance policies important to our luck
For the reason that starting of the pandemic, and to beef up the upsurge in call for, nationwide regulatory government granted Zain brief spectrum or rights to make use of current frequencies on a technology-neutral foundation throughout our footprint. Zain additionally invested $379 million in 2021 to procure further spectrum licenses in numerous markets to supply sound connectivity and be offering a much broader array of virtual products and services.
The area witnessed more than a few kinds of regulation and rules carried out via telecom and fiscal products and services regulators to boost up virtual transformation, together with within the spaces of cloud computing, digital bills, and enforcement of digital contracts during the judicial device. Those tasks will serve to spice up the take-up of virtual products and services, and Zain is primed to maximise the alternatives on this house.
Company governance and compliance
Zain Team adopts a conservative solution to making selections associated with chance control, and adheres to the easiest requirements of company governance, because the Board of Administrators works to make certain that the tradition of responsibility and compliance with rules, rules and best possible practices is followed Team-wide. Each worker throughout Zain entities is dedicated to the Team’s Code of Behavior, all working in a clear means and championing the foundations of excellent company governance. Thru those values and rules, the Team appears to have a good have an effect on at the telecom sector around the communities it serves.
Company sustainability at the leading edge
Proceeding to power systemic exchange within the communities by which Zain operates via offering get entry to to significant connectivity, the corporate is guided via the 4 pillars of its five-year company sustainability technique, which is focused on Local weather Alternate, Social Industry, Inclusion, and Technology Early life. The corporate addresses societal deficits and demanding situations throughout its operations thru foundational components that come with the furthering of its intention to safeguard the planet, fostering innovation, decreasing inequalities, and construction filthy rich communities.
Zain is dedicated to imposing methods that make it a cleaner, extra environment friendly, and environmentally pleasant group. Local weather motion additionally endured to be a important merchandise for Zain as the consequences of local weather exchange are obtrusive throughout areas. Our local weather efforts have been identified in December 2021 when Zain Team scored an A- in the newest CDP Rating Document – Local weather Alternate 2021, which ranks the corporate throughout the international management band and the easiest ranked and best telecom operator within the Center East and Africa.
Variety and inclusion uplifts workers
We consider persons are the corporate’s biggest unmarried differentiator, and so Zain takes the topic of uplifting its whole group of workers extraordinarily critically and is proud to be probably the most first telecom suppliers within the area to have established a range and inclusion division. We’re curious about nurturing a various and inclusive tradition, thru a sequence of moderately crafted methods and tasks, and we’re starting to see the end result of our hard work. The pillars of the variety and inclusion power are in line with 5 strategic methods: WE, our gender range initiative that goals Zain having 25 p.c of ladies in management roles; WE ABLE, our incapacity inclusive program; ZY, our adolescence construction program; Inner Innovation thru Zainiac initiative; and BE WELL, our psychological wellness program. Those tasks have all been a hit in making a extra inclusive group. There was a vital evolution in how we way paintings and the way management, tradition, and values are established as being basic to nurturing an inclusive atmosphere.
Zain’s annual document to be had best in virtual structure
In keeping with the Zain Team Board of Director’s imaginative and prescient to deal with our environmental footprint anywhere imaginable and in alignment with Zain’s Company Sustainability technique, for the primary time, the corporate isn’t printing the Annual Document, transitioning to a virtual structure best. The 2021 Annual Document may also be downloaded via visiting: https://zain.com/en/investor-relations