Econet introduces US$ billing, reviews local tariffs

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Econet Wireless Zimbabwe has started charging headline tariffs in United States dollars (US$) with effect from September 01, 2022, following regulatory approvals.

The company’s customers will now be able to use US$ airtime directly for voice, SMS, data and internet services without first converting it to bundles.

Econet first introduced promotional US$ smart bundles in April this year, which had to be converted to make voice calls, send SMS or use data services.

According to the new schedule, customers will now pay US$0.009 per second when making voice calls during off-peak and US$0.008 on peak times.

At the same time, SMS is now billed at US$0.0108 per message, while out-of-bundle data is now costing US$0.0083 per megabyte.

Meanwhile, Econet has also adjusted its headline tariffs in Zimbabwean dollars by an average of 61%, resulting in customers paying ZW$25.9514 per minute when making voice calls, ZW$5.33 for sending an SMS, and out-of-bundle data pegged at ZW$4.10 per megabyte.

The telecommunications sector was granted a phased tariff adjustment by the telecoms regulator of 61% in July 2022, a further 61% with effect from 1 September 2022, and a further 61% with effect from 1 November 2022.

The tariff adjustments will cover voice, SMS, and data services and are determined in the local currency.