People on the pitch: footballers shoot for stake in Swazi Mobile

Swaziland’s Swazi Observer reports that football club Mbabane Highlanders is looking to buy a stake in new network operator Swazi Mobile. The newspaper quoted the team’s chairman Zweli Jele saying: ‘Our desire is to extend our negotiations with Swazi, since the prospects of Swazi Mobile as a business look very positive’, whilst Swazi Mobile’s head of communication Macford Sibandze said: ‘We are grateful to Highlanders for considering the company. We believe they can play a huge role in the company and vice-versa.’ TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database notes that Swazi Mobile – which launched 2G, 3G and 4G services in July 2017 – is owned by local tycoon Victor Gamedze, but seeks to sell a 33.3% stake via an initial public offering (IPO) on the Swaziland Stock Market, following which Mr Gamedze and Michelo Shakantu, boss of the Inyatsi Construction Group, are each expected to hold roughly one-third each of the business.