Mara in talks to sell its phones in Kenya, Angola, DR Congo
The Mara Z is a dual sim phone with a storage capacity of 32GB and memory of 3GB, while the Mara X is also a dual sim with 16GB space and 1GB memory. Both models are pre-installed with Google’s Android operating system. PHOTO | URUGWIRO
What you need to know:
- The Mara Phone factory in Kigali is expected to produce at least 1,200 smartphones daily for sale in Rwanda and abroad.
- Since the factory’s official launch, the sale of handsets has increased with at least 30 handsets sold per day between Tuesday and the time of going to press.
- The Mara phones manufactured in Kigali qualify for a corporate income tax holiday of up to seven years, which the government offers under its investment promotion code to investments worth at least $50 million in the manufacturing sector.
Rwanda has become the first in Africa to produce smartphones.
The Mara Phone factory in Kigali commissioned last week on Tuesday by President Paul Kagame is expected to produce at least 1,200 smartphones daily for sale in Rwanda and abroad.
Ashish Thakkar, founder of Mara Group and member of President Paul Kagame’s Presidential Advisory Council, said the firm is in talks with regional countries including Kenya, DR Congo and Angola to export and sell the Rwanda-made smartphones.
He had earlier announced that the company planned to expand elsewhere on the continent and open a factory in South Africa.
Since the factory’s official launch, the sale of handsets has increased with at least 30 handsets sold per day between Tuesday and the time of going to press. In the past three months, the shop has sold about 130 phones.
Established at a cost of over $50 million by the Bank of Kigali, the factory directly employs 200 workers—90 per cent of whom are Rwandan and 60 per cent female—to work in technology development, production and the assembly lines. The local and foreign engineers, currently work one shift a day.
