Telecommunication today reflects majestic
leaps of human imagination, transcending
the limits of time and space. The industry is
seeing unprecedented progress in terms of
innovation and adoption of new technologies
that elevate life in so many different ways.
Smartphones are now being used by millions
of people across the emerging world, resulting
in a huge uptake in new applications and data
consumption. Regulatory issues are also being
scrutinised to untangle the web of complexities;
and create a level playing field for market
participants globally.
Against the backdrop of these broad trajectories,
we at Bharti Airtel crossed major milestones in
almost every aspect of the business.
During the year, we emerged as the world’s third
largest mobile operator in terms of subscribers.
We bolstered our operating efficiencies, margins
and revenue market share significantly in India.
We embarked upon our ambitious Project Leap
to radically transform our network in India; and
undertook one of our largest sites deployment
initiatives, rolling out over 87,000 sites.
Not just that, we unveiled India’s first Open
Network, setting a new benchmark of
transparency for the industry. We are opening up;
so that customers can evaluate our capabilities,
see our commitment, even partner us in building
a truly great network.
We have also had the honour of being India’s
first company to receive a payments bank
license from the Reserve Bank of India. We are
committed to help strengthen financial inclusion,
leveraging our deep distribution network across
India’s vast terrains.
The year also saw us responding with resilience
in challenging African markets, providing
opportunities across communities to help Africa
realise its full potential. We are also focusing on a
viable blueprint to grow our market share, reduce
waste and accelerate voice and non-voice
businesses across the continent.
Amid an exciting and eventful year, we continued
to drive our environmental and sustainability
initiatives with passion and diligence.
This is the broad canvas of sweeping
transformation that we are delivering to
customers and stakeholders, who partner our
vision of enriching lives.
Transformation for us is not just evolution
in response to shifting global realities. It is a
quest for new paradigms, harbours of hope
and innovation in a deeply connected and
collaborative world.
