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Nokia wants to regain the African market

10. 02. 2022 Thursday / By: Robert Denes / Business / Exact time: BST / Print this page

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K enya remains a strategic market for Nokia, the company’s chief said, adjusting its outlook for the East African market.

Florian Seiche, CEO of HMD Global, said: "The company is striving for Kenya's strategic location, technological development and growing economy to spread the Nokia brand in Africa."

“Kenya has always been and continues to be a strategic location for our East African business. We recognize the innovative nature of the market and are committed to meeting and satisfying the needs of our customers, ”he said during his first visit to the country.

He said Nokia remains the leading provider of smartphones and phones in Kenya.

Kenya’s mobile penetration increased by 11 percent between January 2020 and January 2021, to 59.24 million mobile connections, or penetration above 100 percent. A new survey by TNS International shows that Kenyans are replacing their mobile phones more often than their Ugandan and Tanzanian counterparts, indicating that East Africa’s largest economy may be more attentive to new trends in the ICT industry.

Although Nokia, manufactured by HMD Global, is one of the pioneering mobile devices in Kenya alongside Motorola and Samsung, these early arrivals have since been neglected by new brands in the region. According to the report, Nokia is ranked 13th with a market share of one percent, according to preliminary estimates. That puts the number of shipments at roughly 3.8 million.

Counterpoint Research says HMD Global has not made it into the top 10 list of smartphone manufacturers. In the third quarter of 2018, HMD was ninth on the Counterpoint list with 4.8 million shipments. Samsung remains the leading manufacturer with 78.4 million units shipped and a market share of 20.6 percent. Huawei took second place with strong growth, mainly due to China, with Apple finishing third with 44.8 million iPhones.

Oppo, Vivo and Realme together achieved 72.4 million units released (without OnePlus), which is close to taking first place in Samsung. Xiaomi is in 5th place with a slight decline in shipping, while Motorola, LG and Tecno are closing the top 10 list.

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