One of the operators of the global system of mobile communications (GSM) in Nigeria, Globacom, has hit a subscriber base of 20 million as it marks its fifth anniversary. The company, which is the second national telecommunications operator, said in a statement here Thursday that the phenomenal growth in its subscribe base was an indication of its wide acceptance by Nigerians. “We are excited by the expression of faith in us by Nigerians,” said Globacom, adding: ”Nigerians have made us what we are.”Globacom, owned by Nigerian entrepreneur Mike Adenuga, started GSM operations in Nigeria 29 August 2003, with a promise to build Africa’s biggest and best network. Today, its services extend to the Republic of Benin, where it recently launched its operations, and Ghana, where it has been granted an operating licence. Nigeria has 53.3 million active telephone subscribers, most of them mobile phone users, as at the end of June 2008. Africa’smost populous nation launched GSM in 2001, and within the first year the number of subscribers almost doubled to about 1.2 million.
