Vodacom Group leaned heavily on its Egyptian business and Kenyan associate Safaricom to power a strong set of full-year numbers, even as service revenue growth in its South African home market remained subdued.
For the year ended 31 March 2026, group revenue rose 10.1% to R167.7-billion. Service revenue grew 10.6% to R133.6-billion, or 12.9% on a normalised basis stripping out currency effects, comfortably ahead of the group’s medium-term double-digit target.
Ebitda — earnings before interest, tax depreciation and amortisation — climbed 12.8% to R62.6-billion, with the margin expanding to 37.4%. Headline earnings per share jumped 22.9% to R10.53. The board declared a final dividend of R4.05/share, lifting the full-year payout to R7.35 – up 18.5% on the prior year. Return on capital employed expanded to 27.5%, from 23.5%.
Egypt was the standout, with local-currency service revenue and Ebitda growth of 36.2% and 44.5%, respectively. The North African market now contributes 29.7% of group Ebitda.
By contrast, South Africa, traditionally the group’s anchor market, posted service revenue growth of just 2.1%. The company said this was supported by an improving prepaid trend in the fourth quarter, strong data demand and growth in beyond-mobile services. South African Ebitda returned to growth in the second half after a one-off settlement weighed on the first half.
‘Step-change’
Safaricom, in which Vodacom is acquiring an additional 20% stake, contributed R4.6-billion to group operating profit, up 38.3%. The Kenyan operator’s shilling service revenue rose 11.5%, Ebitda 27.9% and net income 37%. Ethiopia, where Safaricom is still scaling, added 54.2% more customers to reach 13.6 million, with losses narrowing.
The Safaricom transaction, announced in December, remains subject to a court process in Kenya. Vodacom said completion would mark a “step-change” in scale, diversification and growth, and that it would update its Vision 2030 ambitions accordingly.
Read: MTN and Vodacom dwarf South Africa’s listed tech sector
Also in December, Vodacom finalised its acquisition of a strategic stake in South African fibre business Maziv. The group said its fibre footprint, including Safaricom’s, would extend to 3.6 million homes passed once the Kenya deal closes.
The group customer base grew by 26 million in the year to 237.3 million – more than double the annual Vision 2030 target of 10 million net additions. On the back of this momentum, Vodacom has lifted its 2030 customer ambition to 275 million.
Financial services customers, including Safaricom on a 100% basis, climbed 17.4% to 103 million. Fintech transaction value reached US$525.6-billion, up 16.6%. The 2030 financial services customer target has been raised to 130 million, from 120 million previously.
Beyond mobile services – which include fintech, fixed, digital and internet of things – generated R29.8-billion, or 22.3% of group service revenue. Vodacom is targeting a contribution approaching 30% by 2030.
Read: Vodacom dropping R5.6-billion for spectrum in key market
Capital expenditure for the year came in at R23.6-billion, funding the roll-out of 3 041 new 4G sites and 6 160 new 5G sites across the group, including Safaricom. Smartphone penetration rose to 68.6% after 18.8 million handsets were added during the year.
Group CEO Shameel Joosub said the macroeconomic environment was expected to remain uncertain, with rising energy costs and uncertain diesel supply continuing to pose risks, although mitigation measures were in place. — (c) 2026 NewsCentral Media
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