Digicel - Haiti Observer Blog

Digicel Foundation, an organization which is devoted to changing the standards of education in Haiti as well as involvement in meaningful social affairs marked its 5th birthday on an impressive note.

Digicel Foundation has set aside 300 US dollars to better education in Haiti. It has helped in building 720 schools and in training teachers who teach more than 30,000 students who have enrolled in these schools. It is also planning to build 80 other schools, bringing the total number of schools built with its aid to 150.

Digicel Foundation's top management is pleased with the work it has done so far. The team further asserts that there is no conflict between it and the government in improving education in Haiti. Rather, the two work together, but in different ways. It concentrates on building schools and training teachers while the government chips in other ways such as waiving fees.

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The competition in the mobile phone industry in Haiti has come to a sudden stop with the acquisition of Voila by Digicel. On Friday, March 30, 2012, it was reported that Digicel Group acquired Haitian mobile operator, Voila, from its parent company, US-based Trilogy International Partners. The amount was not specified.

My friend, we just witnessed the death of competition in the mobile phone industry in Haiti and you will pay a big price for this very soon.

What is the best thing for a business to do when it wants to control a market? Eliminate the competition.

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Voila, which was previously known as Communication Cellulaire d'Haiti, S.A. (Comcel) is a major telephone company that has been serving Haitians greatly for the past years. Though its operation was quite interrupted in 2010 due to a devastating earthquake, it pushed on and continued to provide its services to thousands of people who need them. Voila's success can be traced back to the year of 1998 when it received a license to build and operate a TDMA mobile communication network across the country. A year later, Voila, a subsidiary of American company Trilogy International Partners, started its commercial service in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Since that moment, it has continued an excellent operation until it achieved the largest mobile phone coverage in the country.

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The bell ringing that "Haiti is open for Business" sounded very loud this week as Marriott International announced that it will open its first hotel in the area of Turgeau in Port-au-Prince Haiti. The 173-room, $45 million Marriott Hotel is expected to be open in 2014.

With some convincing work coming on the part of Former US President Bill Clinton and DIGICEL Team, Marriott International has decided to be among the first in the revival of Haiti after the 2010 earthquake in the area of tourism.

The new Marriott in Port-au-Prince will be able to provide needed jobs to the population and lodging for the tourist industry which is expected to take off within the next few years in Haiti. The Hotel is to be equipped with restaurants and meeting space for non-government organizations, relief agencies and other groups.

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Haiti's aim for socio-economic development has paved way for both local and international bodies and institutions to cooperate in providing the country and its people different means to attain this. Through technology, these entities have found various innovative ways to assist most especially the poor sector of Haitian society. The Mobile Money initiative, which was launched in the country last 2010 by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), continues to offer promising results.

The Haiti Mobile Money Initiative organized by the Gates Foundation has recently reached a five-million worth of transactions. This resulted in Digicel and Voila, two of the country's mobile network companies, sharing an award worth 3.2 million dollars for this milestone, which marks the final award of the initiative's ten-million-dollar incentive fund. The growing success of mobile money assists Haitians with a more practical and easier way through their mobile phones in taking care of monetary transactions as ninety percent of them do not have bank accounts. Aside from the HMMI, the government has launched two projects involving mobile money called "Aba Grangou" and "Ti Manman Cheri". The "Ti Manman Cheri", otherwise known as "Dear Little Mother", aims to help Haitian youth that are facing extreme poverty.

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The Haitian Iron market or Marche en Fer is back in business and we only have one man to thank for that. Irish Billionaire Denis O'Brien is not satisfied with only taking from the Haitian society with his successful Mobil Phone company in Haiti Digicel. He also believes in putting back some of that money to serve the people.

It is reported that billionaire Denis O'Brien donated $12 million of his own money to make the dream of rebuilding the Haitian iron market, marche en Fer, a reality. Many improvements have been made into the renovated Marche Hyppolite. it is equipped with solar panels and resistant to earthquake and hurricane

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I just learned that Digicel has launched its new mobile phone.

Tcho Tcho mobile is the name of the new mobile phone service introduced to the Haitian population.

This service is expected to make the lives of many Haitians very easy. Soon your new Tcho Tcho Mobile bank will allow you to conduct many banking activities fast, conveniently and safely. the services include: deposits, cash withdrawals and transfers.

All these banking services will be a click away from your cell phone. Tcho Tcho Mobile is intended to provide its services to up to 20,000 users during the initial first three months and will eventually increase its capability to serve the entire Haitian population very shortly.

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