Zain Nigeria cuts international tariffs

Mobile operator Zain Nigeria has cut its international tariffs on calls to Canada, the U.K. and the U.S. by 63 percent during off-peak hours and weekends.

Under the terms of the offer, Zain customers will pay only 12 naira per minute for calls to any of the designated international locations at the specified times, said Zain Nigeria.

The offer applies to calls made to landlines in the three countries between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. daily and between 10 p.m. on Friday to 5:59 a.m. on Monday, said Zain Nigeria CEO Bayo Ligali.

The offer, which will run through Dec. 31, is open to prepaid and post-paid customers, Ligali added.

"With the new price offer, Zain now has the most cost effective international call rates among the main operators in Nigeria. Before now, the company offered the most cost effective international call tariff to most destinations among the GSM operators in the country," he said.

According to Ligali, other GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) operators charge 40 naira per minute for international calls to prime locations across the world, while Zain charges 33 naira per minute during peak periods.

The introduction of the new international call rate is in line with the company's business strategy of creating additional value for customers and helping Nigerians keep in touch with their family members and foreign business partners at an affordable rate, he noted.

"The U.K. and the U.S.A. are important destinations for most Nigerians," Ligali said. "By lowering the call rates to these destinations, we have once again demonstrated our care for the convenience and feelings of our customers."