Major telecoms operator fined

Niger has ordered the closure of the offices of the country's biggest telecoms operator, Airtel, a subsidiary of India's Bharti Airtel group, for unpaid taxes of $107m. Airtel has been present in Niger since 2001 and holds a 51% market share, according to the national telecoms regulator. Airtel had a Friday deadline to pay $17m in fines. The company was slapped with tax arrears and a fine totalling $107m. Three other firms have also been hit by tax fines – Orange Niger, a subsidiary of the French firm; the public Niger telecoms, and Moov Niger, a subsidiary of Morocco's Maroc Telecoms. There are about 7.7m cellphone subscribers in Niger, which has a population of 19m.