Mumbai: UK mobile phone firm Vodafone Plc will buy a controlling 70 per cent stake in state-owned Ghana Telecom for £452m ($900m), expanding its presence in  Africa.

Vodafone will have 70 per cent in Ghana's third-largest mobile provider with 1.4 million customers while the government will retain a 30 per cent stake, Vodafone said in a statement.

Vodafone already owns half of Vodacom, the leading mobile business in South Africa, Tanzania, Lesotho and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ghana is one of the most attractive markets in Africa. There are currently 2.7 million mobile subscribers in Ghana, although overall mobile penetration per head of the population in the west African country remains low at 35 per cent.

Vodafone said sees a huge potential for both personal and commercial growth considering the fact that more than half of its population is aged under 25.

Vodafone has targeted to increase Ghana Telecom's share of mobile users from 17 per cent currently to 25 per cent and proposes to investing $500 million to expand network coverage.

Ghana Telecom, which has a monopoly over fixed-line services and employs 4,000 staff.

''Ghana is one of the most attractive markets in Africa," said Vodafone chief executive Arun Sarin, who will step down as CEO later this month.

The deal, which needs approval by Ghana's Parliament, is expected to be concluded later this year.