Non-GAAP information

EBITDA is operating profit excluding share in results of associates, depreciation and amortisation, gains/losses on the disposal of fixed assets, impairment losses and other operating income and expense. We use EBITDA, in conjunction with other GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures such as adjusted operating profit, operating profit and net profit, to assess our operating performance. We believe that EBITDA is an operating performance measure, not a liquidity measure, as it includes non-cash changes in working capital and is reviewed by the Chief Executive to assess internal performance in conjunction with EBITDA margin, which is an alternative sales margin figure. We believe it is both useful and necessary to report EBITDA as a performance measure as it enhances the comparability of profit across segments.

Because EBITDA does not take into account certain items that affect operations and performance, EBITDA has inherent limitations as a performance measure. To compensate for these limitations, we analyse EBITDA in conjunction with other GAAP and non-GAAP operating performance measures. EBITDA should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for a GAAP measure of operating performance.

A reconciliation of EBITDA to the closest equivalent GAAP measure, operating profit, is provided in note 3 to the consolidated financial statements.

Group adjusted operating profit excludes non-operating income of associates, impairment losses and other income and expense. Adjusted earnings per share also excludes amounts in relation to equity put rights and similar arrangements and certain foreign exchange rate differences, together with related tax effects. We believe that it is both useful and necessary to report these measures for the following reasons:

• these measures are used for internal performance analysis;
• these measures are used in setting director and management remuneration; and
• they are useful in connection with discussion with the investment analyst community and debt rating agencies.

Reconciliations of adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share to the respective closest equivalent GAAP measures, operating profit and basic earnings per share, are provided in “Operating results”.

In presenting and discussing our reported results, free cash flow and operating free cash flow are calculated and presented even though these measures are not recognised within IFRS. We believe that it is both useful and necessary to communicate free cash flow to investors and other interested parties, for the following reasons:

• free cash flow allows us and external parties to evaluate our liquidity and the cash generated by our operations. Free cash flow does not include payments for licences and spectrum included within intangible assets, items determined independently of the ongoing business, such as the level of dividends, and items which are deemed discretionary, such as cash flows relating to acquisitions and disposals or financing activities. In addition, it does not necessarily reflect the amounts which we have an obligation to incur. However, it does reflect the cash available for such discretionary activities, to strengthen the consolidated statement of financial position or to provide returns to shareholders in the form of dividends or share purchases;
• free cash flow facilitates comparability of results with other companies although our measure of free cash flow may not be directly comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies;
• these measures are used by management for planning, reporting and incentive purposes; and
• these measures are useful in connection with discussion with the investment analyst community and debt rating agencies.

A reconciliation of cash generated by operations, the closest equivalent GAAP measure, to operating free cash flow and free cash flow, is provided in “Financial position and resources”.

Certain of the statements within the section titled “Chief Executive’s review” contain forward-looking non-GAAP financial information for which at this time there is no comparable GAAP measure and which at this time cannot be quantitatively reconciled to comparable GAAP financial information.

Certain of the statements within the section titled “Guidance” contain forward-looking non-GAAP financial information which at this time cannot be quantitatively reconciled to comparable GAAP financial information.

All amounts in this document marked with an “(*)” represent organic growth which present performance on a comparable basis, both in terms of merger and acquisition activity and foreign exchange rates. We believe that “organic growth”, which is not intended to be a substitute for or superior to reported growth, provides useful and necessary information to investors and other interested parties for the following reasons:

• it provides additional information on underlying growth of the business without the effect of certain factors unrelated to the operating performance of the business;
• it is used for internal performance analysis; and
• it facilitates comparability of underlying growth with other companies, although the term “organic” is not a defined term under IFRS and may not, therefore, be comparable with similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

Reconciliation of organic growth to reported growth is shown where used, or in the table below:

1. Notes:
2. Data revenue in South Africa grew by 41.8%^(*). Excluding the impact of reclassifications between messaging and data revenue during the year, data revenue grew by 35.9%^(*).
3. Organic growth rates include the impact of a non-cash revenue adjustment which was recorded to properly defer previously recognised data revenue that will be earned and recognised in future periods. Excluding this the equivalent growth rates for service revenue, revenue, adjusted EBITDA and the Group’s share of result in Verizon Wireless would have been 6.4%^(*), 6.6%^(*), 8.2%^(*) and 10.8%^(*) respectively.
4. Excludes India, Ghana and Qatar as these were not owned for the full financial year.