Telia divested its stake in Afghanistan operator Roshan Telecom and completed an exit from the market after striking a deal with the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development.

In a statement, Telia said it sold its entire 12.25 per cent stake in the operator to the financial institution, a move mooted for some time. The Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development already owned a majority stake in Roshan Telecom.

Telia first said in 2016 in an annual results statement it was in the process of selling its stake in the operator, but the move has clearly taken longer than first anticipated.

Its exit from Afghanistan follows departures from seven markets in Eurasia completed earlier this year.

The move was part of a strategy shift announced in 2015 to focus on its core assets in the Nordic and Baltic regions by selling its stakes and business units in Nepal, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Tajikistan.

Afghanistan was not initially listed as one of the markets it was looking to exit.

However, the company notably has expanded the scope of the strategy over time, sealing a deal in June to sell its indirect stake in Turkish operator Turkcell.

Terms of the Roshan Telecom were not disclosed.