A new series of biodegradable scratch cards for “Hala” and “Dawli” customers has been launched as part of Qtel’s move towards reducing the company’s environmental footprint.
Over time, the cards will replace the current PVC scratch cards that have proven to be enormously popular in Qatar. With over 2.1mn mobile phone customers, Qtel sells millions of scratch cards annually, which means a significant “footprint” because of the resources required to make and dispose of each card.
To reduce the problems caused by discarded cards, Qtel’s new cards are made from biodegradable material that will break down naturally and easily.
This will reduce the amount of litter created and also ensure that there is less risk of wildlife and livestock choking on the cards that some people have carelessly thrown away.
Qtel is also designing the QR30 cards in a new “Three-in-One” format so that each card can be split into three strips worth QR10 of call time each (see accompanying images).
The new format will mean that it is no longer necessary to buy a whole card for QR10 calls, again reducing the resources required and making call time more accessible for the low-income workers and people looking to save.
Qtel executive director for customer services Waleed Mohamed al-Sayed said: “Qtel is a responsible company, so we look at every aspect of our operations to see how they can be improved for the benefit of our customers and the community.
“The move to biodegradable scratch cards is part of our wider strategy to reduce our environmental footprint, and we believe it will be warmly received by the people of Qatar.”
As well as the new cards, Qtel is also promoting its e-voucher system, which offers an environmentally-friendly and easily-accessed system for mobile phone credit top-ups.
Customers can access e-vouchers through special terminals located in shops all over Qatar.
The terminals deliver e-vouchers with secret numbers, which can be used in exactly the same way as scratch cards.