Vodacom Group has finalized its acquisition of an additional 20 percent stake in Kenyan telecoms operator Safaricom.The deal, worth $2.1 billion, closed last week and provides Vodacom with a controlling stake of 55 percent in the carrier.The deal was first announced in December as part of Vodacom's strategy to bolster its Eastern African presence.As part of the deal, Vodacom has snapped up a 15 percent stake from the Kenyan government and an additional five percent stake from Vodafone Group at KES34 ($0.26) per share.Following this, Kenya's government still holds a 20 percent stake in Safaricom.Vodacom noted that the deal is part of its Vision2030 strategy, which aims to boost the carrier's leadership in some of Africa's high-growth markets."Acquiring majority ownership in Safaricom strengthens our position as a market leader, while at the same time unlocking new opportunities to drive digital and financial inclusion at scale in Kenya and Ethiopia," said Shameel Joosub, CEO, Vodacom Group.Safaricom was founded in 1997 as a fully owned subsidiary of Telkom Kenya, which then sold a 40 percent stake to UK telco Vodafone three years later. In 2017, Vodafone transferred 35 percent of its stake to South Africa-based Vodacom. Safaricom has more than 50 million mobile subscribers in Kenya.The Kenyan government said in May of last year that it planned to sell shares in the telco. At the time, ministers were hoping to raise 149 billion shillings ($1.16bn) in the 2025/26 financial year by selling shares in businesses including Safaricom.Safaricom also has an Ethiopian unit, which it launched more than three years ago as Ethiopia's government pushed for more privatization of its telecom networks. The carrier has more than 10 million customers in the country.Vodacom stated that it will provide a market update on its medium-term targets later this month when the company reports its first-quarter earnings.