Wananchi Gears to Roll Out in Nine Countries With Cisco Deal

Kenyan ISP Wananchi Online has signed a contract with US technology solutions firm Cisco to rollout triple-play services across nine countries in East Africa. The deal is supported by East Africa Capital Partners and Viscous Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cisco.

Wananchi Online, which claims to be the only triple-play operator in East Africa intends to tap into markets in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi, Ethiopia, Sudan and Zambia. The contract will see Wananchi Online deploying Cisco's integrated end-to-end network technology solutions - encompassing its ‘Borderless Networks’ and collaboration and data centre virtualization solutions.

Wananchi intends to extend a backhaul and last-mile fibre network across Nairobi and Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. It will also build a WiMAX wireless network to provide uncapped internet access in smaller urban centres in Kenya.

The company will supplement its WiMAX and fibre offerings with VSAT services for small and medium businesses, particularly in remote locations in East Africa. Its long-term plan is to take fibre to the smallest towns in the region. East Africa Capital Partners’ Richard Bell has admitted that Wananchi is keen to develop a network in South Africa too, but: ‘South Africa is still a very closed and regulated market. East Africa has leapfrogged ahead of South Africa. If we could get a licence to build a cable network in South Africa, we’d be there in a second.’

Mark Schneider, chairman of the Wananchi Group commented: ‘The entertainment market for both home and corporate customers in Africa as a whole continues to be reshaped in light of technological advancements and new industry partnerships. The Wananchi Group's key objective is to expand our portfolio and enhance our commercial proposition, revenues and reputation. Cisco will help us to continuously deliver the necessary technology enhancements to our infrastructure to serve our ever-growing customer needs and remain at the forefront of delivering new and innovative services to our customers.’

Executives at Wananchi and Cisco said that the cost of international bandwidth in the region is now as cheap as it is anywhere in the world - thanks to the recent launches of EASSY, SEACOM and TEAMS submarine cables – making this type of increased investment possible.

EASSy Formally Launched

Seven months after commencing cable installation, West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC), the specially created African investment company jointly owned by 14 African telcos and additionally funded by a number of global development finance institutions, has formally announced the launch of its 1.4Tbps, 10,002km fibre-optic submarine cable system.

East African Submarine System (EASSy) runs along the east coast of Africa, from South Africa to Sudan, and boasts onward connection to global markets. Completed on time and on budget, EASSy promises to enable affordable, reliable delivery of fast internet access for African users and enhanced voice and data services for the international marketplace. EASSy will enhance global connectivity to and from 21 countries in eastern and southern Africa, landing at nine countries: South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comores, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan.

WIOCC CEO Chris Wood commented: ‘Not only does our cable system provide the lowest latency internet connections and best ever voice and data service reliability to this region of Africa, but our unique approach to contract capacity and duration also provides businesses with the crucial flexibility they desire’.

Investor Celebrate's EASSy Launch

Seven months after commencing cable installation, West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC), the specially created African investment company jointly owned by 14 African telcos and additionally funded by a number of global development finance institutions, has formally announced the launch of its 1.4Tbps, 10,002km fibre-optic submarine cable system.

East African Submarine System (EASSy) runs along the east coast of Africa, from South Africa to Sudan, and boasts onward connection to global markets. Completed on time and on budget, EASSy promises to enable affordable, reliable delivery of fast internet access for African users and enhanced voice and data services for the international marketplace.

EASSy will enhance global connectivity to and from 21 countries in eastern and southern Africa, landing at nine countries: South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comoros, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan. WIOCC CEO Chris Wood commented: ‘Not only does our cable system provide the lowest latency internet connections and best ever voice and data service reliability to this region of Africa, but our unique approach to contract capacity and duration also provides businesses with the crucial flexibility they desire’.

EASSy Lands In Tanzania

According to a report in the Tanzanian Daily News, the ship laying a 5000km long submarine fibre-optic component of the East Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) landed in Tanzania, at Msasani Peninsula, on 6 April. Once completed the EASSy cable will be capable of delivering data transmission of 1.4Tbps.

West Indian Ocean Cable Company CEO, Chriss Wood, who was present at the landing site, said: ‘Interconnection with other undersea international cable systems will enable traffic on EASSy to seamlessly connect to Europe, North and South America, the Middle East and Asia, thereby enhancing the east coast of Africa’s connectivity to the global telecommunications network.’ The new submarine cable has landing points in nine African countries and will provide backhaul for a further dozen landlocked countries, enabling improved connectivity for the East African region. EASSy comprises of a 10,000km submarine cable system along the east coast of Africa, with landing stations in Sudan, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Comoros, Madagascar, Mozambique and South Africa.

Senegal Arrest Former Head of Regulator Over Corruption

The authorities in Senegal have arrested the former head of the national telecoms watchdog, Daniel Goumala Seck, on suspicion that he stole funds from the award of a telecoms operating licence to Sudan’s Sudatel, Reuters reports Seck’s legal representative as saying.

The one-time boss of the Agence de Regulation des Telecommunications et des Postes(ARTP) is accused of having siphoned off 2% of the USD200 million received in 2007 for himself and other unnamed ARTP officials, rather than use the funding to expand the watchdog’s operations.

Seck has yet to be charged and no word is given on whether or not it will jeopardise Sudatel’s position at all. The newcomer launched Senegal’s third mobile network last year but has so far failed to make any inroads in a market dominated by France Telecom-backed Orange Senegal with 4.61 million users, or 67% of the sector, at end-2009. Tigo Senegal, a unit of Millicom International Cellular, had 2.09 million users at the same date while Sudatel’s Expresso operation had 203,067.

Zain, Bharti To Sign Letter of Intent

A letter of intent (LoI) will be signed between Bharti Airtel and Zain for the proposed USD 10.7-billion deal for the African assets of the Kuwait-based firm by the end of this week.
An exclusive talk is carried out between the two companies till March 25 for the proposed deal as per which Bharti would buy Zain’s African assets except those in Morocco and Sudan.
USD 9 billion for the assets would be paid by Bharti and the rest would be towards the debt of the Kuwaiti firm.

LAP Aquires 80% Stake in Sudan's Gemtel

Libyan government investment vehicle Libyan African Investments Portfolio (LAP) has acquired an 80% stake in Southern Sudanese telecoms operator Gemtel via its telecoms arm, LAP Green Networks, Ugandan news source The New Vision reports.

Gemtel was licensed by the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) in 1996 and launched commercial GSM services shortly after in the cities of Juba and Yei. By mid-2009 the company had expanded its footprint to cover Waw, Torit, Bor and Rumbek.

Gemtel uses the dialling code of Uganda (+256), thanks to an interconnection agreement with Uganda Telecom (UTL) signed in September 2006, which allows the cellco to use the gateway for USD50,000 in interconnection fees per month.

LAP Green already operates in East Africa through its 80% shareholding in Rwandan fixed line and mobile telephony operator Rwandatel and 69% stake in UTL. The company also holds an interest in Sahelcom and Sonitel of Niger, and controls Oricel Green, a mobile operator in Cote d’Ivoire.

According to a statement from LAP Green, the firm has been shortlisted to buy a 75% stake in Zambia’s sole fixed line operator, Zambia Telecommunications Company (Zamtel).

Sudan: Canartel Acquires i-conX Billing System

Interconnect billing solutions provider i-conX Solutions has announced it has successfully deployed its i-conX system to Sudanese fixed line operator Canar Telecommunication Company (Canartel) to rate and bill the operator’s domestic and international interconnect traffic.

Canartel’s CEO, Ali Bin Jarsh, commented: ‘As the Sudanese market becomes more competitive, so the implementation of a modern interconnect billing solution is recognised as a key requirement for Canartel to maintain its leading status. The i-conX solution has been thoroughly tested, and found to provide a capable platform to support the continued growth of our wholesale business.’

Canartel became Sudan's first alternative fixed line operator, after it won the country’s second national operator licence in November 2004 with a bid of EUR45 million (USD64 million). It launched in November 2005 offering voice, data and broadband internet services based on a 3,500km fibre-optic next generation network (NGN), VSAT and wireless in the local loop (WiLL) CDMA technology, with a strong focus on business clients.

Uganda Allows Gemtel to Use +256 Code

The Daily Monitor reports that the Ugandan government has cleared a South Sudan network to continue using Uganda’s dialing code (+256), under the condition that the region’s cellcos continue to pay for it.

The decision follows complaints from Ugandan MPs that Southern Sudan mobile operator Gemtel was given leeway by Uganda Telecom (UTL) to use the national code without parliamentary approval. Defending the move, State Minister for ICT Alintuma Nsambu told the country’s ICT Committee, ‘In any case we gain more if there is a bigger clientele in South Sudan using our code, the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) will collect more.’

The issue was widely publicised in 2007 after the Parliamentary Committee on State Enterprises learnt that Gemtel was using the country code without paying.

South of Sudan is currently served by two wireless network operators; privately-owned Gemtel, which offers limited coverage of a number of southern towns including Juba, Waw and Yei; and Lebanese-owned Vivacell, which launched commercial wireless services in January 2009.

Zain, Etisalat Deny Acquisition Claim

Emirates Telecommunication Corp., or Etisalat, is not in talks to buy a 51% stake in Kuwait's Mobile Telecommunication Corp., or Zain, a senior company official said Tuesday. "We are not in negotiations with Zain," Ahmed bin Ali, Etisalat's manager of corporate communications, told Zawya Dow Jones.

Media reports cited an Etisalat official as saying that the company is interested in buying a 51% stake in Zain. Bin Ali said the official's comment was a "general opinion of an employee." Zain spokesperson declined to comment.

Zain and Etisalat are the two largest telecom operators in the region by market capitalization after Saudi Telecom. Etisalat's market capitalization is $20.64 billion, while Zain's is $17.83 billion. The two operators compete in many of the same markets. Both have operations in Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Nigeria among other countries.

In comments to Zawya Dow Jones in April, Etisalat's chairman said the company was looking to expand across the Mideast, Asia and Africa.

In May, a Zain executive told Zawya Dow Jones that the company's focus for the year is no longer on mergers and acquisitions. Instead the aim is to synergize Zain's existing operations.

Zain Launches Borderless Roaming for Data Services

Mobile operator Zain has launched cross-border data services across the Middle East and East Africa on its One Network platform. The GRX-based data access is provided to Zain customers roaming in other markets where the company is active and provides for data use at the local country rate. The One Network already offers local pricing for voice and SMS, with no charges for incoming calls while roaming on another Zain network.

Customers can also top-up using local country vouchers. The new data services include internet, e-mail, MMS, BlackBerry service and Zain portals, such as the recently launched Zain Create platform.

The Middle East countries that benefit from this data service are Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Sudan, while in East Africa the countries are Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

By the end of 2009 all other African One Network countries will join and benefit from this data service. Customers do not have to pre-register for the data access service, move to a special tariff, change their handset settings or pay any subscription fees for One Network. 

MTN Reports Growth In Subscriber Numbers

­South Africa based MTN Group has published an update of its global subscriber based and recorded 98.2 million customers at 31 March 2009. This is an 8% increase for the quarter from 90.65 million subscribers recorded at the end of last year. The company noted that while strong subscriber growth continues to be a feature in almost all countries in which it operates in, currency volatility has generally had a more negative impact on ARPU reported in US$. Changes to spending patterns have been varied as economies respond to the global economic situation.

South and East Africa (SEA) region contributed 26% (December 2008: 27%) of the Group's total subscribers while West and Central Africa (WECA) and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) contributed 45% (December 2008: 44%) and 29% (December 2008: 29%), respectively.

The SEA region increased its subscriber base by 4% for the quarter. The South African operation contributes 69% to the region's subscribers, increasing 2% to 17.43 million for the quarter ended 31 March 2009. The modest increase in subscribers was due to the mix of seasonal trends, weakening economic conditions and aggressive competition. Uganda increased its subscriber base by 13% due to the continued success of MTN Zone.

The WECA region increased its subscriber base by 10% for the quarter. The strong growth in the region was primarily due to growth in Nigeria which contributes 59% to the region's subscribers and recorded a 12% increase in its subscriber base to 25.9 million. This was mainly due to continued improvements in network quality and capacity with 173 BTS's added in the quarter. Ghana increased its subscriber base by 5% despite fierce competition. Both Cameroon and Cote d'Ivoire increased their subscriber bases by 7% to 3.82 million and 3.81 million respectively.

The MENA region recorded a 9% increase in subscribers for the quarter. This was due to continued growth from the Iran operation, which contributes 63% to the region's subscribers and increased its subscribers by 14% to 18,252,000. The disappointing slowdown of subscriber acquisitions in Sudan and Syria is mainly attributed to the economic downturn in the respective countries. Sudan increased its subscriber base to 2.66 million while Syria saw its base drop by 3% to 3.43 million subscribers.

MTN South Africa's blended ARPU decreased by 6%. This is as a result of increased penetration into lower market segments, seasonal trends and a slowdown in consumer spending. Iran's ARPU remain relatively stable notwithstanding seasonal trends and increased penetration. The decline of many local currencies against the US$ has negatively affected ARPU trends. Larger operations including Nigeria, Cote d'Ivoire, Syria and Sudan experienced significantly more resilience in local currency ARPU than reflected in the reported US$ number.

Missing MTN Uganda Engineer Could Still Be Alive - Paper

­The mystery of an MTN engineer who vanished in Uganda nearly four years ago took an unexpected turn when it was recently claimed that he had been kidnapped by security services. Andrew Ndawula, the MTN engineer reportedly overhead sensitive communications between security officials in Kampala and the crew of the ill-fated helicopter which crashed and killed the Vice President of Sudan, John Garang.

John Garang was the former leader of the rebel forces in Southern Sudan, known as the SPLA who joined a US-led peace deal with the Northern Sudan and agreed an independence referendum in 2012. However, in late July 2005, Garang died after the Ugandan presidential Mi-172 helicopter he was flying in crashed. He had been returning from a meeting in Rwakitura with long-time ally President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda.

Both the Sudanese government and the head of the SPLA blamed the weather for the accident. There are, however, doubts as to the truth of this, especially amongst the rank-and-file of the SPLA. Yoweri Museveni, the Ugandan president, claims that the possibility of "external factors" having played a role could not be eliminated.

Four days after the crash, Ndawula vanished. Prior to his disappearance, he had been reported to be unusually tired and putting in particularly long hours, once not returning home until the small hours of the morning. A graduate from Makerere University, Ndawula was MTN’s Switch Planning Engineer.

A relative of the family told The Observer newspaper that “I was told that he is often moved between countries for his own safety after he overheard security information that is very sensitive to the region. The last we heard was that he had been to Nairobi, then Kigali. He is moved around,”

If there was a conspiracy to assassinate Vice President Garang then the peace deal in Sudan which is already tense could break down completely and destabilise the region.

Ndawula’s father, Kigongo-Musiige, however told the newspaper that he felt the information was "not concrete," but admitted that MTN officials had told him that his son might have listened to some sensitive communications.

At the time of the disappearance, there was a considerable fuss about the incident reaching to the Prime Minister's office.

MTN Launches CSR Campaign Targeting women in Sudan

MTN Sudan has launched its corporate social investment projects for 2009, entitled “Together for wellbeing of Sudanese society”, including an initiative specifically aimed at the upliftment of women.

Says Hassan Jaber, CEO of MTN Sudan: “The project aims to empower women and draws attention to the importance of supporting them in today’s society. A memorandum of agreement between MTN Sudan and the Sudanese Development initiatives (SUDIA) was signed at Al Salam Rotana Hotel in Khartoum on the 24th of March 2009.

The project entitled “MTN’s micro-finance initiative for women empowerment”, focuses on financing small projects that will help increasing the daily income average for targeted families.

The first phase of this project will last for one year, after which funding will be directed to other families. 

Half of the world’s population live on only $ 2 a day or less than that , which means affected families are unable to afford the high cost of health, education and food . Micro-credit schemes have provided great solutions to increase the rate of daily income for these families and build their capacity.

Mr. Abdul Rahman Al Mahdi, SUDIA Executive Director, said that the fund will be directed in favor of four areas in Khartoum State to cover a large number of Sudanese families.

He also added that the program provides the possibility of training a number of young people on how to manage small loan programs. He then added that the support provided by MTN for this program will greatly help owning necessary expertise to four national committees and enabling them to obtain the qualification needed for the managing such large projects.

China Mobile Denies MTN Takeover Claim

­Reports in the media that China Mobile Communications Corp. (CMCC) is seeking a partner for a takeover of South Africa's MTN Group have been denied by the firm. The reports, which first emerged in the South China Morning Post, citing unnamed sources said that the company was seeking to be a junior partner in a takeover attempt.

The Chinese carrier is “not aware” of the investment plans reported by the newspaper, Rainie Lei, a spokeswoman for Hong Kong-listed China Mobile Ltd. told Bloomberg News.

The original news report had said that China Mobile had approached or plans to approach companies with a strong African and Middle Eastern presence such as France Telecom; Zain, Orascom Telecom and Etisalat.

It is possible that CMCC is looking at a purchase without using its Hong Kong listed subsidiary, and while this would be highly unusual, it would resolve a key reason given for MTN wishing to sell some of its overseas operations. MTN has subsidiaries in Iran, Syria and Sudan - all countries which the US has trade sanctions against and MTN's involvement in those countries could be causing difficulties in securing US investors. While the listed arm, China Mobile Hong Kong would face the same problems with the US government, the state-controlled parent group, China Mobile Communications would usually have no such qualms.

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MTN Launches New Switch for Southern Sudan

MTN Sudan has inaugurated a new Mobile Switching Center (MSC) that will serve MTN’s network in the Southern Sudan region. The network currently covers five cities in the region and is expanding its network to five more this year.

Chief Executive Officer for MTN Sudan, Mr. Hassan Jabber told the Sudan Tribune: "The development of Sudan in general and more specifically Southern Sudan telecom is of paramount importance to MTN. MTN is committed to extend its network coverage to provide the South Sudan consumer to cellular communication access, exciting offers for best value for money and telecom affordability,"

He said MTN is also implementing community development programs to promote economic development for the people of Southern Sudan. "Our role as a corporate citizen towards Corporate Social Responsibility is to provide programs to uplift and empower communities as well as promote positive engagement with the government", he added.

Figures from the Mobile World report that Sudan ended last September with an estimated 9.5 million mobile subscribers - representing a population penetration level of just under 22%. Last April, Zain launched a GSM network in Southern Sudan, having deployed 50 base stations in the main urban areas. Another network Vivacell launched earlier this year.

Southern Sudan is an autonomous region intermediate between the states and the national government. Southern Sudan is scheduled to have a referendum on independence in 2011.