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WEEKLY PUBLICATION DEADLINE: 12 pm GMT Sunday. ISSUE NO 347 TOP STORY: African satellite prices rise in the wake of NSS8 burn-outAt Satcom Africa 2007 in Johannesburg this week, industry players were all talking about the shortage of satellite capacity in Africa following the failed launch last January of the NSS8 satellite commissioned by New Skies (now owned by SES-Americom). Satellite operators and satellite connectivity providers alike made plain that the shortage is real. Just back from the conference Isabelle Gross was unable to get any clarity as to how bad the shortfall actually is, and which countries in Africa will be the most affected. In the absence of hard facts, the “rumours mill” has already begun to fill the gaps. However, a Kenyan ISP owner did tell us that prices there had already begun to go up. Although the industry seems unsure as to exactly what the future holds, there is no doubt that the purchase price of new satellite segment has already increased and practices such as capacity auctions have reappeared. Word has it that a company about to auction off one particular transponder reckons that it is going to get 50% more than it is currently paying! This pricing trend for new capacity is also going to have a knock-on effect on the cost of current capacity as contracts expire. The effect will likely be felt quite quickly, since over the last couple of years contracts have been signed for shorter periods of time. Further down the food chain, prices of retail bandwidth may also rise or stay static over the next six months in those countries that are satellite-reliant. All in all, many African customers are likely to pay more for their Internet connection in the near future and that’s not great news. The failed launch of NSS8 not only has an impact on the business of satellite connectivity operators and providers but will also impact the overall growth of the ICT sector in Africa. Some projects relying on the bandwidth that NSS8 would have provided have already been put on hold, and many new services that telcos and data networks planned to roll out will be postponed. These delays will further affect equipment vendors and manufacturers as the number of orders decreases. At industry gatherings like Satcom, those attending are prone to exaggerate the situation, but it is worth questioning if the current shortage is simply the result of one missed launch or rather a sign that providers have gravely miscalculated future capacity demand across Africa. Key satellite operators may have taken their eyes off the ball a little as they absorbed their new acquisitions (SES Global completed the acquisition of New Skies in March 2006 and Intelsat bought PanAmSat in July 2006). The more paranoid of satellite capacity buyers believe that the satellite capacity operators are not too worried by this tightening of supply. The short to mid-term shortage of capacity is likely to benefit those African countries involved in launching their own satellites. Nigeria, for instance, will soon launch Nigcomsat and there is still Rascom in the pipeline. As fibre and satellite prices are intimately related in many countries on the SAT3 route, there is now little pressure for the relevant African incumbents that own SAT3 to make an effort to lower their wholesale prices. This leaves the high-price incumbents like Angola Telecom and Camtel immune from competitive pressure. There are currently four projects to bring fibre to East Africa: EASSy, TEAMS, Flag Telecom and a Blackstone-funded initiative. One of them will complete a connection within 18 months to two years and a fairly rapid migration from more costly satellite capacity will begin. In the meantime, the announcement of a satellite project funded by Mubadala Development Company, the investment arm of the government of Abu Dhabi, has come as a lifesaver. Shawkat Ahmed, the CCO of Yahsat, the company in charge of running the project, explains that the satellite’s launch is planned for 2009 and will offer coverage to the Middle East and Africa in C-band and Ku-band. The satellite has two payloads, one reserved for government and military applications, and one for commercial services such as direct to home TV broadcast and backhaul of mobile operators’ data and voice traffic. The satellite has an overall capacity of 50 transponders and the company has already signed a contract with the manufacturer for a second satellite to be launched in 2010. According to Ahmed, running two satellites would enable Yahsat to make savings on operating costs in the mid-term. Among the satellite connectivity providers there have also been some bold moves. Gilat Satcom, an Israeli based company, has in the last few months opened a subsidiary in Nigeria, Gilat Satcom Nigeria Ltd. With 65% of its sales revenues generated in Africa, and Nigeria being their biggest market, the company has taken the opportunity offered by the Nigerian Communication Commission’s introduction of new licensing rules to strengthen its foothold in the country. Last year the NCC introduced new communications licenses for full gateway and International Data Access (IDA) gateway licences. As Avihu Bergman, Executive Sales & Marketing at Gilat Satcom explains, the latter licence covers the provision of satellite connectivity. The cost of the licence is 25 million Naira (about $200,000) and it will be valid for a ten-year period. At the end of February of this year, the Nigerian subsidiary of Gilat Satcom was granted the first licence of this type. Although the company has a strong position in the country, Avihu reckons that there are other unlicensed satellite providers operating in Nigeria, and so far it remains unclear if they had made any move to comply with this new licensing scheme. He deplores the fact that in an effort to regulate this market segment, the NCC has not yet announced any plans to enforce the IDA licensing scheme. Avihu also mentioned that Gilat Satcom would soon launch a new platform offering Ku-band services targeted at the high-end market. The new service will complement the company’s existing satellite offering in C-band, which provides backbone connectivity to telcos and corporate customers. Users concerned about pricing, might like to buy African Satellite Markets that has a pre-NSS8 burnout pricing survey (with both fibre and satellite prices) for the purposes of comparison with current prices you’re being offered and a careful tracking of the transition to fibre. See details: http://www.balancingact-africa.com/publications.html Scroll down to Existing Publications
Reliance misses out on SNO Licence in Kenya The Communications Commission of Kenya has cancelled a tender for the second national operator (SNO) licence that it had awarded Reliance Communications, after the consortium failed to pay for the fees. This is the second cancellation, after CCK annulled the licence it had given a consortium led by Dubai-based Vtel Holdings in January, for failing to pay the US$169 million (Sh12 billion) licence fee it had bid. Reliance, which was the second highest bidder at US$111 million (Sh7.8 billion), was allowed to apply for the licence, but on condition that it pay Sh12 billion to match Vtel's bid. Reliance confirmed that it would take up the offer and requested for more time to prepare for the licence. CCK said last week Reliance had a deadline of March 15. "By the expiry of the said deadline at 4.00 p.m. yesterday (Thursday) Reliance Communications had not made a formal application for the licence as required," CCK said. The Commission's director-general John Waweru said they had resolved to immediately restart the tendering process for the licence. (SOURCE: The Nation) Senegalese Sonatel snaps up West African mobile licencesFrance Télécom (FT) has announced that its 42.33%-owned Senegalese subsidiary Sonatel has acquired two mobile phone operator licences – one each for Guinea-Bissau and Guinea in West Africa. No financial details of the awards were disclosed. In January this year Sonatel won the tender to operate the third mobile phone network in Guinea-Bissau, beating off rival bids from four other firms, including US-based Global Voice. At the time, Sonatel director Fernando Lacerda said his company's proposal was adjudged to be better than bids from Global Voice, Teylium of Mauritius, Lintel Africa (based in the Cayman Islands) and local company 3 Tel. Sonatel’s newly created Orange Bissau unit will compete with incumbents Guiné Telecom (Guiné Tel) and Spacetel Guinea-Bissau (Areeba). Orange Bissau hopes to launch services by the middle of the year. In Guinea, Sonatel has acquired the GSM licence formerly held by Spacetel Guinee for a renewable term of 15 years; it aims to launch commercial operations before the end of 2007. Wireless services are in great demand in Guinea. The country is home to four operators, the more recent of which, Areeba, the local arm of Lebanese wireless holding company Investcom (which itself was acquired by South African cellco MTN in 2006), launched commercially in April 2006. Within just two months of launch the company claimed to have signed up over 100,000 customers, making it the second largest operator in the country and placing it only marginally behind market leader Sotelgui and considerably ahead of its better established rivals Intercel and the seemingly defunct Spacetel Guinea, which has long been the subject of an ownership wrangle over Investcom’s involvement in the company. Taha and Najib Mikati, the owners of Investcom, have claimed they hold a 'significant indirect interest' in Spacetel Guinee, causing a conflict of interest with their principal investment in Guinea, Areeba Guinea. (SOURCE: Telegeography) BTA Ready for Service-Neutral Licensing in BotswanaTelcomms regulator, the Botswana Telecommunications Authority (BTA) has announced that it is ready to receive applications for service neutral licences after a policy sanction last year. Headed by Thari Pheko, BTA says in a statement that it is ready to receive applications under the new licensing framework. The new licensing follows the announcement of further liberalisation of the telecommunications market issued by the Minister of Communications, Science and Technology, Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, last year. The BTA statement reveals that in terms of the new structure, the existing three telecommunications operators - Mascom Wireless Botswana (Pty) Ltd, Orange Botswana (Pty) Ltd and Botswana Telecommunication Corporation (BTC) - have the option to apply for new Public Telecommunication Operator (PTO) licences. PTO will allow them to offer, among others, mobile telephony, fixed telephony and Internet services under one licence. "However, should these operators choose not to apply for the new PTO licence, they will continue to operate as either mobile or fixed telephone providers until their current licences expire," the BTA statement says. On the other hand, existing Internet Service Providers and Data Service Providers may apply for the new Value-Added Network Service (VANS) licence or choose to remain operating under their current licences. The VANS licence will allow the licensees to provide a whole host of innovative services, including e-mail services, Internet browsing as well as the use of the long-awaited Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). Meanwhile, the private network licensees on the other hand will continue to operate as stand-alone entities but will have revised terms and conditions which shall not be substantially different from their existing ones. The move would be good news for BTC, which is currently a landline monopoly that has expressed desire to go mobile. Vincent Seretse, the BTC chief executive officer last year announced that the corporation had already applied for a neutral licence so they could operate as a mobile operator. Analysts believe that BTC obtaining a mobile licence will be the prelude to the long-awaited privatisation. (SOURCE: Mmegi/The Reporter) New Phone Company Takes Off in UgandaA new telecom company, the Saudi-based Hits Telecom, has started operating in Uganda alongside MTN, Uganda telecom and Celtel. Its local partner is Veritus Communications. "Clearly, there is need to increase the network capacity in Uganda to meet the existing as well as the future demand of subscribers," explained Edwin Rodwell, the company's chief executive. Hits officials yesterday met President Yoweri Museveni at State House Nakasero. The President was reportedly impressed by their investment plan, according to a State House statement. Rodwell explained that operations would start before the Commonwealth meeting in November. "We believe that the demand for services right now outstrips the supply and that is why we have a lot of dropped calls. The penetration in Uganda is just 8%, yet the per capita income is higher than countries with a penetration of 15%. So what we want is to bring telephone to every Ugandan," he said. He said the company would introduce the latest technology, which will be linked to the national fibre network currently under construction. He noted that Hits would also extend network coverage to remote rural areas. "All over the world, the expansion of the number of operators and the associated competition drives down tariffs and improves service for the customers. Uganda will not be an exception to this principle," asserted Rodwell. The company chairman, Farahad Bakhtiar, said Hits would invest about $150m this year, with an additional $50m expected in the first quarter of next year. Hits forecasts a direct labour force of 600 people, 90% of whom will be Ugandans. Hits Telecom operates in Yemen, Saudi Arabia and has been licensed in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. (SOURCE: New Vision) Ghana MTN-Areeba Turn Guns On RawlingsMTN/Areeba have turned the guns on ex-President Jerry Rawlings in a surprise deposition submitted to an English law firm representing them in a legal action by two Ghanaian shareholders, who insist they have had their shares illegally and improperly taken from them. In a formal request for arbitration filed with the London Court for International arbitration, via an English law firm, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene& MacRae, Investcom Consortium Holding SA, the parent company of Areeba, Ghana, labelled ex-President Jerry Rawlings as a 'notorious militant' who leaned on them to kick out Richmond Aggrey, who in their own written words they stated unequivocally 'became a shareholder of Scancom in 1996.' Continuing, they wrote that 'Scancom had no choice but to make Aggrey a shareholder, because Scancom could not maintain licence to operate in Ghana without local representation'. They recalled that the then Minister of Communications (Hon. Edward Salia) recommended that Aggrey serve as Scancom's local representative on the board of directors. Investcom then confirmed that Aggrey became a 20 percent shareholder and was subsequently asked to contribute financially to cover the company's 'mounting debt'. 'However, by early 1997, Aggrey had fallen into disfavour with Rawlings. 'Although Scancom directors did not know the precise reason for Aggrey's dispute with President Rawlings, it was rumoured that Aggrey had funded a riot against Rawlings in Northern Ghana.' Lawyers representing Aggrey have bristled at this account and intimated to Chronicle that they might take this up as they consider it slanderous of their client since it is absolutely untrue. 'It was during this period in April 1997, that two of Scancom's directors - Jamal Ramadan and David Hesse - met with the Ghana Minister of Communications. Ramadan came away from that meeting understanding that unless Aggrey stepped down and divested his shares in Scancom, the company's business would continue to suffer. Investcom continued to make the startling revelation in the face of persistent denial of Nana Aggrey's claims as a shareholder that 'Despite this understanding, Scancom- a company that was still struggling to find its feet in Ghana - was reluctant to forcibly remove a shareholder. As it turns out, such removal was unnecessary. Aggrey, who was familiar with the political will of a regime like Rawlings, volunteered to divest his interest in Scancom and to disassociate himself from the company. However, while he and Scancom were discussing the best way to divest his shares, Aggrey himself began suffering financial difficulties. As a result, in September 1997, Scancom's major shareholder, Investcom, agreed to extend Aggrey a loan. The board approved the loan and a formal loan agreement was executed'. The loan amount was $14,500.00. Investcom went on to tell of how Aggrey 'employed a variety of stall tactics to maintain his interest in the company despite the pressure from Rawlings, while at the same time indicating to them that he would leave. In 1999, the situation between Rawlings and Aggrey came to a head, as by their own account, the level of hatred or disfavour was now 'extreme'! 'In the meantime, the Rawlings' regime continued to voice its extreme displeasure with Richmond Aggrey's continued shareholding in Scancom. Most notably, in a 1998 Emancipation address, President Rawlings criticised Aggrey in front of visiting American and Caribbean diplomats, businessmen, and tourists at the Accra International Conference Centre. A tape recording of Rawlings' very public attack on Aggrey before the international audience is one of the arsenal of exhibits that lawyers of Aggrey have in their possession and intend to show before the court. Investcom and Scancom also requested the tribunal to arbitrate on the matter and offer appropriate reliefs to both parties on the merits of the case. It was this course of action that was challenged first by David Hesse, the company director and the alleged six percent shareholder and subsequently by Nana Aggrey, asserting before the court that the route embarked upon by Investcom and their directors usurped the duties of the Ghana court, which is already hearing the case and therefore in contempt of court. David Hesse last week asked the court to commit all the directors to prison emphasising that they had fallen foul of the law on contempt, while Aggrey, who has always insisted that he and the Mikatis are brothers merely asked for the court to adjudicate on the matter because he also believed that they were in contempt. This morning an Accra commercial court will hear an application from lawyers representing Nana Aggrey who is a chief of Benso, a village next to Agona Swedru to decide whether those efforts by Azmi Mikati, Subhi Accad, and all the directors, undermine the administration of justice - contempt of court, a quasi criminal act. The application, which was filed on notice has been challenged by lawyers for the defendants, namely Messrs. Larry Otoo, senior partner of the law firm Fugar& Co. They prayed that should the court determine that they are indeed in contempt, they were prepared to apologise. Nearly nine months after Messrs Kulendi and Hesse made their legal challenge and filed documentary records supporting their claims to stake of 20 and six percent respectively in the company, the lawyers for Areeba have not filed defence, and have challenged only the legal processes, and sought adjournments after adjournments.
IN BRIEF:- Millicom Group has renewed its contract with Mach which provides roaming to over 280 million subscribers over Latin America, Asia and Africa. - Uganda MPS want the former Posts and Telecommunications managing director, Ssempala Mbuga, arrested for allegedly causing the company a financial loss of USH59m for sub-contracting work carried out by Mentor Property Services. - Cameroon’s Minister of Post and Telecommunications, Maigari Bello Bouba, said at a press conference that all numbers would gain a digit as from 1 June 2007. Subscribers of CamTel, the fixed line incumbent, will see a 2 or a 3 added to the start of their numbers, while mobile customers will get an extra 7 if they are with MTN, or a 9 if with Orange. The change will increase the capacity of the numbering system from eight million to 80 million. - Some five hundred jobs in offshoring call centres are due to be created under the Memorandum of Understanding signed here between Morocco and the French group Capgemini. - MTN Uganda has unveiled a $52 million (more than Shs91 billion) plan to upgrade its network. The new platform will enable the company to support at least 10 million subscribers. The upgrade will be carried out by Ericsson. - Marius Foungues, head of the Artel , the Gabonese telecom regulator has encouraged mobile operators to share infrastructure in order to reduce telecommunication costs. Local newspaper, Gabonnews quotes that the installation of base station costs 300 million CFA francs ($600,000). - Tunisie Telecom has signed an agreement with the consumer rights protection organisation in the country covering the main areas where the telco has to make improvements. This includes the upgrading of its call centres as well as resolving network saturation issues. TELECOMS, RATES, OFFERS AND COVERAGE-Mobile operator , Celtel in Niger has announced an investment of 23 billion CFA francs for 2007 in order to expand and improve its network coverage. - The global trade association representing GSM mobile operators in 218 countries has released a study that shows Ugandan mobile users are one of the most taxed in the world. Uganda's excise tax on airtime is 12% compared to Kenya's 10% and Tanzania's 7%. In addition, 18% VAT is charged on airtime. Therefore, for every sh100 shillings of airtime a person uses, about sh30 goes into paying taxes. - Starcomms Nigeria, the country's largest CDMA 3G mobile network has hit the 490,000 subscribers mark. - Mo Telecom International , which provides international calling services in Uganda has already has presence in Kampala, Busia, Tororo and Mbale but will soon be extending its coverage to the West. - Safaricom, the largest mobile operator in Kenya has reached 5.9 millions subscribers and is set to reach 6 millions this month. - MTC Namibia, a GSM operator in Namibia will be launching a service known as the Push-To-Talk over Cellular (PoC). This commercial launch takes place after a successful trial that was conducted for the month of December 2006 with the Namibian Police.
MTN in Talks Over WiMax Facility in South AfricaMTN is holding discussions that could see it building WiMax technology into its networks by working in partnership with a company that holds one of the coveted licences. MTN has been denied permission to turn its WiMax test licence into a full commercial licence, preventing it from using a technology that can cover large rural areas quickly and cheaply as well as cost-effectively boost urban coverage. MTN has not lost hope that the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) may yet grant it a licence. But it is hedging its bets by negotiating with the companies that already hold one -- Telkom, Neotel, Sentech and iBurst. "The door isn't closed for WiMax licences. We are working with Icasa on what licences and frequencies it is potentially willing to give us," said MTN data manager Brian Seligmann. "There's also a lot of discussion going on with potential partners that have a licence or have the opportunity to get a licence." Icasa has also refused Vodacom a WiMax licence. That prompted Vodacom to pay an undisclosed amount for 10% of iBurst, so it can use the technology through iBurst's licence. The tie-up between Vodacom and iBurst may prevent MTN from reaching a working relationship with iBurst. MTN will be negotiating with Altech, too, since Altech won a test licence from Icasa last month and is confident it will win a full commercial licence. Altech is not deterred that the cellular operators were also allowed to test WiMax before their hopes were dashed. Altech believes that is a tactic by Icasa to open up the telecoms sector to fresh competition, rather than allowing the existing dominant status quo to continue. Seligmann said WiMax was not a network panacea, but was certainly one of the technologies it needed to consider. "We need to evaluate all the potential technologies. We must grow with the requirements of our customers and we mustn't limit ourselves to conventional thinking." Another challenge is the limited amount of spectrum available. Icasa should ensure the existing spectrum was used more efficiently and consider freeing up frequency bands either side of the core WiMax frequencies, since they were potentially suitable for WiMax, Seligmann said. Icasa is already struggling to divide the scarce 2,6GHz frequency between players wanting to offer broadband wireless and those preparing for digital television. "There are major challenges in SA with the allocation of broadband frequencies to make sure WiMax can actually work. In some cases it's not available because it's being used for something else or it's just not been released yet," Seligmann said. (SOURCE: Business Day) Ethiopia installs fibre-optic network and gets a loan from Chinese companyEthiopia has installed a new USD68 million fibre-optic network that will boost international communications and lower costs, according to an official at state-owned Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation (ETC). ETC spokesman Abdurahim Ahmed said that since February 2007 the new 983km network has been carrying all voice, data and internet communications to international cables via neighbouring Sudan. Abdurahim added that because Ethiopia is landlocked, it relies on the goodwill of Sudan for international connectivity. Previously Ethiopia was connected to the international telecommunication network via a satellite earth station in Sululta some 30kms north of the capital Addis Ababa. At the same time ETC has announced the signature of a USD1.5 billion loan with Chinese telecoms equipment vendor ZTE for the upgrade of its telecoms network. In September last year ETC signed an memorandum of understanding (MoU) with three Chinese companies - ZTE, Huawei Technologies and Chinese International Telecommunication Construction Corporation (CITCC) - to undertake expansion projects worth USD1.5 billion over four years. According to a report in the local press once the project is complete ETC’s fibre-optic network will extend some 10,000km and have a capacity for seven million lines. (SOURCE: Telegeography) Internet providers at war in South AfricaBut while the price war is brilliant for existing users, it is unlikely to pep up the stagnant demand among new users. The way things are going, South Africans may soon have to stop complaining that the cost of Internet access is setting world records in the rip-off stakes. Bold advertisements proclaim price cuts of 61% here, 50% there, and more generous data downloads everywhere as the service providers introduce some astonishing reductions. But before we get carried away, it’s worth pointing out that the prices are cheaper, not actually cheap, and that “high speed” in SA is still snail’s pace by global standards. Nonetheless, surfers have never had it so good. Consumers should expect a hiatus now as the players sit back to assess the impact on their customer numbers, profits and market share. Telkom hopes to persuade up to a fifth of its customers to sign up for its ADSL broadband internet services by 2011, compared with 6% now, but rules out any more drastic price cuts as there is a distinct lack of competition from new operator Neotel. Retail marketing manager Steven Hayward says Telkom would rather offer faster access to improve the value, instead of more price cuts. Telkom now advertises speeds of up to 4096KB per second and up to 3GB of data downloads a month for R516. Its overall fees have dropped 24% in a year, Hayward says. Rudolph Muller, founder of the MyADSL website for broadband users, phrases it differently. “What they are saying is that they are sitting on a cushy, monopolistic environment and can abuse their position and charge the high prices,” he says. Telkom also pared back the wholesale price it charges rival internet service providers (ISPs) to use its backbone, but only by a paltry 5%. That means ISPs that offer their own brands over Telkom’s lines have little room to manoeuvre their own fees down. Says Sean Bezuidenhout, of the ISP Gamco: “Although there have been some wholesale discounts on ADSL, consumers are going to see very little change to their pricing.” Far more drastic slashing by Vodacom, MTN, Sentech and iBurst now make wireless internet access less expensive than the fixed-line version. Sentech has made itself a viable player with a slew of lower-priced, higher-speed offerings for anyone within wavelength distance of its radio towers. With prices starting at R99, it is aiming to win over customers who are still using a dial-up connection. MTN users can pay as little as 20c a megabyte, with 2G of data a month at speeds of up to 1,8MB a second costing R399. Price cuts of up to 20% are designed to make mobile data affordable to more of the population, says MTN SA’s GM for consumer marketing, Donovan Smith. In response, iBurst is giving subscribers 200MB-500MB extra data a month, in a bid to boost subscription figures that are already climbing almost 3000 a month. Vodacom’s packages to wirelessly connect computers to the internet have become up to 61% cheaper, and CEO Alan Knott-Craig claims its data fees are among the most competitive in the world. Two years ago users were paying R40 a megabyte, and that has dropped to below 19c. (SOURCE: MyADSL) Fresh Snarl-Ups in Kenya’s Fibre Optic Cable ProjectControversy is simmering between the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Information and Communications over the procurement for a multimillion-dollar plan by Kenya to build a fibre-optic cable link from Mombasa to Fujaira in the United Arab Emirates. Known as The East African Marine System (TEAMS), the project is expected to be launched in parallel with the US$200 million East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy) - a fibre-optic cable link along the eastern seaboard of Africa, from South Africa to Sudan via a number of landing points including Mombasa. The EastAfrican has learnt that the Office of the Attorney General has raised queries over the manner in which Tyco International Ltd - a transnational that operates in 100 countries - was in January this year awarded a US$2.7 million contract by the Information Ministry to conduct a marine survey without competitive bidding. The ministry had in January sought and was granted an exemption from the Directorate of Public Procurement to procure the contract for a marine survey through single-sourcing. However, the Office of the Attorney General has - in a letter signed by Solicitor-General Wanjuki Muchemi - argued that the application to the directorate was not done according to procedure and demanded minutes of the ministry's technical evaluation committee that decided that the project be single-sourced. Apparently, the ministry had sought the exemption on the grounds of the onset of the monsoon season in the Indian Ocean and the consequent need to fast-track the project. It is understood that, during an earlier meeting in Dubai between Kenya government officials and the Dubai-based Etisalat Ltd - the main private sector sponsors of the project - the point was made to the officials that the marine survey contract and the cable construction contract could not be awarded to separate companies. The government had been warned that it was rare for a cable contractor to accept a marine survey conducted by another firm. Experts had also told the government officials that marine surveys are usually deemed to be part and parcel of construction works and that awarding the survey component separately would amount to giving the construction contract to the same firm. The Office of the Attorney General wants to know why the issues raised by experts had been ignored. TEAMS is one of the largest projects being undertaken by the government this year. The government decided to launch the project when it realised that the EASSy project was facing too many delays. The government is set to invite bids any time from now for a financial arranger who will design a plan to raise money for the project, tentatively expected to be completed by early next year. The contract will be awarded competitively by April this year. The government - through Telkom Kenya - is working with Dubai-based Etilasat to build the cable. The private sector will be invited to either buy shares in the project or will be brought in on the basis of proved capacity to raise funds through models worked out by the financial arranger. (SOURCE: The East African) Rural Eastern Cape to get wireless broadband and VoIP callsA project to roll out WiMAX broadband services in the Amathole district of the Eastern Cape will offer local residents and businesses access to high-speed Internet access and free VoIP telephone calls within the network by the middle of this year. The deal will see Tellumat install WiMAX base stations on behalf of under-serviced area licence holder Amatole Telecommunication Services in regional centres, including East London, Bisho, King William’s Town, Alice and Fort Beaufort in the first phase of the roll-out. The network will be expanded in further phases to cover other targeted areas in the Amathole district. “WiMAX is specifically designed to cover wide geographical areas serving large numbers of users at an affordable price,” says Tellumat’s Geoff Carey. “Worldwide it is considered one of the best solutions for 'last mile’ broadband connectivity. WiMAX technology can offer access speeds approaching 70Mbps per base station sector. The broadband service will be offered with connect speeds ranging between 64kbps and 2Mbps, effectively providing a wireless alternative to other broadband service offerings.” Amatole operations director, Bevan Booy, says the company, which has so far offered cellphone services through roaming agreements with the major cell networks, will offer both voice and data services, including , through its wireless broadband network. “People will pay a monthly subscription for an always-on connection to the network which they can use to access the Internet as well as to make VoIP calls,” says Booy. “All calls within the network will be free, and subscribers will be able to buy airtime for calls outside the network or outside the region at very competitive rates. There will be no need to buy special equipment – we supply a terminal for each subscriber and they simply plug in existing phones and computers.” (SOURCE: ICT World) In brief:- Algerie Telecom is close to launching its first WiMAX wireless broadband networks in three cities. Algérie Télécom is reportedly looking at deploying WiMAX in Algiers, Boumerdes and Blida, with an expansion later in the year to include four more cities: Oran, Annaba, Constantine and Ouargla. - The Electoral Commission of Kenya has announced that it will this year assess the progress of the polls by using new satellite mapping technology. By using the Global Positioning System (GPS), digital cartography and remote sensing, the Commission will be able to provide solutions in cases where ballot papers are delayed due to natural events such as floods for example.
Ethiopia Needs $800,000 in Preparing Forum to Host 'World Technology Forum'Ethiopia will host the World Information Technology Forum in August this year, the Ethiopian Information and Communication Technology Development Agency (EICTDA) announced last week. Speaking at a symposium, EICTDA, Director General Debretsion Gebremichael said the Agency has been facilitating the necessary accommodations and reservations for the participants and has provided up to date information about developments of conference organizations. The purpose of the regional forum to be held under the theme: ICT for development and prosperity', he said, was to help implement information development strategies and projects in developing countries. The Director General said the up coming forum is set to take the plan of action adopted by the World Summit on the Information Society's (WSIS) as a step forward by converting policy statements to actual, implementing projects that should help developing countries to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals. He added that his agency has so far achieved to network eight Universities found in the country, set the plasma TV for High Schools and that, currently, it is working on a new genre of treatment for patients through the net, called Tele-medicine. Telemedicine is an initiative of Indian President, Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam with an aim to help patients receive the appropriate medical treatment through the Internet. It is a technology whereby patients here are directly diagnosed and obtain subsequent medication from a World class Indian Institute which specializes in the area. The Agency has already started Tele Medicine at the Black Lion Hospital and in region 4, Nekemt Town as part of the pilot project. Asked about the average cost needed for a patient to undergo telemedicine treatment, the director said the agency will cover the cost he said estimated at US$3000. The World Information Forum is to be held for the third time and a total estimated cost of US$800,000 USD is needed to prepare the forum here, the agency has said. Various Ministries, Corporations, Agencies and NGOs are expected to sponsor the forum, Debretsion added. (SOURCE: The Daily Monitor) Pharmacy system using Ubuntu to fight AIDsWritten in Java and released under the GPL, iDART (intelligent Dispensing of Antiretroviral Treatment) is a pharmacy system designed for use at antiretroviral (ARV) pharmacies in the public health sector. Initially distributed only as software, it was generally implemented on machines using Windows. Due to issues of reliability and security, Cell-Life have created iDART-in-a-box, which is a complete system running on Ubuntu Linux. Initiated in 2004 as a partnership between Cell-Life and the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation, iDART is currently used at five different sites around South Africa and over 8 500 HIV+ patients receive their ARV drugs through iDART. Designed specifically for the management of ARV dispensing, the system allows pharmacists to accurately track patient treatment, manage stock and generate reports automatically. iDART was initially distributed as software only, with the PC, peripherals and operating system (invariably Windows) supplied by the facility. However, as pharmacists and patients depend on it, concerns over network connectivity, technical support for facility-supplied components and security on Windows machines resulted in Cell-Life creating an alternative deployment strategy. 'iDART-in-a-box' runs on Ubuntu Linux, and includes a mid-range PC, a Zebra label printer, an HP DeskJet report printer, a barcode scanner, an uninterruptible power supply and a GSM modem. Hardware costs are approximately R10 000, and there are no software licensing costs. Additionally, Cell-Life offers installation, training and support services, ensuring that the system is adopted quickly, and runs smoothly from the moment of deployment. The iDART database can be backed up securely over the cellular network using the GSM modem, with backups being stored on Cell-Life's servers. This improves the quality of support available to remote sites without Internet connectivity. Also, in the event of theft, fire or hardware failure, Cell-Life can readily replace the PC and peripherals supplied with iDART-in-a-box. Because of the backup strategy, the system can be restored to its operational state in a very short time. Ubuntu was chosen as it is a stable, secure operating system that can be configured so that its primary function is to run iDART in a secure environment. With the launch of iDART-in-a-box Cell-Life hopes to further its commitment to supplying community health clinics with systems that work, all the time. (SOURCE: Tectonic) Concerns Over Software Piracy in the Nigerian IT MarketPirated software products seem to have resurfaced in the Nigerian IT market, despite continued efforts by both private and the public sector to stem the rise. However, can it be true that while indigenous PC manufacturers bundled with official OEM Licences- is on the increase, that software piracy in Nigeria has also increased? According to available data from the Central Bank of Nigeria and NOTAP, there is a significant increase in the outflow of foreign exchange as payment transfer for foreign software increases. Just last year, India High Commission (Commercial Department) revealed that Indian software licensees had a significant sales growth in Nigeria from increased use of software technology by merged banks, the oil industry and education institutions. To crown it all, federal government has paid billions of naira to foreign software vendors for applications. This development has continued to attract growing concerns among policy makers, service providers, regulatory authorities both at national and international levels, and if unchecked will still cause more harm than good economically. Experts say that if the ugly trend is not put to an end, it will cost the country billions of dollars. Although software piracy is a global issue, the rate of the ugly trend in the country, according to International Data Corporation, (IDC) is still high at about 75% even with various enlightenment campaigns, legal actions against the pirates. Even with several raid operations in the different IT markets in Nigeria, including the notorious Computer Village Ikeja where pirated software products are sold in every nook and cranny of the market like recharge cards, the truth of the matter is that the Nigerian Copyright Commission, (NCC), the Microsoft and other law enforcement agency seem helpless in an attempt to bring to book the culprits. But despite the progress made, greater efforts, according to industry watchers, are needed by the NCC, the Microsoft and other law enforcement agencies to wage a relentless war against pirates who have continued to harvest where they did not sow. By 2005, according to International Data Corporation, (IDC), general piracy rate stood at about 84 percent, meaning that the country may be losing $1 billion every year to piracy. Similarly, Business Software Alliance, (BSA) software piracy study stands at 33.5 percent during the time in question, while its May 2006 reports show that piracy level is 80 percent. With these figures, Nigeria, according to available records is among 20 PC software pirate countries including Vietnam, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, China, and Pakistan, Cameroon, Russia, Bolivia, Paraguay, Algeria, Zambia, Botswana, Ivory Coast, among others. Despite efforts by the private and the public sectors to fight relentlessly with the offenders, piracy rate in Nigeria has been attributed by Microsoft to the simple fact that the informal market has not taken sufficient cognizance of the benefits of using original software packages. The System builder and account manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Emmanuel Uduoise who disclosed this recently in Lagos in a forum noted that software piracy in the country has exceeded 84 percent not withstanding the efforts being put up by the concerned bodies to fight it at least to the barest minimum. Commenting also on the impact of the trend, Laurent Masson, the Vice President for Middle East and Africa at BSA said that the worldwide piracy rate stood at around 37 percent in 2005, adding that the Nigeria's software piracy rate stood at upwards of 80 percent-about the same as the African average. And that means that Africa was losing approximately $1 billion each year because of software pirates, he said. On the western side, USA and Canada who collectively are very careful when it comes to purchasing software show a software piracy rate of 23% while the worst offenders, according to repots are within the Eastern Europe countries where piracy levels are on the increase by the day. (SOURCE: Vanguard) $250 000 prize for best 3rd world lab designAMD and Architecture for Humanity have announced a prize of $250 000 for the best design for a computer lab that can be adapted and implemented in third-world countries. The Open Architecture Prize is the largest prize in the field of architecture and is designed to be a multi-year program that will draw competition from design teams around the world. The winning designs will be built as part of the prize and in alignment with the 50x15 Initiative, a program founded by AMD which aims to connect 50 percent of the world's population to the Internet by 2015. "The Open Architecture Prize delivers on Architecture for Humanity's vision of encouraging collaboration and challenging designers to reach beyond the traditional bounds of architecture to develop innovative solutions that improve global living conditions," said Dan Shine, director of the 50x15 Initiative, AMD. "The creative designs developed in this competition will contribute to the 50x15 Initiative's ambitious goal of connecting 50 percent of the world's population to the Internet by 2015." After the winning designs are built, the plans will be made openly available through the Open Architecture Network, an open source online gathering place which brings together architects, designers and community organisers to freely share blueprints, ideas and resources for improvement projects in areas affected by geo-political, environmental or economic hardship. "For far too long many great award-winning designs have gone undeveloped," said Cameron Sinclair, executive director and co-founder of Architecture for Humanity, a charitable organisation that seeks architectural solutions to humanitarian crises and provides design services to communities in need. Currently, projects include the reconstruction of homes on the Gulf Coast, rebuilding after the South Asia Tsunami and the construction of healthcare facilities in Sub-Saharan Africa. (SOURCE: Tectonic) IN BRIEF:- Kenya has set up a new parastatal to spearhead development of information and communications technology (ICT) in the country. The Kenya Information and Communications Technology Board will advise the government on all relevant matters on development, co-ordination and promotion of ICT industries in the country. - President Gbabo in Côte d'Ivoire has laid the first stone of a technology park that will be built in Grand-Bassam to host technology companies. - Cisco will operate the first network academy in Libya, the Secretariat of Manpower and Training has announced. According to an agreement reached with Cisco, another 10 branches of the new academy will be opened throughout Libya. The High Center for Computer Technology in Tripoli has been chosen as the headquarters for this academy. - Computer equipment valued at N$32 000 was stolen from the State Hospital Training Centre at Keetmanshoop in Namibia last week, the Police reported
State to Offer R1bn Lure for Call Centres in South AfricaGovernment has earmarked R1bn in investment incentives over the next five years to lure international business services to SA to boost job creation and increase foreign direct investment. The plan, launched by Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa in Pretoria last week, was lauded by industry players. Business process outsourcing is the subject of the first of a series of sector strategies drafted by the department as part of a broad industrial policy framework which is still to be officially launched. The sector strategies are key to government's accelerated and shared growth initiative, which aims to boost economic growth to 6% and halve unemployment by 2014. Mpahwla said the plan was an important "test run" for the type of interventions government was planning. The department estimates the plan will translate into 100000 new jobs by 2009 and draw about $175m in foreign direct investment, which could push the sector's contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) up to 1,36% by 2009, from the current 0,92%. SA has had success with call centres, with the sub-sector growing 8% a year over the past four years. It now employs 54,000 call centre agents and government hopes to emulate that success through interventions in the rest of the sector. Apart from investment incentives and training support grants, a range of other ambitious interventions are also on the cards to boost the sector's competitiveness. These could see investors having access to cheaper telecommunication services and virtually rent-free office space in some areas. Negotiations with Telkom and the communications department were at an advanced stage to secure more attractive telecommunications pricing packages for businesses operating in the industry, Mpahlwa said. The department was also in talks with local governments in more remote areas to identify office space that could be refurbished and provided with interconnectivity, free of charge, in a bid to attract investors to cities outside main hubs, such as Bloemfontein, Pietermaritzburg and Mafikeng, where unemployment was high. The investment incentives, the first sweetener, are on a par with a global benchmark in providing grants equal to half of the salary of each job created and a skill-training grant. Depending on the size of the investment and the number of jobs created, companies can claim grants of up to R60,000 per "seat", where a seat would provide jobs for one to three people, depending on whether the firm operates shifts. A firm employing 200 to 499 people, with an investment expenditure of at least R74,000 a seat, would qualify for a grant of R37,000 to R44,600, while a company employing more than 500 people with qualifying investment of R89200 a seat, could receive up to R52,000. Funding is provided by the departments of trade and industry, and labour, while the Business Trust has contributed R100m to the plan. (SOURCE: Business Day) Altech acquires minority interest in Altech NamITechAllied Technologies (Altech) and Giesecke & Devrient (G&D), the German smartcard company, have concluded an agreement whereby Altech has acquired G&D's minority interest in Altech NamITech. Altech has acquired G&D’s effective 11% shareholding (taking into account the empowerment shareholding structure) and Altech now owns an effective 72% of Altech NamITech. Pamodzi, the empowerment partner, retains its shareholding, amounting to 28% of Altech NamITech’s total issued shares. Altech CEO, Craig Venter, comments: “We have enjoyed a successful long-term relationship with G&D, who have consistently contributed to Altech NamITech’s technology growth. One of the fundamental reasons for this partnership has been technology transfer to Altech NamITech. Given our acquired depth of knowledge in embedded technologies, we have mutually agreed that the time is right to cut the umbilical, as Altech NamITech aspires to take fuller control of its destiny”. “Altech NamITech has successfully launched its operations in Nigeria West Africa and currently supplies in excess of 55m cellular pre-paid top-up vouchers a month to five major cellular network operators and other customers,” Venter adds. Notwithstanding the new equity structure, Altech will continue a close commercial relationship with G&D, and will continue to represent its products and technology in sub-Saharan Africa for a period of up to two years. In addition, Altech and G&D have reached an agreement regarding technical assistance, supply arrangements and restraints of employees. (SOURCE: ICT World) Telecom Egypt reports 16% boost to net profitTelecom Egypt has reported that in the twelve months ended 31 December 2006 it generated EGP9.5 billion (USD1.68 billion) in sales, an 11% increase on the previous year’s figure. EBITDA climbed from EGP4.7 billion in 2005 to EGP5.4 billion while net profit climbed 16% to EGP2.4 billion. Retail services generated 69% of total turnover, with local voice services representing one of the highest growth segments with an increase of 24% year-on-year to EGP1.97 billion as a result of the net effects of cost-based tariff rebalancing. ADSL services, offered by its 95% owned subsidiary TE Data, also reported booming sales, with broadband subscriptions increasing threefold during the year to 92,332. (SOURCE: Telegeography) Uganda Telecom Denies Buy-Out By Libyan FirmUganda telecom (utl) has denied media reports that claimed Libya Africa Portfolio's (LAP) Green Com had acquired majority shares in the telecommunications company. "This is not factual. Uganda telecom has not been acquired by LAP or any other entity," a statement signed by Mark Kaheru, the company's marketing communications officer, stated. "UCOM, one of the major shareholders in uganda telecom, is selling part of its shareholding and is in negotiations. Nothing has been concluded," Kaheru added. "In case of any change of shareholding, we shall divulge all the information to you. However, we do not wish to comment on any bids now," he said. Last week, sources disclosed that Green Com, the investment arm of the Libyan government, had acquired 51% shares in utl after buying out UCOM. Sources said Green Com plans to invest a substantial amount of money in expanding the company and improving services. UCOM is the consortium that owns a 51% stake in utl. The remaining shares are owned by the Government. Following the passing of the Communications Act in 1997, the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) was established. Subsequently, Uganda Posts and Telecommunications Corporation was divided to four entities, UCC, Uganda Post Limited, Post Bank and Uganda telecom. (SOURCE: New Vision) IN BRIEF:- Libya will privatise its Madar phone network but foreign investors will get no stake in the firm, Libya's economic reform champion Saif al-Islam, a son of leader Qadhafi, said. "Madar company and the oil companies will be owned by Libyans and foreign investment will get no share in them," Saif al-Islam said in a speech in Tripoli.. - Delta Capital, the Private Equity arm of Dubai-based Delta Partners has announced the initial closing on February 28th, 2007 of its MENA Telecom Fund. Due to strong demand from investors from across the region, Delta Capital has been able to reach its target commitment of US$75 million earlier than expected. Indeed the fund has been increased to $100 million on the basis of strong demand.
Kenya Takes Public Job Applications OnlinePeople can now apply for Public Service Commission jobs online. The commission launched automated recruitment to improve service delivery. The Head of Public Service, Francis Muthaura, said the move is part of the ongoing reforms in the Public Service. The commission chairman, Titus Gateere, said apart from accessing vacancies and applying for them, the public could also obtain information regarding the status of their applications. The project, which was developed by experts from different ministries, is expected to save over Sh300 million that would have been spent on outsourcing, Applications should be made through www.publicservice.go.ke and applicants can find out about the status of their applications after one week via sms, by sending the words: "PSCK ON" to 5556 on both mobile phone service providers. For now the commission will operate the online and manual systems since access to online facilities are still limited. The recruitment will take 70 working days instead of the earlier 160 days. (SOURCE: The East African Standard) Bourse News to Be Accessed From Mobile Phones in UgandaMobile phone users can now get instant stock prices following the launch of an initiative by the Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) and SMS Media. Simon Rutega, the USE chief executive officer, said they want to make it easier for many people to get information about the exchange. "We want to bring this medium on board because many people have mobile phones. The information gets to a big number of people," explained Rutega. Harriet Kiwanuka, the USE's research and market development manager, said people who cannot afford newspapers but have mobile phones will get updates about the stock market. "All one needs to do is go to the message box, type USE and send it to 198," said Kiwanuka. The service will be available on all mobile phone networks. Stephen Banage, the marketing director of SMS Media, said the initiative is in line with their core business of providing access to information. (SOURCE: New Vision) IN BRIEF:- The Lagos Resource Center is partnering with some Catholic professionals known as Lumen Vitae Communications to launch a new web portal called Luvit-ng.com. This is designed to answer questions on Catholic doctrines and spirituality for all Catholics, especially young people.
Sentech Seeks Extra Government Funding for 2010 BroadcastsCash-strapped state-owned broadcasting signal distributor and multimedia service provider Sentech is busy making preparations for the 2010 Soccer World Cup and hoping it will receive more funds from the state to install the necessary infrastructure. Sentech will play a crucial role in providing satellite communications and broadband wireless coverage for the transmission of soccer matches and to ensure that SA meets its commitment to Fifa to provide high-speed links with a high availability between soccer stadiums, the international broadcasting centre and international gateways. Another major task is to achieve the migration from analogue to digital broadcasting, a process that is due to commence from November next year and be finished three years later. Sentech executives briefed Parliament's communications portfolio committee on Friday on progress made so far. They said they were putting forward their business plans to the treasury and the communications department to secure extra funding. Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said in his Budget speech last month he was setting aside R3bn as a contingency reserve to cover both unforeseen and unavoidable expenditure as well as extra allocations for several state-owned enterprises, which were yet to be finalised. These included funds for Sentech's investment requirements, "contingent on the approval of business plans and resolution of outstanding regulatory requirements". Sentech requested R1.3bn for the next financial year but only received R146m pending finalisation of its business plans. The amount requested included R700m for the expansion of its broadband network. Sentech expects to make a R41m after-tax loss this financial year and a R16.3m loss in the coming year. (SOURCE: Business Day) First Locally Made Cartoon Film Released in EthiopiaAn Ethiopian-made film, believed to be instrumental in entertaining and educating Ethiopian children was inaugurated last week. The film is seen as a pioneer in a country where Ethiopian-made cartoon films written in any of the languages in the country are totally non-existent. The film in the Amharic language is based on a poem by the veteran writer Kebede Michael, mostly known for his memorable children books, with a soundtrack playing melodies of children's favorite songs like the famous children song 'Beza Bebega' said the film aims at nurturing and educating children while simultaneously entertaining them". "Cartoon films are typical educational and entertaining instruments for children," film director Teshome Kifle said speaking at the inauguration ceremony. "Unfortunately it does not seem that much attention is given to cartoon film production in Ethiopia, unlike other countries in the developed world." He said he has plans to produce similar films in other Ethiopian languages, provided that he secures sponsorship for his projects. "Painters should be given some course about painting for animation for it is difficult to get scholar in the field for the production of his film," the film director, who is a computer expert said adding there needs to bring artists in the area of cartoon film making. "Art schools in the country particularly have to give this due attention to tap in to this untouched genre," Teshome urged. He said the 200,000 birr film, which runs for 54 minutes in which more than seven actors participate in voice, will be aired via ETV with arrangements with the state- run television. Teshome's cartoon film could be considered as the first locally produced film and 'the first to be released in DVDs and VCDs formats in the country' Extending his admiration and respect for the film maker for coming up with the cartoon film, comedian Assres Bekele said the Teshome's work deserves support and encouragement. But he said the film had "some technical defects." According to the comedian and children entertainer, the film has drawbacks for using music in foreign language, which he said could be easily corrected. (SOURCE: The Daily Monitor) Kenyan journalist arrested over 'sex scandal' WeblogKenyan police Wednesday arrested a journalist who recently resigned from the country's largest media group over an alleged sex scandal in the firm, his lawyer said. At least 10 officers stormed Stephen Muiruri's office in Nairobi and arrested him, as well as confiscating his documents and personal computer, the state-run Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) lawyer Njonjo Mue said. "We are concerned that the officers did not have an arrest warrant and in effect were carrying out an illegal search," he said. Muiruri's lawyer, Paul Muite, said the journalist was arrested for allegedly spreading offensive material involving top managers in the Nation Media Group, which runs a radio station, a television channel, and newspapers in the region. "He was arrested on the basis of dissemination of offensive material [in] the internet," Muite stated. "The material is said to be the immorality going on in the Nation Media Group involving important personalities." A number of unknown people have been running a Weblog that alleges a raft of sexual impropriety in the Nation, the largest media house in east and central Africa. None of the allegations have been confirmed. If convicted, Muiruri could be fined 50,000 shillings ($714) or jailed for three months, or both. Muiruri, who was the crime editor at the Nation newspapers, resigned early February. In documents released by the KHCHR, Muiruri alleges that top police officials pressed the Nation management to fire him for exposing escalating crime in the east African nation. International press watchdogs have recently warned of worsening media freedom in the east African nation and urged the government to take steps that could create a conducive environment for journalists. (Source: AFP) MaliAn radio targeted over critical broadcasts in wake of presidential pollsA private radio station in the central town of Markala was given an eviction notice by authorities last week, after airing broadcasts critical of President Amadou Toumani Touré ahead of next month’s elections. Radio Jamakan, housed in the government-owned complex of Office du Niger (ON), an agency managing irrigation projects, was ordered to “surrender the ON premises by March 31,” according to private daily Les Echos in the capital Bamako. The action was linked to the station’s March 3-4 broadcasts of a conference of the FDR party, the main opposition group challenging Touré’s second-term bid in the April 29 presidential election, local journalists told CPJ. It was the second time in nine months the station based in Markala, 198 miles (318 kilometers) north of Bamako, suffered official reprisal for critical coverage of the government in the lead-up to next month’s presidential election, according to local journalists. “We are troubled that this eviction notice follows Radio Jamakan’s critical reporting,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “At the very least, authorities should give the radio station sufficient time to find a new office.” One Press officer Moustapha Maïga denied a link between the broadcasts and the eviction notice, telling CPJ that all tenants of the 20-building complex, including private Radio Deje, would “eventually” have to abandon the premises to accommodate a large-scale irrigation project. He could not confirm whether any of the other tenants had received similar notices. “This was a base reaction by ON and I condemn it. It is unreasonable to think that you can move a radio station overnight like a retail clothing store,” Yaya Sangaré, President of the independent broadcasters union (known by its French acronym as URTEL) told CPJ. Last summer, ON had suddenly rescinded an agreement to supply electricity to the station, which is now operating on a generator, according to local journalists and media reports. The move came two days after the station broadcasted a July 15, 2006 conference of opposition groups critical of Touré, station director Abdoulaye Sagara told CPJ. ON’s decision was prompted by the expensive cost of the service, Maïga told CPJ. (SOURCE: CPJ) IN BRIEF:- Kenyan broadcasters are set to replace the older analogue equipment with digital technology by 2015, the information and communications technology minister, Mutahi Kagwe, has said. - The Higher Radio and Television Communication Authority (HAAC) in Benin has suspended the broadcasting, on the public television, the `Week-end matin` programme over alleged political propaganda, in the wake of the ongoing campaigns for legislative elections, scheduled for 25 March. - 110 professionals of media including 98 Algerian and foreign journalists partake in the proceedings of the 3rd session of the university of audiovisual sectors in the Mediterranean, which got underway Saturday in Oran. This meeting, to wrap up on 17 March, is organized by the international association of Conference of Audiovisual Mediterranean Operators (COPEAM) under the aegis of ENTV with the cooperation of Radio France International (RFI) and RTSI, it was pointed out. - The regulator of Central African Republic, the HCC (Haut Conseil de la Communication) has issued an authorisation for the roll out of a private community radio station in Boali, 80km in the North West of the capital Bangui. Three additional authorisations will soon be issued covering radio, TV and digital broadcasting.
PEOPLESouth Africa's MTN Group says that it has appointed Eric Tronel as chief executive of MTN Congo. John Joseph has been appointed CEO of Africa Online. He was the current acting Managing Executive for Wholesale Services at Telkom South Africa. Marcia Socikwa has been appointed as new councillor to the the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa). The Democratic Alliance (DA) voted against her appointment as she is related by marriage to Transtel CEO Karl Socikwa and her sister is his legal adviser. Etyang, Brand Manager at the Botswana Nation TV has resigned. EVENTS- The African E-Gov Forum'07 27th - 29th March 2007, Accra, Ghana The forum in Accra, Ghana, will discuss pan-African issues and methodologies within E-Governance.The event will provide a unique platform for stakeholders in government, industry and the academic world. For further information contact Matthew Dawes on 0044 20 8834 1575 or m.dawes@cto.int - SMB ROADSHOW 2007 - MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA 26th March 2007, Nile Hilton, Cairo, Egypt. IDC's SMB Roadshow provides a comprehensive and trustworthy platform for discussing strategic IT issues directly impacting the SMB sector. Debate led by recognised experts and based on best practices and sound technology analysis provide objective and critical insights required by leaders in this sector. This event will target IT decision makers – by vertical industry sector - within SMBs across the region. For further information visit http://www.idc-cema.com/events/smbeg07 - REGULATION IN THE ERA OF CONVERGENCE 27-29 March 2007, Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt The National Telecom Regulatory Authority of Egypt (NTRA) is bringing together regulators, policy makers, private sector managers, and media representatives from around the world. The conference’s main objective will be to tackle different regulatory challenges that emerge as a result of convergence and try to figure out possible solutions for these challenges. For further information visit http://www.tra.gov.eg/convergence/ - 1stWEST AFRICAN E-CONTENT SUMMIT 4-7 April 2007 – Cotonou, Benin This ICT symposium expects to launch the official discussions to establish the “Panafrican Agency for New Media, advocated to provide training courses in new media management for young people in Africa in to bridge the content gap. For further information visit http://www.icnm.net/ - E-Liberia: Vision 2010 23 April 2007, Monrovia, Liberia Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of the Republic of Liberia, is delighted to host a national dialog on the role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Liberia’s post-conflict development. E-Liberia:Vision 2010 will take place in Monrovia the week of 23 April, 2007. The program will include the unveiling of the new National ICT Policy for Liberia; a high-level workshop (on the 26th and 27th of April) with participation from domestic, regional, and international experts; a gala dinner; and a private sector innovation fair. More information can be found at: http://www.mopt.gov.lr/ Or by contacting: Mr. Calvin Yu on calvin.yu@gatech.edu or +231 06683574. - eLEARNING AFRICA 2007 28-30th May 2007, Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi, Kenya The subject is Building Infrastructures and Capacities to Reach out to the Whole of Africa, reflecting the significant efforts of African countries to set up their national and regional ICT infrastructures to create access to education, training and services for all. For further information visit www.icwe.net or call +49-30-327 6140 - ICTs for Civil Society CONFERENCE June 2007 – South Africa The conference and exhibition organised by SANGONeT will be aimed at increasing NGOs’ awareness of the strategic importance of their websites and the online environment in general. For further information visit http://sangonet.org.za - Telecoms World Africa 31st July - 2nd August 2007, Johannesburg, South Africa Key decision-makers in South Africa and leading international players will share their expertise and forge invaluable business relationships in a highly interactive environment. For further information visit www.terrapinn.com/2007/telecomza - Wi-World Africa 2007 27 – 30 August 2007, Michelangelo Hotel, Johannesburg, South Africa. In Africa, fixed-line infrastructure is lacking and there is a major problem with copper wire theft. Wireless communication is therefore a great alternative. For further information visit www.terrapinn.com/2007/telecomza JOBS AND OPPORTUNITIESSTRATEGY CONSULTANT TELCO - CENTRAL AFRICA The ideal candidate will be required to provide the strategy and marketing support to new telco that is planning to launch a new mobile and wireless broadband service provider. The main tasks of the job include conducting a market research to assess needs, undertaking of business planning and financial analysis, preparing a licence application document and drafting the business plan. For further information contact advertising@balancingact-africa.com CONTRACTS: WHO'S SELLING WHAT TO WHOM?URA AND UTL - UGANDA Uganda Revenue Authority has contracted Uganda Telecom to roll out a voice and data communication network, aimed at transforming and improving revenue collection in the country. The project code named URAnet, is expected to increase revenue collections by Shs1, 250 billion above its current annual levels, bringing collections to over Shs3, 511 billion by 2008/9 - thus bringing Uganda's total tax collections to about 15 per cent of GDP. Starcomms and SA & U Partner - Nigeria Starcomms Limited, Nigeria's largest CDMA 3G mobile operator, and SA & U Associates, a Lagos-based marketing communications consultancy, have signed an agreement that would provide media buyers in Nigeria with a reliable media options in the ever competitive business environment. Under the agreement, the marketing communications firm would source adverts for placement on Starcomms recharge cards. Government and HHB Inc - Uganda All ministries will be linked electronically following the signing of a memorandum with US-based information technology giant HHB Inc. The firm will provide electronic bidding and procurement services.
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