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WEEKLY PUBLICATION DEADLINE: 12 pm GMT Sunday. ISSUE NO 407 M-Money: New competitor services throw their hats into the ring in Ghana and TanzaniaSafaricom’s M-Pesa service in Kenya is heading towards 2 million users and has really got first mover advantage. But it is facing competition in Tanzania from an upstart challenger that aims to become the non-proprietary M-Money service leader. Meanwhile in Ghana Afric Express has been trialling its service with university students and is set to launch next month. Russell Southwood talked to the newcomers. Tanzania’s e-Fulusi scored a coup by getting its M-Wallet service adopted as Z-Pesa by Etisalat’s Zantel ahead of the M-Pesa launch in Tanzania. In the first week it got 2,000 customers and the average account size was TS16,000. But it has ambitious plans to roll-out its non-proprietary service Mobi-Pawa and implement merchant transaction systems. It wants to offer it as a VAS service to all operators. It has an applications service licence from the telecoms regulator TCRA. On the financial side, it has a letter “no objection” from the country’s Central Bank and has had to open a trust account with a merchant bank. The Central Bank’s main concern was that transactions were traceable and were cleared through the banking system. In a country with no national identity system, Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures are particularly important and e-Fulusi is seeking to meet this need. There is a limit of TS50,000 and it has to monitor transactions 24 hours every day and take action on irregular transactions. In theory there is no limit if it follows KYC procedures but it will create an upper limit of US$4,500 per transaction on the basis that more than this would mean the customer should be dealing with a bank. It is also trying to sort out paying interest on deposits so that it can offer savings accounts to customers, something that is currently not possible with a trust account. The key thing about the services it has devised – according to Managing Director Nadeem Juma – is that they are not tied to a particular operator or bank. The current service for Zantel is serviced by a small bank in Tanzania called FBMA that has had extensive experience with different payment systems. Although initially the Central Bank insisted that everything be run out of a single trust account with one bank, it has now indicated (clearly aware of emerging competition issues) that other banks can be bought on board. It is also building in integration with bank information reporting systems to allow confidential, real-time updating of its M-transactions. The Mobi-Pawa service in Tanzania has had a relatively slow take-up but e-Fulusi’s Juma estimates that there are at least 900,00 customers who will want to make transactions and wants to set up a network of 3,000 agents to reach them. Average account size is currently TS1,000. It will clearly need the kind of marketing an investor or an operator or a bank partner would bring to ramp up take-up levels. It is also looking for strategic partners for its service beyond Tanzania:”We are looking for partners for Mobi-Pawa and can offer this as a franchise model. A lot of operators have expressed interest and we’re talking to a number of them about taking our technology. We’ve had a lot of interest from Etisalat who are looking at its pan-African potential but we’re taking it a step at a time. Zain’s One Network would also be ideal for the product.” Backed by US company Pembroke Brokers, Ghana-based Afric Xpress will offer a similar M-Wallet product based on technology from Cyphermint inc configured to suit African markets and squarely aimed at the un-banked. It plans to launch in Ghana but roll out to other countries in West and Central Africa. You have to register to get the electronic wallet so it meets KYC procedures. Once you have the wallet you can send money to relatives within a country and do things like make bill payments. Importantly you can top up airtime on our phone. You deposit money into your electronic wallet at a TextNPay agent that are widely deployed across Ghana. Agents are paid a 1% commission on accounts opened and withdrawals up to a US$10 maximum. The minimum account size is very small at 75 pesawas. According to Marie-Dominique Aboukan, Afric Express Ghana’s Sales and Marketing Manager:”It’s a volume game. We take a percentage of the transaction and the biller bears the cost because it offers billers speed and effectiveness.” The Wallet has a PIN code for security and there are security questions – as with a bank – when you ring customer services which are operational 24/7. The partners in its pilot trial are: utility companies, satellite Pay-TV companies, telephone companies and a university. At the latter, students in the trial can pay their academic fees. It has about 1,000 students trialling it at Lagon University and it started at 46 transactions a day but this number has gone up considerably. According to Aboukan:”We give them money to try it because we want to test all aspects of the service before launching.” The service is set to launch next month in June 2008.
Algeria Announces Tender for 3G LicensesAlgeria's telecoms regulator, ARPT has issued a brief statement announcing plans to issue a tender for 3G licenses. The ARPT has invited operators wishing to establish and operate a 3G mobile communications network to let it know by June 30th, 2008. No further details have been announced at this stage. As we reported last month, an unnamed French company has already carried out work on preparing the tender according to the official news agency. According to figures from the Mobile World database, the country has three operators with the following market shares, Djezzy (39.7%), Moblis (36.4%) and Nedjma with 21.5%. The country itself ended last year with just under 28.2 million subscribers, representing a population penetration level of 84%. A report at the beginning of this year by the Arab Advisors Group said that Algeria's fixed and cellular revenues are projected to exceed US$4.7 billion in 2011, growing from around US$ 4.1 billion in 2007. Algeria's government is also planning to partially privatize Algérie Télécom. The sale was expected to be take place by end of 2006, with the government selling 35% of the operator in an IPO. However the procedures have not been finalized and the tender was yet not launched, but expected to take place in 2008. The ARPT had announced that the process has arrived at a point of maturity and the file is currently with the hands of the Algerian government. For further information on the 3G license visit www. arpt.dz (Source: Cellular News) Nigerian Federal Government Approves the Sale of NitelThe Nigerian Federal Government last week approved the issuing of a Request For Proposals (RFPs) to eleven consortia/consultants to be advisor for the sale of Nitel. Following the agreement between existing owners Transcorp and the Federal Government, it was agreed that both should shed sell some of their shareholding to introduce a new strategic investor. Transcorp is to give up 29 per cent of its 51 per cent shares while the Federal Government will part with 22 per cent. This was to allow the new strategic investor sourced to have a controlling share of 51per cent. The winning advisory bidder consortium will be expected to review, evaluate and market the telecommunication company. Fifteen consortia have applied to the Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE) to be engaged as privatisation advisors for the sale of 51per cent equity in NITELMtel. The firms are: Lazard/Vetiva, Rothschild/UBA, Renaissance Capital, Millennium Finance, Awoyinfa Obafunsho &Co, CPCS Transcom, Lead Capital/Investec, FCMB/Morgan Stanley, International/HSBC, Merrill Lynch/BGL and BNP Paribas. (Source: Leadership) Telkom Kenya Bets On Mobile Telephone LicenceFrance Telecom’s new CEO Dominic Saint-Jean (fresh from Mauritius Telecom) has laid out his strategy in an interview with Michael Omondi of Kenya’s Business Daily. He wants Telkom Kenya to become the number two player in the market after Safaricom and is putting high hopes its new mobile licence. Kenya has leapfrogged into sixth position in the ranking of nations with the highest number of mobile phones in Africa. The number of mobile phones in Kenya exceeded 11.5 million by the end of last year. Countries with more connections are South Africa (42.3 million), Nigeria (40.4 million) Egypt (30 million), Algeria (21.5 million) and Morocco (20 million). Q: In the France Telecom family you are known for your turnaround efforts from Argentina to El Salvador and Mauritius. What are some of your key assignments that would help turnaround the loss- making Telkom Kenya? We have four actions for 2008 and these include the launch of our mobile telephony business in September, optimisation of costs and revamping our Internet business, which has plenty of potential now that optic fibre cable is set to be completed by next year. But our key priority is the mobile telephony division that will play a key role in turning around the business, given its growth potential, making multi- billion investments for this unit. But on top of all these, restoring quality to all our divisions will be crucial since our vision is not only GSM. Q: Besides the mobile telephony, which other business segments does Telkom Kenya intend to reinforce its activities? We are trying to model ourselves as a telecommunication supermarket where clients find everything from fixed telephony, mobile telephony to Internet broadband and television services. In fact, we are the only player in Kenya who can easily offer this integrated solution and it is a critical competitive edge. Q: How soon should the market expect Telkom Kenya to return to the profit zone? We are investing billions and this is for the future. Fruits from these investments should be realised from 2010. So, we expect the firm to start making profits from mid 2010. Q: What's your take on concerns that Telkom Kenya is running late in unveiling its mobile network and that it risks being locked out of the market place? Yes, time is critical but being late is relative. We are also watching what the rest of the market is doing and will do our homework very well. Our strategy is to give Kenyans what they have been lacking, and this means increased service offerings at competitive rates. Q: Now that you're going big on the GSM mobile market, what plans do you have for your CDMA network? We are not going to stop the CDMA network. We have big plans for the wireless business and will use it to boost or subscriber base by targeting corporate bodies and the small and medium enterprises. Its full potential is yet to be realized. Q: A price war is unfolding between the two mobile phone operators- Celtel Kenya and Safaricom- as they race to grow and maintain their customer numbers. Is Telkom Kenya set to join this war once it unveils it mobile telephony network in September? We are not going to be part of the pricing war. Our intention is to make life easy for clients by offering high quality services at competitive rates. This does not mean our services will be expensive but value for money. We intend to offer a bundle of services (Internet, mobile, TV and mobile) that will be expensive than what our competitors are offering but when knocked down into single unit will be offering very competitive rates. Q: How low do you expect the calling rates to fall? And what would be the impact of rock bottom prices on the industry? I cannot give a definite answer to this since pricing is a dynamic process. But the falling prices can only mean one thing: Low quality services. Q: Kenya's cellular phone market is price-sensitive. How do you expect to penetrate this market by offering prices that do not fall below your competitors? We going big on market differentiation and we are not going to offer basic services but a big portfolio. The fact that we have different businesses including Internet, landline, wireless and cellular that our competitors lack, means we can offer a bundle of services that our competitors would not be able to offer. It this unique position that will separate us from the rest of the players and give us the much needed competitive advantage. Q: Which towns and target market is Telkom Kenya seeking as it seeks to grow its share of the mobile telephony market? We cannot cover the whole of Kenya in one day. Will start with the major towns especially Nairobi and Mombassa and spread to the rest of the country gradually. From a market point of view, Telkom Kenya will address all segments of the population but give more emphasis to small and medium enterprises as well as corporate bodies, which have not been covered sufficiently. Q: Current mobile operators have lowered their charges in a move aimed at locking their subscribers to their networks and deny Telkom Kenya access to their subscriber base. How does Telkom Kenya intend to go around this strategy? Our strategy rests on offering superior and high quality products because we have seen there is a gap in the market and Telkom Kenya will fill it. We have experience borrowed from our global operations and the high quality network we are preparing will make our cellular network very attractive. Again, the bundled services will make it easy to get our competitors subscribers. So locking in subscribers is not a big issue to us. (Source: Business Daily) Sentencing D-Day for Former Gamtel MDBanjul Magistrates Court, chaired by Principal Magistrate B.Y Camara, is expected to deliver judgement on the criminal case filed by the state against Omar P. Ndow, former Managing Director of Gamtel. Ndow was charged with two counts: “Disobedience of statutorily duty,” and “Abuse of office,” contrary to the criminal code. He was alleged to have “on or about the year 2005 and 2006, at Gamtel House in Banjul, as Managing Director then, wilfully omitted to refer a contract document to the Gambia Public Procurement Authority as statutorily required of him.” He was also alleged to have failed to follow the required procedure of the GPPA regulation. Following a no-case-to-answer submission by his defense counsel, Sheriff Tambedou, Principal Magistrate B.Y. Camara earlier acquitted and discharged Mr Ndow on count 2 (abuse of office). The court then held that the accused had a case to answer on count 1: Disobedience of statutory duty; and should open his defence to explain. The count is in relation to the CDMA contract with Huawei, a Chinese company. Ndow has strongly denied the allegation levelled against him, and also tendered some documents in his defence. Ndow started work with the then Department of Telecommunication as a Technician Trainee in the early 1970s, and rose through the ranks until Gamtel was established as a Public Enterprise in the 1980s. The highest office he occupied in Gamtel, according to his evidence, was Managing Director from 1994 to 1996, to be reinstalled afterwards as Managing Director until November 2006 when his services were terminated. (Source: Le Point) In brief:- The head of the Moroccan telecommunications regulator (ANRT), Azdine El Mountassir Billah has announced that Morocco is planning to introduce a 3rd mobile operator this year. No date for the process has yet been announced but the mobile licence will be a 2nd generation one. - Union workers of Telkom Kenya have received a 24 per cent rise in salaries backdated from April 1st. The common bargaining agreement was signed between the company's management and Communication Workers Union at Teleposta Towers in Nairobi. The agreement will run for one year, after which there will be a review. Meanwhile more than 600 Telkom Kenya customers have been disconnected after 30 kilometres of telephone wires in Taita and Taveta districts were vandalised. - Officials of the Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau (TSB) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will meet next week in Accra to participate in the Africa Region's Preparatory Meeting for the World Telecommunication Standardisation Assembly (WTSA). - The telecommunications system that will support the electoral process in Angola will be handed in June to the National Electoral Commission (CNE), announced the minister of Post-Office and Telecommunications, Licínio Tavares. - Tunisia is likely to amend its telecommunications legal framework to legalise VoIP. The announcement came after a meeting between President Ben Ali and El Hadj Gley, Minister of ICT. The move is aimed at reinforcing Tunisian companies competitiveness to grab a bigger share of the off-shoring business. - Safaricom has launched Kenya’s first commercial 3G/3.5G mobile network, offering peak data transfer speeds of up to 7.2Mbps. The service is initially only available in the Nairobi area, though a nationwide expansion is taking place over the next twelve months. Telecoms, Rates, Offers and Coverage- Namibia’s cellphone company MTC launched its new logo. The re-branding exercise will cost the company a staggering N$10 million. - Kenya’s Safaricom subscribers will enjoy free night calls from 9pm to 6am everyday until June 26. - Celtel Uganda has re-launched the mobile top-up service with a new name, 'Tembeya,' which facilitates electronic buying of airtime from vendors. - Visafone, the wholly Nigerian-owned mobile phone company has launched its services in Benin City, the Edo State capital. Visafone, covers now 14 states, as well as more than 100 cities and towns nationwide. The company also said that plans are at an advanced stage for its official rollout in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. - The uptake of lines on TelOne's CDMA network is about to breach the 18,000 mark as more subscribers opt for the service to circumvent the challenges being faced by the various networks in Zimbabwe. - Mauritius Telecom has reduced its rates on a large range of voice services including fixed to fixed calls down to US$0.03 from US$0.10 per minute, fixed to mobile down to US$0.06 from US$0.14 per minute. The reduction also covers international destinations like India, Bangladesh or China at US$0.18. Rates to European destinations have only been cut by 5%.
Gateways launches Wireless Broadband in NigeriaGateway Communications, one of Africa's leading connectivity provider launched the AirLinkTM and MetroLinkTM products. The products are designed to impact on companies operating in Nigeria to access the internet and connect branch offices. Gateway CEO Peter Gbedemah said that AirLinkTM and MetroLinkTM are a step forward for corporate connectivity in Nigeria . "We have leveraged our dedicated 10.5GHz spectrum licence to provide a broadband solution that beats anything currently on the market in terms of speed and bandwidth. AirLinkTM and MetroLinkTM are taking connectivity in Nigeria to a new level and we look forward to introducing them in other African markets over the coming months." AirLinkTM is a broadband internet service offering access at speeds up to 8Mbps for each site where it is installed. MetroLinkTM allows companies with multiple offices in a metropolitan area to inter-connect those offices using a fast, dedicated and quick to install product ideal for banks, consumer goods distribution centres and fuel stations. Some of the clients who have signed up to the AirLinkTM service already include Nextzon, Amadeus and Berkeley Group amongst others. Gateway aims to roll out these products in Ghana and Mozambique in the next quarter before a foray into the rest of Africa. (Source: This Day) More Internet services for Western Region Market in KenyaA number of telecom companies are expanding into Western Kenya in a bid to capture a market dominated by Telkom Kenya. Africa Online, UUNET and Kenya Data Network are rolling into Kisumu and Eldoret with plans for entering Kitale soon. Kenneth Kareithi of UUNET last week said the company plans to expand using a strategy based on pricing and product differentiation. However, he said competition will remain stiff for new entrants. Last week, UUNET launched a Sh5 million communication programme in Kisumu called Tranzeao - Beyond Broadband WiMAX network. It claims the product will make Internet services such as e-mail, voice, data, international calls and videos available to small businesses and home users at a cheaper rate. The network enables customers to install the Internet on their own, depending on distance from the satellite. Launching the product, Joseph Mwaura of UUNET said new subscribers will get the product at half the price of another one launched in Mombasa and Nairobi. "The new product will be sold to new subscribers at $300 compared to Redline WiMax which is sold at $600. This way we will attract the smaller business people and even individuals," he said. Currently, users are relying on either VSAT or the Microwave system as a link to the Internet. AccessKenya, Kenya's largest Corporate Internet Service Provider, is also expanding its national network and has increased its international bandwidth capacity to over 300mb while extending service coverage network to customers in Kisumu, Eldoret and Nakuru. For its part, Kenya Data Network is fighting it out with Telkom Kenya on the fibre optic cable that links the western part of the country to neighbouring Uganda. The company is also rolling out a cable around Kisumu town. Also in the game is Africa Online which will be expanding its wireless Internet product InfiNET to Kisumu and Eldoret in the next three months. According to Ken Munyi of Africa Online, InfiNET which offers high speed Internet connectivity was launched three years ago but is only available to users in Nairobi, Mombasa and Nakuru. Munyi said that the company is also working on a number of strategies that would boost Internet usage in the country such as having a flexible pricing model. He said Africa Online has already come up with a model that enables users to pay for use rather than monthly. "From customer feedback, we realized that some of our clients were not comfortable with the monthly charges ..." he said. According to Munyi, InfiNET is ideal for consumers on the move. Currently the company has 3,000 subscribers. (Source: Business Daily) Online Initiative for Reporting Xenophobic Violence in South AfricaFor Quirk eMarketing, merely talking about the ongoing xenophobic attacks in South Africa hasn't been enough, and www.unitedforafrica.co.za is the result - a site which provides real-time, geo-located updates of what's happening in areas affected by the xenophobic violence. This mash-up represents a collaboration between 15 different individuals and NGOs, including the TEDsters who developed Ushahidi.com, Cell-Life, Quirk eMarketing and TAC. All of them are African, spanning five countries. This system is based on the Ushahidi.com infrastructure and uses the versatility of social media and the utility of the Geo-web (Google Maps) to disseminate information. "The motivation behind this dissemination of information is evident in the name; this site looks to make a difference by devising a way to make each individual responsible for implementing change through their use of the portal. Ultimately, the portal and its developers seek to play a role in securing unity for Africa," says Quirk in a press statement. The turnaround time for this project was 48 hours, and Quirk went the extra mile to use its skills in a practical and proactive way. The site takes the form of a Web 2.0 portal that has a range of functions: not only can users upload and download information about the attacks, but it provides journalists with access to information in real time. It is a community resource that relies on participation from Africans everywhere - individuals with information about attacks can send it via SMS and it will be uploaded to the site immediately. SMS donations can also be made and the details are on the site. With a database of NGOs involved in mitigating the violence and aiding the victims of it, users can also either get actively involved or find out about ways to donate to those who are doing so. Information can be pulled from a number of custom categories that includes aid and assistance, news, displaced people, sexual assault, deaths, and property that has been lost or destroyed. Other online initiatives include www.freedomforall.co.za, set up by Mercury Media, which lists the initiatives of businesses and individuals dedicated to ending the xenophobia and assisting those affected; African social media aggregator Afrigator's dedicated page aggregating online coverage of the xenophobic attacks; and Talk Radio 702's victims help list. (Source: Biz-Community) In brief:- State-owned Algerie Telecom has halved its price for Internet access, taking the price of a home subscription for a 128kbps connection down to DZD590 (USD8.60) a month. Lotfi Nezzar, owner of rival Smart Link Communications, has appealed to the Regulation Authority of Post & Telecommunications (ARPT), to stop the implementation of the new pricing policy. Nezzar said, ‘The Algerie Telecom decision is, in a way, a return to the monopoly era’, as alternative operators cannot compete at the same pricing levels and will be pushed out of business’. - Woolworths Financial Services has launched a podcast designed to help customers manage their money better, making it one of the first South African brands to explore the benefits of new media in this way. - For the first time, students at the University of Venda (Univen) in South Africa will be able to surf the Internet. Petroleum company, PetroSA, an oil and gas parastatal that falls under the national Department of Minerals and Energy, has provided the university with a computer laboratory and media centre worth R500,000. - South African wireless ISP Wireless Broadband Solutions (WBS), which trades as iBurst, has launched its first commercial WiMAX-based services. The 802.16e network has been deployed using equipment from two vendors, Alcatel-Lucent and Huawei, and has been supported by WBS shareholder Vodacom. 120 base stations have been deployed in Gauteng, Western Cape (Cape Town) and KwaZulu-Natal. - An agreement on the second stage of an Intranet network connecting 433 new health centres was signed between Health, Population and Hospital Reform Ministry and Algerie Telecom. - National airline Air Namibia this week officially launched its Internet booking and ticketing service.
Whistle Blowers' Computer Link Cut in KenyaA computer system in Government offices that enables public servants to report corruption cases anonymously has been blocked, threatening the war against graft. Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, which runs the service through its official website, exposed the technical ploy. The Business Keeper Monitor System (BKMS), a unique data encryption system that guarantees anonymous mode of reporting corruption, could no longer be used as some Government departments have blocked access to the Anti-Corruption Commission's official website. The watchdog's public relations officer, Nicholas Simani, confirmed that "some Government departments were involved" but said measures were being put in place to correct the situation. Until the network is restored, civil servants can only report corruption cases through cyber cafes or through private computers connected to the Internet. Sources at Integrity Centre, the graft watchdog's headquarters in Nairobi, are blaming the problem on senior officials in "a few Government departments." Earlier, the commission had circulating leaflets in Government offices encouraging civil servants to make use of the technology to report graft cases. The source revealed "senior officials" had instructed Information Technology (IT) experts in some ministries to be monitoring sites frequently browsed by their employees, and keep a record of employees visiting "forbidden web pages." The Anti-Corruption Commission had managed to have its web pages networked to most Government websites to enable users to have easy access. The graft watchdog had come up with the BKMS technology to protect civil servants who have information and documents to share regarding graft. (Source: The Nation) Second ICT awards held in GhanaPresident John Agyekum Kufuor on Saturday said the healthy partnership between the private sector and government was yielding positive strides in the development of Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure and services in the country. “We have seen that ICT brings us together, it expands and improves education and agricultural production, helps in health delivery and provides empowerment especially for the girl child,” President Kufuor noted in a speech read for him by Mr Albert Kan Dapaah, Minister for Defence at the second ICT awards night in Accra. He said government would continue to provide an enabling environment to support the activities of all communications service providers to ensure that citizens are not denied the benefits of technology no matter their location. Dr Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communication, said the objective of this year’s award was to create greater awareness of the role of ICT in the public services and the development process within the framework of the information society. He said government decided to institute this awards scheme to acknowledge the various roles being played by institutions and individuals towards the promotion, learning and usage of ICT. Some 13 awards were presented to deserving individuals and institutions with the top ICT personality of the year going to Akwasi Pianim Osei. Tigo mobile network won the top telecom company of the year award with the prize for the top ICT training institution of the year and top hardware company of the year going to IPMC. The top ICT for development project of the year went to the computerized school selection and placement system (CSSPS) while the Office of the President ICT project won the top government ICT project of the year. Busy Internet won top Internet service provider and a lifetime achievement awards. Rancard limited won the top software company of the year, while Cyber city internet won top internet café of the year and Justice K.B. Annam being adjourned the best ICT start up company, individual division. Microsoft Company won the best foreign entity prize. (Source: Myjoyonline) South Africa appeals ISO’s OOXML decisionThe South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) has filed an appeal against the ISO decision to accept Microsoft’s Office OpenXML (OOXML) as an international standard. South Africa is the first country to appeal the decision within the stipulated 60-day appeal period. In a letter signed by CEO Martin Kuscus, SABS says it is appealing on the basis of flawed procedures in the ballot resolution meeting (BRM) held in February. SABS also says that it is concerned that there is an increasing trend of international organisations being able to circumvent the consensus-based decision making of the ISO and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission). In the letter, titled “Appeal from the South African national body regarding the outcome of the fast-track processing of DIS 29500 Office open XML”, Kuscus writes: “The national body of South Africa (SABS), a P member of JTC 1, hereby submits an appeal against the outcome of the fast track processing of DIS 29500 Office open XML. This is based on the procedures followed before and during the ballot resolution meeting (BRM) held from 25 to 29 February 2008 to discuss the comments submitted on the fast-tracked DIS 29500 and the proposed responses from Ecma. “In addtion, South Africa wishes to register its deep concern over the increasing tendency of international organizations to use the JTC 1 processes to circumvent the consensus-building process that is the cornerstone of the success and international acceptance of the ISO and IEC standards. The ability of large multi-national organization to influence many national bodies, with the resultant block-voting over-riding legitimate issues raised by other countries, is also of concern.” (Source: Tectonic) In brief:- A software package dealing with the evolution of a tsunami and its impact on Algerian coastal areas has just been developed by researchers from the Mohamed Boudiaf University of Sciences and Technology of Oran. - In Nigeria, Chief Friday Akatobi, the Abia Commissioner for Science and Technology, said today the state would have a technology park next year. He told newsmen in Umuahia that the park became necessary to boost indigenous technology. - Parastal CSIR, South Africa’s national science and technology research organisation, is readying to switch most of its more than 2300 staff to using Ubuntu Linux as their default desktop. As part of the move, the organisation has issued a request for information (RFI) for providers to assist in making a few remaining Windows-based applications available to users while working on Ubuntu. - Three students of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) are to represent the country at the global finals of Microsoft's 'Imagine Cup' contest, scheduled to hold in July. - For the first time, a holder of an advance diploma in Software Engineering from the Aptech Computer Education Centre in Accra can access a scholarship facility estimated at about £8,000 from the University of Plymouth, United Kingdom.
Kenya’s Safaricom Registers Record Profit GrowthLast Tuesday Safaricom reported record profits and announced plans to boost coverage in the rural areas as a strategy of growing its customer base in the face of mounting competition. Telkom Kenya and Econet Wireless are expected to launch mobile phone services later in the year, adding competitive pressure in a market Safaricom has dominated for nearly a decade. With earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization or Ebidta of Sh28.1 billion representing a growth of 15 per cent. Safaricom for the third year running has emerged as the most profitable company in Kenya and among the best in sub-Saharan Africa. This is expected to raise interest in its shares, which are expected to begin trading at the Nairobi Stock Exchange in early June. Net profit, which represents the money available to shareholders hit Sh13.8 billion, reflecting a 15.3 per cent increase. The operating profit however grew at a modest rate of 3.8 per cent to Sh18.5 billion, revealing the extent to which the business was unable to reign in costs as its expansion plan gathers pace. Safaricom's revenue rose to Sh61.3 billion from Sh47.4 billion a year earlier, representing a 29.3 per cent growth. The performance, driven by an increase in company's subscriber base from 6.1 million in 2006 to 10.2 million in 2007, comes as competition intensifies in the cellular phone market with the entry of new players. Econet Wireless, which is partly owned by India's Essar, is set to rollout its mobile services in July, while Telkom Kenya, owned 51 per cent by France Telecom, is planning a rollout in September. To maintain its profit momentum in the face of the competition, Safaricom is planning to widen its footprint in the under-served rural areas to boost its national coverage. (Source: The Monitor) Vodacom posts annual profit riseSouth Africa's biggest mobile phone operator, Vodacom Group, reported a rise in annual profit, as it boosted subscriber numbers, parent company Telkom said on Tuesday. Telkom, said its mobile unit Vodacom had increased its total subscribers by 12.7 per cent to 34 million by the end of the period. Vodacom's earnings before interest tax and depreciation rose 15.7 per cent to 16.5 billion rand and revenue increased 17.1 per cent to 48.2 billion rand for the year ended March. Vodafone, the world's largest mobile phone group by revenue, owns a 50 per cent stake in Vodacom and Telkom owns the rest. Vodacom's profit from operations was up 15 per cent at 12.5 billion rand and cash generated from operations rose 17.8 per cent to 16.3 billion rand. The group has operations in South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania. Vodacom will release its full-year results on June 9. (Source: Reuters) Africa's Mobile Industry to Pay US$71 Billion in Tax By 2012The mobile industry will generate US$71 billion in tax revenues in Sub-Saharan Africa between 2000 and 2012, but that figure would be higher still if governments removed taxes that treat mobile phones and services as luxury goods, according to research commissioned by the GSMA. The research by Frontier Economics found that uptake of mobile services in the region is being held back by mobile-specific taxes on handsets, airtime and telecom equipment, which increase costs for consumers and deter investment by mobile operators. If all mobile specific-taxes in Sub-Saharan Africa had been removed in 2007, an additional 43 million people in the region would be connected by 2012 leading to an increase in overall tax receipts of $930 million between 2007 and 2012, according to the research. "Mobile consumers in Africa face some of the highest tax rates in the world which hit poorer members of society hardest," said Gabriel Solomon, Senior Vice President at the GSMA, the global trade body for the mobile industry. "These taxes are holding back mobile adoption in Africa, curbing economic growth and, ironically, are actually lowering the total revenues collected by governments." The research found that the mobile industry in Sub-Saharan Africa employs more than 3.5 million people directly or indirectly and, in 2006, contributed an average of 4% to African countries' Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The GSMA announced in October that mobile operators plan to invest approximately $50 billion in sub-Saharan Africa over the next five years. The report estimates that every dollar the mobile industry invests in Africa generates an average of US80 cents in taxes. Frontier Economics calculates that the mobile sector accounts for 7% of total government revenues in the region. "We do not believe that taxation should be designed on the basis of short-term considerations - it should be designed on the basis of achieving the best long-term economic interests for the society and in a way that accelerates the extension of services to the poor," added Mohsen A. Khalil, Global Information and Communication Technologies Director at the World Bank. "The indirect benefits to the economy of having affordable access to telecommunications services far outweigh any short-term benefit to the budget." (Source: Cellular News) Telkom South Africa’s Media Plans On Hold As It Awaits ClarityTelkom digital media business Telkom Media had to suspend some plans until there was clarity on its shareholding structure, Telkom Media spokesman Chris van Zyl said on Friday. He could not comment on changes to Telkom Media's shareholding at this stage. Telkom owns 66% of Telkom Media, and wants to reduce or sell the entire stake. Shareholders include Videovision Home Entertainment (15%), WDB Investments (5%), MSG Afrika (5%) and staff (4% through an incentive scheme). Van Zyl said Telkom was likely to disclose more on potential bidders for the stake at the June 9 announcement of its results for the year to March. Nevertheless, some Telkom Media activities were continuing, such as building a broadcasting studio in Centurion. Two years ago, Telkom Media said it intended to broadcast a 24-hour news channel. Development was continuing, but Van Zyl could not say when the news service would start. Telkom wants to reduce its shareholding as it has projects competing for funding and the payback period for Telkom Media was thought too long in relation to the payback of other Telkom projects. In addition, Telkom faced tougher competition, and a controlling stake in Telkom Media was not necessary to access media content. Renaissance Specialist Fund Managers analyst Khulekani Dlamini said the sale of a stake in Telkom Media was "a difficult idea in itself" because Telkom Media's chances of success seemed "50-50", even if the R7,5bn capital spend expected from Telkom was taken into account. He said finding a new shareholder would lengthen Telkom Media's time to market even further. The local pay-TV market would be hard to enter as it was well penetrated by the DStv platform. Kaplan Equity Analysts MD Irnest Kaplan said he believed it would be better for Telkom to partner with a media content provider in Telkom Media as the fixed-line operator had bigger problems to deal with other than entering a new market. These included improving management, deciding what to do with its 50% Vodacom stake and fending off new fixed-line operator Neotel. Telkom's money would be better spent improving its service and speeding up the broadband roll-out. (Source: Business Day) In brief:- MTN Group, Africa's largest mobile phone network operator, said it has been approached by India's Reliance Communications about a possible "business combination" and has entered a 45-day period of exclusive negotiations. The merger talks with Reliance come after MTN and Bharti Airtel were unable to reach agreement on the structure of a deal and so by mutual agreement ended their talks. - Telkom Kenya is set to embark on the search for a full service advertising agency to rebrand its troubled business, setting the stage for a high stakes battle for control of one of the most lucrative advertising and public relations consultancy in the country. - Having survived plans to unseat him for wasting shareholders money, Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin's strategy of investing in emerging markets has paid off--and he is now looking for more, even as he steps aside. Announcing his plan to move on, Sarin reiterated Vodafone's interest in securing control of Vodacom, South Africa's largest mobile operator, which it jointly owns with Telkom, the country's leading fixed-line business. He added: "We will get the Africa stuff done, we will get the Asia stuff done, we will get the Internet stuff done."
Internet provides unofficial real-time feed of war crimes trial of former Liberian PresidentLiberians and Sierra Leoneans are taking a close interest in the trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor through a mixture of radio programmes and blogs, writes Shelby Grossman from the Hague. The finger-pointing, mockery, and dialogue started just a few hours after former Liberian president Moses Blah began testifying. A blogger calling himself Zobon asserted that Blah’s name would soon be synonymous with “Traitor in Liberia.” An ex-Maritime Commissioner, speaking to a West African radio station, asked Liberians “to stop listening to people whose intention is to divide citizens of the country.” That does not seem likely. Because of big-name witnesses like Blah, along with creative, systematic, and tailored outreach strategies, Liberians and Sierra Leoneans increasingly are paying attention to the war crimes trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor, and seeing the process as legitimate. “Interest is growing,” said Alphonsus Zeon, a Senior Producer with Search for Common Ground/Talking Drum Studio, a West African group that uses media to promote peace. “People are starting to follow the trial on a daily basis.” Taylor is facing eleven counts of war crimes charges at the Special Court for Sierra Leone, including murder of civilians, sexual slavery, and the recruitment and use of child soldiers. These charges stem from his support for Sierra Leonean rebel groups while he was president of Liberia. The Special Court, a hybrid international and Sierra Leonean court, is prosecuting those most responsible for violations of international humanitarian and Sierra Leonean law in the country between 1996 and 2002. While eight trials are being conducted at the Special Court in Freetown, the Sierra Leonean capital, Taylor’s trial is taking place in The Hague, a town in the Netherlands, to reduce the possibility of destabilizing West Africa. Zeon, and his Sierra Leonean counterpart Adolphus Williams, are temporarily based in The Hague to create locally-driven news reports on Taylor’s trial. Every week they develop thirty-minute radio programs providing an overview of the trial’s highlights. These reports are sent to Freetown and the Liberian capital Monrovia. After being translated into local languages, call-in discussions are added, and the programs are distributed to community radio stations throughout both countries. “Initially Sierra Leoneans were not following the trial,” Williams said, but he believes the weekly radio programs have made the trial more engaging. “People up-country hear their voices on the radio,” he added, referring to the call-in component of the shows, “and this is having positive and tremendous effects.” A 2006 University of Sierra survey found that 79 percent of Sierra Leoneans understand the role of the Special Court. 83 percent said they first heard about the Court on the radio, and the majority said they continue to get information about Court activities through this medium. Live video feed of the trial, streamed through the Special Court website, has engaged many Liberians and Sierra Leoneans in the diaspora. In West Africa, though, this tool’s usefulness is limited. Lack of internet access, combined with high illiteracy rates, has meant that using the internet to raise awareness about the trial in Liberia is a “complete flop,” according to Zeon. Talking Drum Studio’s radio programs, along with Special Court outreach efforts that bring Court officials directly to villages for town hall-style meetings, are especially important for reaching rural communities. Few Liberian community radio stations relay foreign stations, according to William Selmah, a producer with West Africa Democracy Radio in Monrovia. This makes even the occasional BBC report on the trial inaccessible to many. Moreover, newspaper circulation in Liberia and Sierra Leone is rare outside of the few main cities. This problem is exacerbated during the rainy season when roads to the interior become unusable, hampering any effort at timely paper distribution. Since Taylor’s indictment in 2003 myths about the Special Court have spread swiftly. Barward Johnson, a program officer at Liberia Democracy Watch and member of a Special Court outreach coalition in Liberia, said many believe the trial is “America and Europe’s strategy to subdue and disgrace any African leader who is not subservient to them.” Zeon also noted this problem, saying Liberians often think the international community does not like Taylor because he was a strong leader, and that many young ex-combatants see the trial as a “US thing.” A perception of presupposed guilt only increased when Britain agreed to incarcerate Taylor if he was found guilty, before the trial had started. Concerted efforts by local journalists, civil society representatives, and the Special Court have quelled some of these concerns. When Taylor asked for a different defense team in 2007, the Court granted his request, gave his new lawyers a higher salary package, and permitted a long recess for the team’s trial preparation. According to Williams, these Court decisions, which local media covered extensively, were all “good signs of justice” for Sierra Leoneans. As the trial and accompanying outreach continue, conversations among Liberians and Sierra Leoneans likely will shift away from issues of procedure and fairness toward the substantive revelations from witness testimony. Zeon, for one, seems determined to continue spreading reliable and relevant information about the trial in his home country. “If we don’t do our job,” he said, “Taylor’s people will manipulate public opinion.” Shelby blogs from www.shelbygrossman.com. She can be reached at shelbygrossman@gmail.com. Charles Taylor’s trial can be seen on live video feed here: http://www.sc-sl.org/Taylor.html, and unofficial real-time transcripts from the trial are posted on the blog www.charlestaylortrial.org. Blueworld Launches Mobile Platform in South AfricaYouth social networking site Blueworld.co.za, which revamped its website in March 2008 with additional functionality officially launched its mobile channel for its growing user base. Blueworld is a community built around the local nightlife scene and a major market penetration of 18 - 28 is expected this year. According to Blueworld, over 40,000 South Africans in this segment are already actively visiting the site on a monthly basis. Members can now browse http://m.blueworld.co.za and engage in a majority of Blueworld's features via their cellphone, including sending and receiving messages and updating mini blogs to reading news and checking upcoming events. Viewing user profiles and responding to comments round off the mobile experience. "Exciting advertising opportunities lie ahead on mobile platforms especially with the large penetration of cellphones in South Africa. Vodacom has been evangelising mobile marketing this year and touting mobile as the next big thing. We plan to be there in full force and offer a range of marketing vehicles on the platform," comments Bradley Voges, business manager of Blueworld Communities. Adds Charl Norman, operations manager at Blueworld Communities, "Most young people are not always at their PCs and need to maintain communications and links with their friends at all times when they are on the move. It is an 'always-on' world and our users need to be involved anytime and anywhere, so a mobile platform is an essential piece of the Blueworld strategy. "There is also a large portion of our target market who have no PC access at all." The web browsing experience on hand-helds is improving with each new generation phone. The iPhone is soon coming to South Africa and will be a "must-have" item for much of Blueworld's target market. This, and the constant advancement in cellphone technology has made it essential for Blueworld, to provide a way for its members to take their activities on Blueworld with them on their mobile. In February this year, 24.com acquired a controlling stake in Blueworld Communities, which includes Blueworld, Zoopedup and Gaypeers. (Source: Biz-Community)
People* Sami Ayoub has joined Tunisie Telecom as Acting CEO. Events* FORUM ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT PARTNERSHIP IN AFRICA 4-6 June 2008, Dakar, Senegal After consultation with the Steering Committee of the African Telecommunications Regulators' Network, it proved more efficient to combine the Public and Private Sector Partnership Forums (PPPF) and the Forum on Telecommunication Regulation in Africa (FTRA) into a single forum referred to as the Forum on Telecom/ICT Regulation and Partnership in Africa (FTRA), which will be held for three days. For further information visit http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/AFR * SEMINAR ON E-GOVERNMENT FOR DEVELOPMENT: STRATEGIES AND POLICIES 13-27 June 2008, Washington DC, USA This intensive face-to-face seminar includes lectures, panel discussions, and interactive workshops presented by leading e-Government experts from USAID, USTTI Board member corporations, private sector firms, universities, NGOs, and multinational organizations. For additional information about the content of the course, how to apply, as well as funding, visit the USTTI website at http://ustti.org * EURO-AFRICA ICT AWARENSS WORKSHOP 17 & 18 June 2008, Premier Hotel - 573, Church Street Acadia, Pretoria, South Africa The workshop aims at supporting the involvement of sub-Saharan African organisations in the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for Research (under the ICT theme). This workshop is organised by the Meraka Institute of CSIR, South Africa (http://www.meraka.org.za/). Participation is free but pre-registrations are compulsory. More information is available at the following link: http://euroafricaict.org/events/awareness_workshops.php * WEST CENTRA AFRICA COM 18-19 June, Abuja, Nigeria Reflecting the region's existing economic and cultural ties, this event will bring together the Western and Central regions of Africa. With over 20 countries represented, West & Central Africa Com will give all participants an opportunity to create and develop partnerships with over 100 operators and service providers in the region. For further information visit http://www.comworldseries.com/newt/l/gsm/events/westafrica * FRAUD PREVENTION AND REVENUE ASSURANCE MEA 1-2 July 2008,Dubai UAE ViB events’ Fraud Prevention and Revenue Assurance MENA will bring together telecoms operators and industry experts to discuss the critical issues, which are faced by revenue assurance and fraud personnel today. For further information visit website
*SMART GRIDS AFRICA 28-30 July 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa Infrastructure investments for the next-generation grid are priorities for utilities in an environment suffering from power outages, load shedding and ever-increasing demand! This exclusive and high-level event attracts about 100 industry participants from African utilities, especially senior management from planning, transmission services and networking departments, as well as telecommunications and business development managers. For further information please visit http://www.metering.com/smartgridsafrica * UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY FOR SOCIAL IMPACT August 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa he fourth annual SANGONeT “ICTs for Civil Society” conference and exhibition will be held in August 2008 in Johannesburg. This year’s event will be co-hosted with MobileActive.org and branded as “MobileActive08”. For further information visit www.sangonet.org.za * THE AFRICAN NETWORK (TAN) CONFERENCE 16th August 2008, Accra, Ghana The theme for TANCon Ghana 2008 is “Next Frontier in Business: Propelling Africa to New Heights”, to reflect the growing number of African entrepreneurs in business today, and to showcase to the world Africa's limitless intellectual and economic capital. This year’s attendees will include seasoned, as well as first-time entrepreneurs, business leaders, public policy leaders, venture capitalists and investment bankers interested in learning first-hand how to successfully invest in technology and in Africa. The topics that would be covered at this year’s conference will include Social Entrepreneurship, Women in African Business, Raising Capital, Entrepreneurship in Informal Sector, Infrastructure Development and Creative Partnership Strategies. Attendees will network with the big wigs in entrepreneurship, business, government policy makers and politicians. For further information visit http://www.theafricannetwork.org/tancon/africa/ * MOBILEACTIVE08 SUMMIT 13-15 October 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa SANGONeT and MobileActive.org are pleased to announce that they will be hosting the MobileActive08 Summit. The theme of the event is “Unlocking the Potential of Mobile Technology for Social Impact”. More information about the event is available on the MobileActive08 Summit website at http://www.mobileactive08.org * CAPACITY AFRICA 2008 14-15 Oct 2008, Cape Town, South Africa This unique event features a business-driven agenda that will address the latest market developments and opportunities and equip delegates with strategic information to enable them to grow their businesses. Dedicated networking opportunities throughout the programme will provide you with the optimum opportunity to build profitable partnerships and execute business deals. For additional information visit http://www.capacitymedia.com/conferences-events.asp Jobs and Opportunities* ICTs in Education Prize: call for nominations "Digital Opportunities for All: Preparing Students for 21st-Century Skills" is the theme of the 2008 UNESCO King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa Prize for the Use of ICTs in Education. Funded by the Kingdom of Bahrain, the US$50,000 prize is divided between two winners. Every year, this prize rewards activities that demonstrate best practice as well as creative use of ICTs to enhance learning, teaching and overall educational performance. Submissions for candidature must reach UNESCO via the governments of Member States, in consultation with their UNESCO National Commissions, or by international non-governmental organisations which maintain formal relations with the Organisation. The deadline for submissions is 31 August 2008. * Ericsson Civil Design Manager - Egypt The company is looking for an experienced Civil Works Design Manager to work on a major 2G/3G Network rollout. The ideal candidate will come from a Telecommunications Civil Works Design background and will be technically very strong in the areas of Civil Works Design and construction as well as having worked in an Ericsson Network Rollout environment. Candidates should have excellent man management skills as well as good customer facing experience and be able to lead the Civil design process and implementation. For further information contact advertising@balancingact-africa.com Contracts* Wahl Industries and Integr8 IT – South Africa Wahl Industries, one of the largest aluminium gravity die casting companies in South Africa, has outsourced the integration of a complete IT infrastructure solution to Integr8 IT, South Africa's largest privately owned national BEE ICT network integration and infrastructure management specialist. The value of the contract has not been disclosed.
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