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WEEKLY PUBLICATION DEADLINE: 12 pm GMT Sunday. ISSUE NO 421 ITXC judgement lifts the carpet on bribes to seven African telcos for contractsEveryone knows it happens but the conclusion of the trial of three former ITXC employees has aired publicly how it is done. Employees of seven African telcos – all state owned with one exception – were given bribes to obtain wholesale VoIP voice contracts. The sums involved were not large but court documents reveal how it was done and some interesting incidental detail about its pitfalls as a way of approaching sales acquisition. Founded in1997 by Tom Evslin, a former Vice President at AT&T, ITXC was one of the new breed of VoIP based carriers that set out to conquer the world. One of its key markets was Africa because of the plentiful arbitrage opportunities offered by the extremely high costs of international calling. ITXC sold low-cost international wholesale minutes to incumbents who were therefore able to either lower their prices or (as was often the case) simply increase their margins. The company was sold to Teleglobe and it was during that process that the bribery allegations first emerged. ITXC’s in-house attorney asked its sales department to provide a list of ITXC agents who also worked for telcos. On 27 October 2003, this person sent the following list: Sonatel, Nitel (through Standard Digital), Telkom Kenya (through Adwest), Ghana Telecom and Angola Telecom. Subsequently Teleglobe was sold to Tata’s VSNL. Three former ITXC employees were charged under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: former Managing Director Roger Young, former Vice President Steven J. Ott, and Yaw Osei Amoako. Other co-conspirators were named but not charged as some were not US citizens. Young and Ott received reduced sentences because they co-operated with the investigation which is “on-going” according to the Department of Justice statement. Young was fined US$7,000 and Ott US$10,000, with latter also getting five years probation, six months community confinement and six months home imprisonment. A third defendant in the case, Ghanaian Yaw Osei Amoako (a US citizen), pleaded guilty on Sept. 6, 2006, and was sentenced on Aug. 1, 2007, to 18 months in prison, a $7,500 fine and to serve two years of supervised release following release from prison. The carriers named in the court case were: Nigeria’s Nitel: “On or about October 25 2002, ITXC and Nitel executed a VoIP Network Services Agreement…” In November ITXC then entered into a sales agreement with Standard Digital International, an agreement that was signed by Nitel’s General Director of International Relations, a member of the committee that reviewed the bids of those companies competing for the contract. On or about 10 October 2003 prior to ITXC signing with Nitel sent an e-mail saying:”I was able to get (the person at Nitel) to chat with (defendant Ott) in my hotel room and he poured out what we have to do to get the deal through with (sic) getting him in trouble favouring ITXC.” The following day he wrote:”Prior to sending real traffic, Nitel is ready to sit down and give ITXC special rates. Do I trust them on this? Yes. The Agents are the negotiators but is (sic) afraid of other operators (sic) actions and political contacts with Ministers, President and Vice President.” In 2003 there was a “cost dispute” which required payment of a further approximately US$150,000 to the sales agent. ITXC agreed to pay Standard Digital a retainer fee of US$10,000 and a commission of 12% of ITXC’s profits from these service agreements. Between November 2002 and May 2004 ITXC wired approximately US$166,541.31 to Standard Digital. Rwandatel: The contract between ITXC and Rwandatel was entered into at the end of February 2002. ITXC made the Rwandatel employee negotiating the agreement its sales agent and agreed to pay him “one cent per minute for certain traffic to Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda terminated through Rwandatel. The sum sent in this instance was approximately US$26,155.11. By the end of 2002, a dispute arose between the Managing Director of Rwandatel and the bribed employee over the latter’s failure to share the money. There was then an e-mail exchange as to whether the size of the sum could be revealed to which “co-conspirator 2” replied:”…we can reveal the information, although in the ordinary case, we shouldn’t (but this doesn’t seem to be an ordinary case).” Subsequently they met the Managing Director who wanted to change the agent receiving the commissions to someone nominated by him. As a result the process became more complicated:”We also agree the current agent must not be informed of the meeting and of the new arrangement.” But they were happy with is complication:”The way I see it, (the original employee bribed) cannot cause any trouble to ITXC as the Managing Director is in charge. He cannot sue because he would be arrested for receiving kickbacks.” Senegal’s Sonatel: The contract was signed in February 2001 and the following month the employee negotiating the contract entered into a “Non-Exclusive Regional Agency Agreement” which offered commission on revenues earned by ITXC. Between March 2001 and October 2003 US$74,772.06 was paid to this Sonatel employee. But there were problems as France Telecom, the private shareholder in Sonatel could clearly see all was not right. An e-mail in September 2002 was sent to Ott stating:”(The bribed employee) is the only one defending us in (the Sonatel monthly Board meetings) and he tells me (France Telecom) is becoming very suspicious. We need to get him out of the spotlight asap.” The problem continued as an e-mail in May 2003 makes clear:”Sonatel is not an easy organization to deal with. France Telecom is gripping them pretty tight. (The bribed employee) is not the force he used to be – but we still need him and he can still do good. Just be prepared not to get the most complete or direct answers to your questions.” Ghana Telecom: The ITXC agreement was signed in February 2001 but came to grief in December 2002 when Ghana Telecom disconnected its link to ITXC over a “cost dispute”. ITXC then offered to retain a General Manager in the International Department as ITXC’s sales agent and pay him commissions “in exchange for his assistance in settling this dispute.” Mali’s Sotelma: The contract was negotiated in 2002 and in order to conclude the negotiations ITXC signed the overall boss of Sotelma, its Director-General as its sales agent and paid commissions on traffic generated. E-mails about the arrangement stated that:”I have the Director General in the deal as an agent who is been (sic) fronted by his lieutenants.” It will be clear from the summary of the available public documents that this approach to business has a number of pitfalls. The bribed employees in two instances subsequently had to sort out “cost disputes” which were the pretext for asking for more bribes. In one instance, the bribed employee failed to share his gains with the managing director. In the only company with a private shareholder (which also sells wholesale minutes), the bribed employee became isolated under commercial questioning: this provides a strong if not always decisive argument for privatisation. From the telco side, what has been known privately for years is now revealed clearly and publicly by the Rwandatel and Sotelma examples. Corruption is systemic and goes right to the top and bribes are expected to be shared with the boss of the organisation and woe betide anyone who tries to keep the money to themselves.
Smile Communications gets Uganda telecoms licenceSouth African-based low cost telecoms firm Smile Communications has been awarded a telecommunications licence by the Ugandan government, Uganda's communications minister said last Tuesday. "Smile Communications have been licensed four weeks ago in Uganda," John Alintuma Nsambu told Reuters in an interview. Smile Communications (Pty) Ltd, led by former MTN Group director Irene Charnley, plans to provide affordable communications to the poor and will target expansion opportunities across Africa and the Middle East. Smile plans to offer free telephone numbers and voice message boxes to customers whether they own a handset or not. A customer will be provided with a secure PIN code to use on any Smile Communications phone. Smile Communications will operate through agents, which provide mobile handsets in street kiosks, stalls and payphones. The company is owned by a consortium of Saudi Arabian investors, Charnley and South Africans Paul Savage and Sharron Vanessa Naidoo. (Source: Reuters) India's $30 Million Boost for Sierra Leone Telecom – looking at SAT3 linkThe Indian Government has given US$30 million to revamp the ailing incumbent’s fixed line services and switches. It will used to improve landline services in Freetown, Kono, Port Loko, Kenema, Bo, and Moyamba by replacing old switches with new ones, according to Sierratel's MD, Alpha Sesay in an announcement made last Thursday. "We are going to upgrade our network and computerize our operations. We will also start providing internet services directly to users. All these will be done under this project which will cost about $30 million," Sesay said adding that provision has been made for the fund through the ECOWAS bank. One of the company's major focuses in the next five years is to possibly work out means of linking with the SAT-3/ WASC fibre optic probably through Cote d'Ivoire to achieve cheaper call rates in the country. Sierra Leone missed being connected to the communication cable which cuts across Senegal through Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Benin and Nigeria even though Sierratel was represented at the initial meeting where the arrangement to install the fibre optic started in South Africa in February 1997, because of a turmoil that followed a coup that took place in the country by May 1997. "By the time we came back, the plan has been executed and Sierra Leone was thus left out of the arrangement," he said. (Source: Concord Times) Mobinil launches 3G services in EgyptThe Egyptian Company for Mobile Services (Mobinil) launched its 3G services on 1 September after long delays. The largest mobile phone operator in Egypt by subscribers, Mobinil invested more than LE 3.3 billion in 2007 and about LE 4 billion in 2008 in building new sites, which now number more than 6,500 sites across Egypt. Mobinil was meant to receive the frequency band on Jan. 17 but the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority did not say it was available until late March, the company said at the time. In April, the company again postponed introducing 3G services to mid-July, saying regulatory authorities had been late in handing over a frequency band for testing. The mobile operator’s 3G services will be available in Cairo, Alexandria, Sharm El-Sheikh, Hurghada, Dahab, Taba, Safaga, Marsa Alam, Luxor and Aswan.The new network offers 3G, 3.5G and 3.75G services and also includes advanced second generation GSM features, GPRS and EDGE. Subscribers will have access to high speed download, internet communication and browsing as well as high speeds in data downloads through EDGE technology. “The last few months have witnessed an incredible effort to increase the number of base stations installed to more than 6,500 base stations, out of which 700 are 3G and more than 2,100 are EDGE-enabled to offer wider coverage in Egypt,” the company said in a statement. “New frequencies made available through the 3G spectrum will achieve the highest levels of efficiency and capacity to absorb the growing usage of Mobinil services by millions of its current subscribers, in addition to the millions of customers expected to join Mobinil in the coming period,” the firm added. Nokia Siemens Networks and Huawei developed the 3G portion of the network, while Alcatel Lucent and Motorola cooperated with Mobinil to establish the 2G portion of the network. Cisco Systems and Ericsson developed the network infrastructure. Reports last week said that Mobinil will join Zain’s One Network, citing Zain Saudi’s CEO Marwan Alahmadi. EFG-Hermes reported that One Network allows subscribers to make calls and send SMSs at local rates and receive calls free of charge when traveling in member countries. The service is automatically activated when Zain subscribers cross borders with no extra fees or roaming deposits. The service is now available in Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, Sudan and Saudi Arabia. Mobinil recently announced a change of leadership, with longtime Chairman Naguib Sawiris stepping down and former CEO Alex Shalaby taking the helms as chairman. Olaf Swantee, head of global mobile operations for France Telecom-Orange, which owns 36.3 percent of ECMS, called the management changes part of the “natural evolution” of the firm. Replacing Shalaby as CEO is Hassan Kabbani, who was CEO of Orascom Telecom Algeria. Tamer El Mahdy will be replacing Kabbani as Orascom Telecom Algeria’s new CEO. This substantial investment in the 3G network is meant, Swantee previously told Daily News Egypt, to work towards providing “perfect voice quality in Egypt,” and to “enable Egyptians to start using the Mobile internet.” Mobinil reported an 18 percent decline in net income in the second quarter of 2008 to LE 425 million ($80.2 million). Mobinil said in a statement the number of subscribers rose to 17.5 million in June, a 47 percent increase on the same time last year. Kenya’s ATM service provider Pesapoint links up with Safaricom’s M-Pesa in New DealSafaricom, the listed mobile service provider will on Wednesday sign an agreement with ATM service provider PesaPoint. The deal will allow M-Pesa customers withdraw money through PesaPoint ATMs. M-Pesa customers will not need a card to access money in the 110 PesaPoint ATMs spread across the country, according to sources close to the deal. However, further details are expected during the signing at Safaricom House, Nairobi. Safaricom launched M-Pesa in March 2007 as a mobile phone payment service to enable customers make financial transactions including money transfer. M-Pesa allows one to deposit, withdraw and transfer money and also buy Safaricom pre-paid airtime. Users deposit their money with authorised M-Pesa agents and make withdrawals from the mobile service provider's M-Pesa agents. However, to extend M-Pesa, Safaricom has signed agreements with Equity Bank, Post Bank and mortgage provider Housing Finance to use their wide network across the country as outlets for M-Pesa. Registered in 2005, PesaPoint's vision was to provide all banked Kenyans easy access to their funds wherever and whenever it was required whilst at the same time encouraging more Kenyans to bank by providing relevant and convenient ATM locations. The strategy of the business has been to maximise the use of one infrastructure for multiple financial institutions, which would provide economy of scale particularly in marginal areas and give the financial institutions an opportunity to provide ATM services to their customers while still concentrating on their core business. PesaPoint has been accepted by internationally renowned brands MasterCard, JCB, American Express and Visa. (Source: The Nation) In brief:- Reuters, citing local newspaper reports, claims that Zain is in talks to buy a mobile telephony licence in Rwanda. The Rwandan government launched the bidding process for the country's third wireless concession in June, and the deadline for bids is said to be the end of September. - Nigeria 's fifth GSM mobile operator, Etisalat is set to roll out its network in September. In January last year EMTS, a Nigerian company, in partnership with Mudabala Development Company of UAE, acquired from the Federal government a Unified Access Licence that includes a mobile licence and spectrum in the GSM 1800 and 900 MHz bands for $400 million. Etisalat is said to have acquired a 40 percent stake in EMTS to operate the license in Nigeria. - According to local press reports, the government of Mali has qualified 18 companies to bid for national operator Societe des Telecommunications du Mali (SOTELMA); the announcement comes following conferences for potential investors in Paris and Bamako in July 2008. Following enthusiastic interest in the operator the government has decided to raise the price for SOTELMA to XOF200 billion (USD457 million), up from XOF80 billion. The report indicates that interested bidders include MTN, Vodafone, Zain, Deutsche Telekom, Tunisie Telecom, Maroc Telecom, Portugal Telecom, Saudi Telecom and Sudatel. - Alheri Engineering, holder of a 3G concession since May 2007, has finally announced plans to initiate next generation mobile services. Local newspaper This Day reports that the company will launch a 3G network in December. The news follows claims that regulatory body the NCC was to investigate Alheri and its plans for the network. - South African mobile content reseller, Exactmobile has denied claims that it is not paying royalties on the ringtones it sells. The National Organisation for Reproduction Rights in Music in Southern Africa (NORM) filed the allegations, although Exactmobile says that it has a legal agreement in place with the royalties body. Telecoms, Rates, Offers and Coverage (briefs)- Six months after launching commercial operations, Nigeria’s telco Visafone has hit the one-million subscribers mark. The company’s current coverage area has grown to 17 states, over 150 towns and slightly over one million subscribers. In a separate announcement, Glo Mobile is said to have reached 20 million mobile subscribers. - According to AllAfrica.com, President Paul Kagama has made a video call over Rwandatel's new 3G network. The operator – currently testing UMTS services ahead of its official launch next month – says it has so far constructed 80 base stations out of 154 to be deployed nationwide. The money behind the rollout is coming from Libyan company Lap Green, which acquired an 80% stake in Rwandatel in October 2007. The investor has promised to spend US$317 million over 15 years to improve telecoms in Rwanda, including US$87 million in the first year.
Altech Wins Battle to Build Own Network in South AfricaBusiness and consumers can look forward to cheaper telecommunications services after technology company Altech won a legal battle for the right to build its own network. Altech's victory in the Pretoria High Court will affect roughly 300 other voice and data carriers, allowing each of them to build its own network instead of buying their backbone from Telkom or the handful of other large carriers licensed to provide infrastructure. The build-it-yourself spree will be tempered by the high cost of actually creating a national network, at around R1bn. But at least a dozen companies have that financial clout, promising a level of competition never seen before. The legal verdict handed down on Friday vindicated Altech's claim that Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri and the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) had turned the implementation of a new licence regime into a flawed and muddy mess. Altech's challenge was on three counts: that companies with existing Value Added Network Services (Vans) licences had the right to build their own network; that the minister overstepped her power; and that the entire process was flawed. "On all three of those we were successful in court," said Altech CEO Craig Venter. "For the industry as a whole this is a dramatic change in the landscape." Altech argued that in 2004 the minister had given Vans licence holders the right to self-provide. Icasa originally agreed, but changed its mind later when the minister backtracked on her statement. Venter claimed that Icasa was planning to reserve the licences for a few favoured players that it had negotiated with "behind closed doors". On Friday, the court agreed that Vans licence holders do have the right to a built-it-yourself licence. "Significant financial muscle is required to build a national network, but about 200 companies contacted us in full support of what we were doing," Venter said. Venter would not say how much Altech would invest in its own network, nor what services it planned to offer, but it has long had ambitions to be a telecoms provider in its own right rather than a reseller of airtime for existing operators. Internet Solutions' director Hillel Schrock said little would change in the short term, as Icasa still had to resolve issues around scare spectrum allocation. But an instant benefit should be lower fees, as voice and data carriers had been forced to partner with the telecoms giants to access their licences to provide some services. "Players have been doing regulatory gymnastics by partnering with telcos that didn't add much value but added a licence. There are benefits for our corporate customers because now we can self-provide without paying a premium just to access a licence," he said. The Internet Service Providers' Association (Ispa) welcomed the news that its members can build their own networks. . Icasa said it would study the judgment and "chart the way forward". (Source: Business Day) Angola launches Infrasat to extend national voice, data and TV coverageThe Angolan head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos inaugurated new national satellite coverage of the country through a new company called Infrasat. The company is a business unit of incumbent Angola Telecom but will be operated independently. The project is the brainchild of the Inter-ministerial Commission for the Overall Coordination of the Multi-Sectoral Telecommunications. Infrasat will offer: * NetSat, which will take telephony and Internet to remote areas, using VSAT and solar energy; * TrunkSat, which will offer support to telecommunications operators by increasing connectivity capacity. CDMA and GSM operators will be able to expand their reach to any place in the country. * DTH services, will bring bouquets with multiple national and international radio and television channels, offering a greater variety of channels in Portuguese and serving to promote the local audiovisual production. * remote surveillance facilities for services providing camera surveillance; The system was inaugurated with a demonstration of a televideo conference linking up a hospital, a school and a military base in three different provinces. 174 KU band Vsat have so far been installed in the country. This is part of the 2,301 to be installed under the first phase of the project, to the benefit of 759 localities. (Source: Angola Press Agency) Tunisia censors FacebookAccess to the social networking website Facebook (http://www.facebook.com) has been blocked without explanation since 24 August 2008 in Tunisia, in a move that reinforces government censorship of the Internet, Reporters Without Borders said. "The video-sharing websites YouTube ( http://www.youTube.com ) and Dailymotion ( http://www.Dailymotion.com) were already blocked, so Tunisian censorship now affects three very popular sites that are not intended to have a political impact," Reporters Without Borders said. "The authorities want to control online sharing so that dissidents cannot express themselves. It is sad to see the Internet space being shrunk in this way." ISPs reported that users were already having problems accessing the Facebook website before it was totally blocked on 24 August. Clients of PlaNet, for example, had not been able get to that address since 18 August. The site can nonetheless still be accessed by going to alternative addresses ( http://www.new.facebook.com , http://www.www.facebook.com ). According to a study by the Tunisian marketing company Buzz2com, Facebook had 28,313 Tunisian users on 14 August. Some dissidents, such as Mohammed Abbou, had recently created personal pages on Facebook, launching debates about Tunisian society. "This is an important phenomenon," Internet users told Reporters Without Borders. "Many blogs had been closed down but bloggers have been able to debate by creating personal pages on Facebook." There are six groups on the site, involving just over 5,000 Internet users, where Facebook's closure in Tunisia is being discussed. Dailymotion has been blocked in Tunisia since 3 September 2007. The blocking of YouTube came on 2 November. It is still accessible via other addresses such as http://www.fr.youtube.com and http://www.it.youtube.com and via the IP address http://208.65.153.253 . When Dailymotion was blocked, it was supposedly because it was a pornographic site. Email messages are also being filtered. Tests carried out in Tunisia show that some email message arrive empty and disappear from the inbox after being opened. It is impossible to add attachments to email messages in Yahoo! mail ( http://www.yahoo.com ) because this facility is turned off. There is a greater chance of being able to read a message with sensitive content in Gmail ( http://www.gmail.com ) but it is often impossible to send a reply. This form of filtering, known as deep packet inspection (DPI), is widely used in China to filter pornographic sites and those dealing with sensitive issues such as Tibet, the Falun Gong spiritual movement or the June 1989 massacre. TOR, a programme that enables the user to remain anonymous while on the Internet and to circumvent online censorship, cannot be downloaded in Tunisia. "This filtering helps to create a state of generalised surveillance as it affects all Internet users and not just dissidents," Reporters Without Borders added. "The authorities meanwhile try to pass off the censorship as a technical problem." (Source: Reporters sans Frontières) In brief:- Google released its newest product in the form of an open source browser called Chrome. The release comes a little ahead of Google's original plans. Dubbed by Google as faster, more stable and secure than alternatives, Chrome will likely re-ignite the "browser wars" as it goes head to head with Internet Explorer and the Firefox browser.
Positive results claimed for the One Laptop Per Child Project test in RwandaThe Ministry of Education's Secretary General together with the ICT department, has just finished carrying out an evaluation exercise to establish the efficacy of the One Laptop per Child project. Over 100 Primary Five pupils of Rwamagana B. Primary School benefited from the project, and have been using the computers for the last 10 months. Initial results show pupils leapfrogging teachers in terms of learning as the latter do not have OPLC laptops. The evaluation was carried out in preparation to receiving a big consignment of 5000 laptops, and provides some interesting revelations. Pupils have used the computers to great advantage, and the packages that came with the laptops have made studying subjects like English Language, Geography and Science easier. The laptops have gone beyond classroom use and been used at home to teach homefolks - since the children go home with them. The catch in the project, though, is that there are more pupils than teachers who have the laptops, so profiting from their immense resources has been lopsided as the pupils who have them all the time seem to leap over their teachers in usage as well as knowledge. The pupils have the ultimate reference tools; the teachers do not. This need not be a disadvantage though. Of course every effort must be made to train and avail teachers with their own laptops - they are much fewer than their pupils and so this should not prevent much difficulty - so that there is meaningful guidance to education. However, pupils should be allowed to explore and experiment with their computers. The teachers' role should always be to guide, and never to restrain, anyone who is learning something from the computer even by mere browsing. This also breaks the traditional thinking that teachers are the only repositories of knowledge. But without their guidance, pupils cannot know the appropriate content to read, so the teachers' central role in the education structure is permanently assured. (Source: The New Times) FCT Improves Transport With E-Ticketing in NigeriaThe present practice of using cash to board buses in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) may soon be a thing of the past with the new smart card innovation of ETopNG. Just like every other smart card, cash is being loaded onto the card and used for payment in the Abuja Urban Mass Transit Buses which were introduced in 2006 after the ban on motorcycles known as 'okada'. But there is little sign that the ban on ‘okada’ has had the slightest effect. The new scheme has been test ran on two routes in the city; Kado and Masaka routes, and commuters who ply the route have gotten used the system in the last eight months of tests. It has been tested on the 45 buses that ply these routes. This is the system in bus transportation of developed countries like the United Kingdom, China and a host of others, and it is expected to conform to Nigeria's vision of being one of the world's biggest economies by the year 2020. ThisDay checks discovered that getting a smart card is very easy. A commuter can obtain one at a bus garage or depot with the sum of N250 which has already been pre-loaded on the card. The commuter obtains a personalised pin to protect the card from unauthorised use. On boarding the bus, a computer reader validates the card with a sensor and automatically deducts the bus fare with a display of the balance. The advantages of such system include saving time as there is no need for a commuter to queue to obtain a ticket or look for change for travel on the bus (usually a cause of friction between conductors and commuters). It also can load enough money for fares for a week or a month in advance. Parents can also preload money onto their children's cards thereby reducing the risk of them carrying cash and losing it. ThisDay spoke with the Managing Director of ETopNg, Kayode Ehindero who disclosed that his company decided to introduce the scheme which is the standard in various countries around the globe. He added that it cost the company about N600, 000 to kit each bus with the hardware and software of the scheme, which has already been embraced by the FCT Transport Secretariat under the leadership of Segun Awolowo and soon to be introduced in over 280 buses plying the city and environs. Some states have also shown interest in the scheme. Ehindero explained that the company faced the challenge of acceptance by commuters who were sceptical about the innovation. "People were initially scared of loading their money into the card because they didn't know if it would work. But now people are loading as much as N5000, so that they can keep using it". "This card can be personalised; you can put your picture and name and in case it is lost, you can easily call us and we block your card. This can also make people plan to know how much to spend basically for transport", he said. (Source: This Day) Canada to Build 300 Multimedia Centres in CameroonCameroon's Information and Communication Technology will in a few years ahead witness a significant transformation, following the signing yesterday of two new agreements between the government, represented by the Minister of State for Posts and Telecommunications, Maigari Bello Bouba and the Mobile Money Cameroon consortium in the present of the Canadian High Commissioner to Cameroon, Jean Pierre Lavoie on the one hand and Cameroon and South Korea on the other. The first agreement is expected to usher in a new set of multimedia centres, 300 of them, in the rural areas. According to the terms of the agreement, the centres will be constructed on or before 2015. The multimedia centres are tool for the development of rural areas. They are expected to facilitate communication, render it cheaper and easier for the rural masses. The private centres that Canada will construct will provide jobs for over 900 rural people, mostly women. The second agreement will enable the South Korean government to bring in a new security device for carrying electronic business more efficiently and at low cost. The Public Key Infrastructure will therefore be installed and this will necessitate three things: a certification authority, a registration authority and a technical architecture made up of server, computers etc. The certificate to be delivered by the certification authority will be used in signing documents digitally to authenticate documents sent by e-mail. (Source: Cameroon Tribune) In brief:- In Uganda, the Cabinet has approved three cyber laws. The three laws are the Electronic Transactions Bill, Electronic Signatures Bill and Computer Misuse Bill. "The Bills will be gazetted by the ministry and tabled before Parliament for approval," the information and communications technology (ICT) minister, Dr. Mulira said. - The price of Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007 productivity suite has been slashed by up to 40 percent in an effort to ensure that technology is made easily accessible and affordable to people across Africa. The cost of Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007 is coming down to around US$100 in most African countries, including Botswana. - New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), has developed a new ICT programme that would enhance to educational development in Nigeria through the Interactive Learning Network (ILN) project evolved from the identified need for a national educational multimedia infrastructure which would lay the foundation for effective use of ICTs in education. - The fourth phase of the African Management & Training Services Project (ATMS IV) has taken an important step forward by receiving its first signature from the Government of Madagascar. AMSCO and the ATMS are helping 178 African businesses in 24 countries (as on 31 July 2008) to become profitable, competitive, and sustainable by providing them with both management and capacity building support in the form of interim expatriate managers. - A declaration signed by six nations, including South Africa, Brazil and Venezuela, questions the credibility of the ISO and the validity of the process to declare Microsoft's OOXML format an international standard.
Nigerian telco Globacom in Vodacom takeover bid?South Africa's biggest mobile operator, Vodacom, could become a takeover target for Nigerian business tycoon Mike Adenuga (owner of Globacom), who has proposed a merger between Telkom's 50% stake in the mobile operator and Nigeria's Globacom. This would create an $18 billion company, Business Day reported last week. The daily quoted local brokerage Mowana Investment saying it was handling the bid. The report states Globacom owner Mike Adenuga wants to create a R140 billion pan-African telecoms firm called "Vodaglo". According to the report, the bid could disrupt plans by UK operator Vodafone, which holds a 50% stake in Vodacom, to gain control of the South African mobile operator by buying part of Telkom's stake. One of the key players in Mowana Investment is the former chairman of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications Nkenke Kekana, who was punted as one of the hopefuls in the R7.5 billion Vodacom BEE deal. Others include Business Connexion CEO Benjamin Mophatlane; his brother, Isaac; former ICASA chairman Mandla Langa; and former communications department deputy director-general Joe Mjwara. (Source: ITWeb) Vodacom buys Gateway CommunicationsVodacom has finalised a deal to acquire carrier services and business network solutions subsidiaries of Gateway Telecommunications SA (Pty) Ltd ("Gateway") for an enterprise value of approximately US$675 million. An announcement made last week says, the deal once concluded will also see Vodacom make whole payment of approximately US$25 million in relation to Gateway's high-yield bond. Commenting on the transaction, Pieter Uys, Chief Executive Officer designate of Vodacom Group, said a new deal would allow his company tap into growth potential on African market. "The acquisition of Gateway reflects Vodacom's strategy to reposition itself as a leading pan-African provider of communications services and to diversify from its current status as primarily a mobile-centric network operator. We believe that Gateway's significant presence across Africa will allow Vodacom to tap into the huge potential for growth in business services and connectivity and will enhance our position with multinational corporations," he said. On the other hand, Gateway's Chief Executive Officer, Peter Gbedemah, added: "this is an exciting milestone in Gateway's development as a unique pan-African service provider. We will increase resources, efficiency, and product range and continue our relentless focus on meeting requirements of all Africa's mobile networks and multi-national corporations." Gateway is Africa's largest independent provider of interconnection services via satellite and terrestrial network infrastructure for both African and international telecommunications companies. Gateway also provides an extensive range of high quality, end-to-end connectivity solutions to multinational corporations operating across Africa. However deal with Vodacom does not include Gateway broadcast services group, which will be retained by current owners. With approximately 350 employees in 17 countries throughout Africa and Europe, and annual sales estimates at around US$257 million, Vodacom says acquisition of Gateway is in line with its growth strategy and offers multiple strategic benefits including, accelerated international expansion and presence in key markets throughout Africa It further said a deal will positions Vodacom as partner of choice for multinational customers and international telecommunications providers seeking African connectivity adding that with Gateway's blue chip customer base this will enable marketing of converged fixed and mobile offerings across Africa. The deal which is yet to be approved and is subject to certain conditions, including approval from South African Reserve Bank and relevant regulatory and competition authorities, will also affect Gateway's subsidiaries in Mozambique, Tanzania as well as others to be appointed under the transaction. (Source: Afrol) Tough Market Forces South Africa’s APH Into RestructuringConsumer electronics group Amalgamated Appliance Holdings (APH) said that it had been forced to embark on a major restructuring of its businesses to survive a turbulent trading environment in which it recorded its worst operating results in the year to June for more than a decade. Group CEO Alan Coward said yesterday rising inflation and interest rates, tighter credit lending conditions by banks, and high food and fuel prices had depressed consumer demand for the group's products. "Trading conditions have been really tough and at the moment consumer spend is down, especially on big luxury items," he said. Coward said his assessment showed that there would be no let-up to depressed spending in the coming months. "I am not an economist but all indications show that we will see consumer spending very flat for the coming months. We see no change at all," Coward said. Economists say economic conditions are not favourable to retailers, especially those who depend on credit sales, which have been suppressed due to the National Credit Act. Coward said in remarks accompanying the group's results that as a result of the worsening economic environment, APH had experienced its toughest trading environment and poorest operating results since its listing more than 11 years ago. Revenue fell 16% to R1.66bn and operating profit plummeted 107% from R130.25m to a loss of R9.23m, while headline earnings per share fell by 121% to a loss of 7.7c . He said once the severity of trading conditions became apparent, management had swiftly embarked on a number of measures to strengthen the business. These included reducing the head-count from 1200 last year to 765, restructuring management and sales representatives' incentives in its electronics business, and reducing inventory levels by 13% from R419m as of December last year to R365m in the period under review. The group had also closed its mobile business and converted fixed overheads into viable costs through the outsourcing of its electronics service function. "We will consolidate these initiatives and our objective is to bed down the changes we have made to generate real positive cash flow and better results," he said. Coward said the group planned to implement further restructuring this year. (Source: Business Day) Africa’s Telecoms Private Equity On Growth PathEast Africa's investment and venture capital markets are set for a revolution with the establishment of the Africa Technology Media and Telecoms (ATMT) Fund. The package is a US$100 million fund aimed at the fast-growing information and communications technology (ICT) sector in the region and is managed by East Africa Capital Partners, a firm based here in Nairobi. ATMT is aimed at African companies in the ICT sector, which has become one of the most exciting business sectors on the continent. The rate of growth in telecoms, internet connectivity and other forms of ICT companies has been nothing short of astounding, and indicates a pent-up demand for the benefits of communication. One of ATMT's primary investments has been in the Wananchi Group, one of Kenya's leading internet and entertainment companies. The $40 million investment that has been made will enable the Group move to the front of the extremely competitive market. One of Wananchi's main consumer strategies is to be the first company in the region to offer true triple play service - with customers being able to sign up to a true broadband service, voice telephony and multi-channel cable television, all through one pipe into their homes. ATMT's other investments are just as revolutionary. The fund has established the small and medium enterprise (SME) Ventures, which is aimed at early-growth companies. SME Ventures aims at funding 'Kenya's Bill Gates and Tanzania's Steve Jobs' young, ambitious entrepreneurs who are gutsy enough to start billion-dollar companies on the continent. SME Ventures will provide between $ 50,000 and $500,000 to such start-ups, aiming at assuring between five and seven years of growth, before the fund's exit point. ATMT also owns a piece of TEAMS, one of the submarine cables set to land on the eastern seaboard in 2009. When that happens, it is expected to fundamentally alter the internet industry in Africa, by making it remarkably cheaper, faster and more stable than the current reliance on satellite access. ATMT is partly funded by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, a US-government agency that aims to foster economic development in emerging markets. The other half of the funding comes from East African, American and British high net worth individuals, who have a great deal of experience both in financing growth and running companies in the region. They range from Kenyan internet pioneer Richard Bell (who also manages EACP) to Jimnah Mbaru, the former chairman of the Nairobi Stock Exchange and Ali Mufuruki, one of Tanzania's leading communications titans and lead CEO of the Tanzania CEOs Roundtable. Others include James Gachui, chairman of one of Kenya's leading investment firms, Transcentury, Richard Essex, a leading British investor and Mark Schneider, who founded one of the US's leading cable television companies, Liberty International. Bell's excitement about the fund and its growth potential is palpable. He says: "We are creating Africa 's next billionaires." (Source: East African Business Week) In brief:- Egyptian telecoms group Orascom Telecom has reported a first half revenue of USD2.652 billion, a 19% increase on the same period of 2007. In the six months ended 30 June 2008 Orascom reported a 22% improvement in EBITDA, to EGP1.16 billion, although net income for the period declined 4% to EGP276 million. - France Telecom (FT) has announced that it intends to invest at least KES8 billion (US$112 million) a year into Telkom Kenya as it works to transform the company into Kenya's leading integrated telecommunications provider.
South Africa’s national Internet portal growingSouth Africa’s national internet portal, SouthAfrica.info, receives almost 30-million hits a month and compares favourably with the country’s top commercial web sites, the statutory International Marketing Council (IMC) says in its latest annual report. The IMC, which has a wide array of prominent South Africans on its board of trustees, is tasked with promoting SA at home and abroad. It describes itself as the custodian of “Brand SA”. The report, tabled in Parliament last weeky, says Brand SA is valued at R516.6bn. Chairwoman Wendy Luhabe and acting chief executive Moeketsi Mosola reported that the national web portal continued “its strong upward growth path” in the 2007-08 financial year compared with 2006-07. The monthly page impressions grew by 25% to 3.1-million, the unique users of the website by 21% to 300,000 and hits on the web site by 21% to 27.8-million. “For a non-commercial, public information website, this kind of traffic is extraordinary,” the report said. The Online Publishers’ Association, which represents SA’s 28 largest websites, said in its December 2007 quarterly readership figures survey that it would have placed SAinfo in 16th place ahead of commercial giants such as “Ananzi.co.za, easyinfo.co.za, SABCnews.com, businessday.co.za and yellowpages.co.za”. The annual report said analysis of SAinfo’s traffic statistics showed that half of its audience was from abroad, with the US, UK, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, France, Brazil and India leading the pack. “Underlying SAinfo’s readership growth is the site’s phenomenal performance on Internet search engines. It is when one looks at SAinfo’s search result placements — a key indicator of website success — that one appreciates the extent to which the portal has established itself as SA’s leading online country information resource.” (Source: My Broadband) Equity Launches Cellphone Banking in KenyaThe next battle frontier for banks will be fought on the mobile phone, signalling a widely anticipated drop in banking transaction costs by customers. It also means that bank customers will enjoy convenience, easy access to their money and more secure services thanks to technology. Already, Equity Banks' 2.6 million customers can enjoy such benefits after the bank on Wednesday officially launched a mobile phone banking service, Eazzy 24/7, taking its branches to the mobile handset devices and increasing its customer base. Cost effective and adaptable, the service is expected to bring in more people into the formal banking system that currently has 4.5 million accounts countrywide. "Banking the unbanked has been a challenge for banks and Eazzy 24/7 will help reduce transaction costs and greatly improve the national payment system," said Central Bank of Kenya governor Njuguna Ndung'u. Most banks charge an average of between Sh150 and Sh200 and EAZZY 24/7 will charge Sh50 to transact within its bank. While such a transaction will only take minutes, transferring funds to another bank will follow the normal interbank process and duration. Two Equity account holders with Safaricom lines can now credit and transfer cash into each other's account using their mobile phones in real time, subject to the availability of funds. Equity bank clients will also be able to pay their utility bills, purchase airtime, request their bank statements and perform 13 other crucial banking enquiries. "The mobile phone boom has laid down a strong base for low cost banking and the growth of mobile phone solutions in rural Kenya shows that it can attract customers," said the bank's chief executive, Dr James Mwangi. EAZZY 24/7 was widely expected to run in January though it has been on a test run since last year and will initially rely solely on Safaricom's network with the possibility of roping in other mobile service providers later. Equity mobile banking technology is similar to Safaricom's popular money transfer service, M-Pesa which has had a successful launch transferring about Sh36 billion since its launch in March last year. This has caused unease in the banking fraternity due to the huge amounts moved by Safaricom in the absence of a law governing mobile money transfer in a clear case of technology overtaking regulation. "CBK welcomes such innovations by the banking sector and is committed to the creation of an enabling regulatory environment towards this end," said Prof Ndung'u. (Source: The Nation)
People* Neotel has appointed the highly respected former telecommunications regulator Icasa councillor Tracy Cohen as its new executive head Tata Communications of India for regulatory affairs from September. * Telkom South Africa announced the appointment of David Barber, the former global chief financial officer of AngloCoal and CFO of Anglo American SA, as an independent non-executive director and member of its audit and risk management committee with immediate effect. This follows the announcement that Telkom had appointed Peter Joubert, the former chairman of Impala Platinum and Afrox, as a non executive director and member of the audit and risk management committee with effect from 12 August 2008. Events* ECONOMIC REGULATION, COMPETITION AND PRIVATISATION 15-19 September 2008, Yaoundé, Cameroon This course is part of the the Programme for Development and Training (PDT) run by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) is a professional training and capacity building programme aimed at helping industry stakeholders understand the latest developments in the industry and build the in-house capacity to meet the challenge of future markets. For further information contact Nomita Das at +44 20 8834 1573 or n.das@cto.int * 7th IWEEK ANNUAL CONFERENCE 17 - 19 September 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa iWeek has become a critical calendar entry for everyone with a stake in the Internet sector and is the only conference endorsed by the Internet Society of South Africa (ISOC-ZA). Anyone with an interest is welcome to attend free of charge. You are encouraged to register at your earliest convenience at: http://www.ispa.org.za/iweek/2008/apply.shtml prior to the conference. * COMMONWEALTH ICT SUMMIT 6-8 October 2008, Abuja, Nigeria If you are a telecom or satellite operator, equipment supplier, software developer, solution provider, a consultant, or any other stakeholder in the Telecommunications and ICT industry, and are seeking opportunities to expand in emerging markets, or are seeking the platform to meet policymaking and regulatory authorities, donor agencies and financiers to champion your business development goals, the Commonwealth ICT Summit is the event to attend. For further information visit http://www.events.cto.int/ictsummit08 * 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 * NORTH AFRICA COM 14-15 October 2008, Cairo, Egypt North AfricaCom is the largest telecommunication event specifically designed for operators and telecoms professionals. With 35 expert speakers, 700 communications professionals and a 50-stand exhibition in 2007, this event is the best opportunity for you to learn from your colleagues' experiences in other countries and find out the latest solutions that can improve your business. For further information visit http://www.comworldseries.com/newt/l/gsm/events/northafrica * THE MOZAMBIQUE ICT CONVENTION 2008-08-14 15-16 November 2008, Maputo, Mozambique The Mozambique ICT Exhibition has been initiated by the Ministry of Science & Technology to provide an educational platform for all government ministries, departments and organisations, as well as all major private sector enterprises and SMEs. They will meet together over two days to share knowledge, learn form local and international experts and network with each other in both the conference and the exhibition. For further information contact AITEC Africa, +44(0)1480-880774; info@aitecafrica.com * TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND CONSUMERS RIGHTS IN WEST AFRICA 22-24 October 2008, Cotonou, Benin The conference aims at impulsing a new dynamics to the telecommunications sector through taking into account the concerns of consumers regarding quality and services rates at the national and regional level. The conference will also deal with all the aspects related to the regional regulation in term of telecommunication, the settlement of the West African ICT Consumer Associations Network as well as the advocacy techniques to be used during the campaign which will be conducted towards sub-regional institutions. The conference is funded and supported by the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) For further information contact the League for the Consumers Defence in Benin on +229 21 35 24 58 or visit their website at www.ldcb.org * TECHNOLOGY: A PLATFORM FOR DEVELOPMENT? 30 - 31 October 2008, Chatham House, London, UK Technology is now recognized as having the potential to transform the lives of millions in the developing world. This major international conference will seek to identify best practice for achieving the successful implementation of new technology. For further information visit http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/events/conferences/view/-/id/127/ * UBUNTUNET CONNECT 2008 AND OPEN ACCESS 2008 11-14 November 2008, Lilongwe, Malawi For further information on the 1st UbuntuNet Alliance Annual Conference, visit http://www.ubuntunet.net/ For further information on the 6th International Conference on Open Access, visit http://www.wideopenaccess.net/ * ngNOG 16 – 26 November 2008, Lagos, Nigeria For further information on the 3rd Edition of the Nigerian Network Operators Group Workshops and Meetings, visit http://www.forum.org.ng/ * AFRINIC 9 22 – 28 November 2008, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia For further information on the 9th AfriNIC Open Policy Meeting, visit http://www.afrinic.net/ Jobs and Opportunities* ICT POLICY IN EAC PARTNER STATES / SUPPORT TO ICT POLICY REVIEW PROCESS. The overall objective is to assist the EAC Partner States in the review process of their national ICT policies in order to achieve regional harmonization. The specific objective of the study is: To recruit five national short term Experts (STE) and one International Expert whose responsibility will be to review the national ICT policy in EAC Partner States, based on an ICT policy fact-finding exercise that took place between February to August 2008. The fact-finding exercise found that ICT policies in most countries are outdated and Partner States have begun a review process. The application deadline is September 8th 2008 For further information visit www.danishmanagement.dk Contracts* MTN and Opera Software - Uganda MTN Uganda has signed an agreement with Opera Software, a world leader in web browsing technology, to supply it with its Opera Mini, said to be one of the best handset web browsers. The Norwegian company said its partnership with MTN was the first venture into Africa and that the move was also a part of vigorous efforts to "make the web available to more people, on any device, from anywhere in the world."
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