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WEEKLY PUBLICATION DEADLINE: 12 pm GMT Sunday. ISSUE NO 453 8th May 2009 Going virtual - Africa’s maturing markets offer new wholesale and retail service opportunitiesAfrica’s larger maturing markets are offering new opportunities to providers whose services are either partly or completely run over someone else’s network. As some of the continent’s less well developed markets head towards dominance of all services by two or three mobile operators, this might be a way to keep things competitive. Russell Southwood looks at three different types of virtual operators and what needs to be in place to help them succeed. Nigeria’s Layer Three started operations in 2005 and was initially an ISP with a base of customers in the capital Abuja. After about year, it refocused and decided to concentrate on just corporate customers. So far, so predictable. But Layer Three found a niche where it could provide a better service. CEO Oyaje Idoke told us:”We started using the VNO (Virtual Network Operator) model to provide services for banks, particularly VPNs. As a result, 70-80% of our business comes from the financial services sector.” In 2008, it followed its clients by opening a Lagos office to service the many bank headquarters in the city. It did not take long for them to conclude that they needed to have their own fibre capacity to connect the two cities directly. So it leased capacity from Zain, starting with an STM1: each of its banking customers needs a minimum of an E1 and some significantly more. According to Idoke:”We want to test the market and an STM1 will be adequate to start with.” After technical testing, the link will go live next week:”If things go well, we will extend the service to other cities for financial companies and other corporates.” The cost of the STM1 is quite high but Idoke believes that prices will come down as new infrastructure competitors (including Zain and Phase3) enter the market. But Layer Three’s plan is not entirely virtual. It is planning to invest between US$5-10 million (the precise sum depends on how much the Naira devalues) in a metro fibre network in Abuja and later elsewhere and to provide value-added services like a hosted PABX, a data centre for external backup and data recovery. All of these services are bandwidth intensive, hence the company’s need to ramp up its capacity. It has also become Juniper Networks first certified partner in West Africa and this will enable it to sell network security solutions as part of its data centre services. This kind of development potentially poses a competitive threat to the major mobile operators who are assuming that corporate data traffic will come their way as they roll out their fibre infrastructure offers. Well-focused, customer responsive smaller organisations may well be a more attractive option for a corporate IT manager, particularly if they offer a whole range of data centre-based, value added services. The question from the corporate IT manager that should make the large mobile operators nervous is: does my account manager have the power to get things done when things go wrong? At the retail level, those with their own customer base have the opportunity to provide things like Internet and VoIP calling services to them. South Africa’s First National Bank has just launched FNB Connect to do just that, offering its customers cheaper pre-paid Internet and VoIP calling services. Its pitch is that pre-paid offers customers freedom and flexibility and being a bank, they can already organise payment transactions easily. ADSL users can get a Gb download for US$8.25 and users can put the software required on a PC or cellphone. Calls to international destinations start as low as US4 cents a minute. The other retail category is MVNOs of which the continent has had only really two, one almost by design and another by default. Virgin Mobile in South Africa cannot for various regulatory reasons be described as an MVNO but that’s what it is. Its services sit on the Cell-C network and it uses its branding power and insurgent challenger status to give the weakest player in the market a higher level of network use. However, it has not been remarkably successful: it had a tiny 495,000 subscribers in June 2008 but was claiming a fairly high ARPU of US$25 a month. This compares with MTN’s US$16.24 (see Telecom News below) so Virgin may not have lots of customers but they are spending more than the market leader’s subscribers: the implication is that margins are considerably better. Other virtual players in the market at the same point last year had 671,000 subscribers (Nashua Mobile) and 917,000 subscribers (Altech Autopage). Other African countries like Botswana have talked about encouraging MVNOs but have tended in the end simply to increase the number of players in their market. The MVNO by default was Zantel, which when it migrated to the mainland in Tanzania was an MVNO on Vodacom’s network. Since then, it has constructed its own network. If this can all work in larger mature markets, why can’t it work in smaller markets? The principle of other service providers using other people’s infrastructure is well established through interconnect agreements: the only obstacle are those that operate the networks wanting to keep out or slow down new entrants coming into the market. But in order to keep a level playing field, it will be important to have a clear and transparent separation of retail and wholesale functions, to prevent larger players giving undue advantage to their own service operators. Also access to networks is important and the Nigerian regulator NCC has insisted that the fibre networks being built by mobile operators will be open to other service providers on a non-discriminatory basis. Interestingly none of these wholesale or retail virtual players probably needs to have the same approach to market share. They are focused on niche customers, whether high-end corporates with particular needs or the wealthier mobile voice and data users. Or if they really had ambition, they might focus on low-end customers who don’t want anything more than basic SMS and mobile voice services. So the future’s bright, the future’s virtual.
Nigeria extends deadline for Nitel, will accept bids just for mobile operationThe extension of the Nitel sale deadline to 30 May 2009 and the acceptance of bids just for the company’s mobile arm give some sense of the difficulties there are in selling a company with the scale of problems it has in the current financial climate. BNP Paribas and Eleda Capital Partners said in an advert in a local newspaper that Nigeria has also reviewed requirements for the pre-qualification of interested investors. The advisors said Nigeria was now willing to sell the fixed line operator Nitel and MTEL separately or as a combined entity, instead of the previous combined offer. "At the submission of their Expressions of Interest, interested parties may indicate their preliminary preference to bid for either Nitel, MTEL or both" the advisors said. Prospective investors are required to have a minimum of 1.2 million fixed or mobile telephone lines instead of 2 million previously, while a consortium must include a reputable operator that would hold at least a 20 percent equity post-privatisation. Nigeria first tried to sell the troubled telecoms firm in 2001, but the preferred bidders failed to pay the $1.3 billion price by the stipulated deadline. The company has since attracted little international interest and its value has declined over the years. Nigeria has overtaken South Africa as Africa's biggest mobile market with more than 62 million subscribers, according to the sector regulator, Nigerian Communications Commission. Vodafone has announced its interest in buying into the market but is unlikely to take on the fixed operation if the mobile operation is available separately. (Source: Reuters) Waspa refines fine print for content provision in South AfricaThe Wireless Application Service Providers Association (Waspa) recently issued an updated version of its code of conduct, with detailed guidelines on advertising, billing and reminder messages relating to subscription services. This comes as complaints about content services continue, despite previous specifications regulating how they interact with customers. Revisions to the code include the specific amount content providers can charge to an account before they have to contact the customer for permission to continue, which changed from R200 to R300. Another provision adds that when the total cost of any service reaches R400 or any multiple of R200 thereafter, additional notification must be sent to the customer, informing them of the total costs incurred. Guidelines for promotional material and billing information were tightened and more extensive instructions for reminder messages are included. There are also revisions regarding the time it takes for users to be unsubscribed, with Waspa members now being compelled to unsubscribe consumers within two working days of the request being lodged with Waspa. These changes address various problems users face, as many still request what they think is a once-off application, such as a ringtone, only to find they are being billed on an ongoing basis. When Jana Goussard saw an advert on TV for a ringtone she liked, she SMSed a keyword to the code advertised. “All it said in the ad was that an SMS would cost around R5. I am on a top-up contract where I receive R135 per month; for six months I could not understand why my phone money was getting low so quickly, especially since I don't phone a lot and mostly SMS.” Goussard discovered that by SMSing the number for the ringtone, she had signed up for a subscription service that charged her R20 per week. “I SMSed STOP to the number and [they] stopped taking my money... I was and am still very upset about it.” BulkSMS.com MD Dr Pieter Streicher says users often confuse weekly charges with individual downloading costs. “This became a problem a few years ago because up until 2005/2006, most content services involved once-off charges. When there was a change to subscription services the mechanism remained the same - messaging a keyword to a code - and initially people were caught out that way. It's still a new industry and there are people that make money out of users' ignorance. But consumers catch up and that makes it more difficult." Pieter Streicher, MD, BulkSMS.com Waspa describes content subscription services as any service providing or offering material such as sound clips, ringtones, wallpapers, images, videos, games, text or MMS information. This also covers services described as 'club' or those where users who access content are charged both for the subscription element and for the particular content item. According to Waspa chairman Leon Perlman, the code of conduct has built-in safeguards to prevent the advertising of misleading information. “The rules make it quite clear that Wasps have to provide relevant information so consumers can make an informed choice before subscribing to a service.” The code stipulates that pricing information has to be clearly and accurately conveyed to customers and that promotional material for subscription services must prominently and explicitly identify them as subscription services. It also states that users may not automatically be subscribed to a subscription service as a result of requesting non-subscription content. One of the changes in the updated code is more comprehensive guidelines for reminder messages. Wasps are required to send subscribers monthly reminder messages, containing specific information about the service, who the provider is, what the service costs and how to unsubscribe or contact the Wasp. “The reminder messages have to be sent in a certain format, which is predetermined so that messages are quite explicit,” says Perlman. He adds that a media monitor checks to ensure reminders are being sent. The penalty for failing to send out these messages ranges from a fine to suspension. “The bigger the provider is, the more the fine will be. We are putting a fines system into place that takes into account the size of the Wasp and the degree of the infraction. Offenders can be fined up to R500 000 and a further R10 per subscriber on top of that,” says Perlman. Streicher believes compulsory reminders are an improvement but that there are still aspects of the subscription payment procedure that are problematic. “If one compares it to the credit card system, which also allows third-party billing, the key difference is that with a credit card you need detailed personal information to make transactions. Things like the 16-digit credit card number, CCV number, name and so forth, but with subscription services you only require a phone number.” He adds that credit cards have a chargeback function, while mobile services have no way of electronically reversing charges and have to do it manually, which means service providers are reluctant to reimburse charges. Credit card-holders also get monthly statements, while, especially with prepaid contracts, users do not get regular statements and may only realise after a long time that they are being billed, says Streicher. “The reminder message solves the problem to a large degree but many people ignore or immediately delete these reminders.” For many disgruntled mobile users, the first port of call is their network operator, but in many cases operators simply let Wasps make use of their network infrastructures and take no responsibility for the billing of an account. MTN Group subscribers grow at 8% in first quarter of 2009MTN Group Ltd., Africa’s largest mobile-phone company, said subscribers increased 8 percent in the first quarter from the preceding three months. Total customers swelled to 98.2 million at the end of the quarter from 90.7 million on Dec. 31, the Johannesburg-based company said in a statement today. Subscribers increased 12 percent to 25.9 million in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with about 145 million people. In March the company forecast it would add 22.6 million subscribers by the end of this year. It predicted 6 million new subscribers from Nigeria and the same number from Iran, as well as about 1.1 million new users from each of Ghana and Sudan. MTN plans to increase capital spending to 37.7 billion rand ($4.5 billion) this year from 28.3 billion rand in 2008. That includes 12 billion rand for Nigeria, or 25 percent more, and 8.15 billion rand for South Africa, a 67 percent jump. South and East Africa contributed 26 percent of clients, West and Central Africa 45 percent, and the Middle East and North Africa contributed 29 percent. Subscribers increased 2 percent in South Africa during the quarter to 17.4 million. Blended average revenue per user shrank in each of MTN’s 21 regions. In South Africa, the number fell 6 percent to US$16.64, and in Nigeria it fell 23 percent to US$13. (Source: Bloomberg) Zambia's M.Mobile to export its handsets to other African countries: 10,000 to go to ZimbabweM.Mobile, Zambia's newly commissioned mobile phone manufacturing plant, has sealed a deal to supply handsets to Zimbabwe, while east African and West African countries including Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda and Kenya are also expected to start importing its handsets. The Zambian plant became operational last month with an initial investment of US$3 million. Company Chairman Mohammed Seedat said the company has struck a deal to supply more than 10,000 handsets to Zimbabwe alone, while other east and southern African countries are also soon to be supplied with the phones. The Zambian plant is now assembling about 1,000 handsets per day. The Africa region has two mobile-phone assembling plants providing locally manufactured handsets to lessen the dependence on foreign-made devices that have flooded the region's market. A-Link Technologies of Rwanda has been producing handsets in Rwanda. The M-Tech line of handsets made in Zambia have, among other features, FM radios, phone books, color screens, alarms and calendars. Handsets are being sold for between US$40 and $45. "So many countries in the region have shown interest in purchasing our handsets," Seedat said. A-Link Technologies of China, however, started producing handsets in Rwanda last year. A-Link Technologies has so far produced three models -- the A100, A200 and A300 -- with other models still in the works. The phones feature color screens and radios, among other amenities. Unlike the Zambian plant, the Rwandan plant only has the capacity to produce 700 handsets per day. The Zambian plant, meanwhile, will soon be assembling phones ranging from ultra low-cost to state-of-the-art Wi-Fi connectivity phones with television capability. Early this year, the Zambian government increased customs duty on foreign-manufactured phones to 15 percent from 5 percent, to encourage local production of phones. Mobile service providers and dealers in Zambia were selling foreign imported handsets from as low as $16. The increase in import duty on foreign-manufactured handsets means imported phones have become more expensive than locally manufactured devices, which have been exempted from tax. The Zambian Ministry of Communications and Transport announced in February year that it was promoting the development and manufacturing of ICT products to curb spending on imports as well as to create high-tech industry. Zambia currently imports most of its ICT products and electronic goods mainly from Asia and South Africa. In addition to mobile phones, the Zambian government wants to start manufacturing computers and television sets through the Multi-Facility Economic Zones (manufacturing zones) being established in Lusaka. (Source: Computerworld Zambia) In brief:- The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has decided on an interconnect dispute between MTN Nigeria Communications and Globacom Limited. NCC has ruled that Globacom is indebted to MTN in a dispute over interconnect debt totalling about N900 million. NCC has issued a deadline of May 15, 2009 to Globacom to meet its payment obligations to MTN Nigeria. - The Nigeria Communication Commission will soon issue licensing for slots on the 2.3 Hz National Frequency to four operating companies at the cost of N5.47 billion. The commission received over 40 applications for the 4 licenses from 2006 to date the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Engr Ernest Ndukwe has said. He said each of the four slots has 20 Mhz in the 2.3 GHz frequency band. - Arab and foreign experts and technicians in broadcasting, satellite exploitation and mobile telephony have been brought together at the headquarters of the Arab States Broadcasting Union (ASBU) in Tunis to discuss the prospects of developing mobile television in the Arab region. The seminar, jointly organized by the ASBU and the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organization (AICTO), is meant for technicians of Arab broadcasting institutions and will focus mainly on the project of mobile TV in the Arab region through the Internet Protocol (IP). - South Africa’s Telkom has sold a 75% stake in Telkom Media to Chinese company Shenzen Media.
FNB becomes virtual ISP and VoIP provider in South AfricaFirst National Bank (FNB) has released a product called FNB Connect as a virtual ISP after obtaining IECNS and IECS licences. According to the bank, FNB Connect offers customers cheaper Internet and voice (VOIP) solutions. FNB CEO, Michael Jordaan, says: “This new solution is centred on innovation and using FNB's existing billing system will give our customers savings of 50% or more on their Internet data and voice calls.” The solution is broken into two offerings, the 'Surf' solution for data, which allows ADSL users to purchase prepaid data, and the 'Talk' solution, which focuses on supplying cheaper calls to landlines and cellphones, through a VOIP solution. Unlike a similar solution from Absa a few years back, which was offered free of charge, FNB Connect is not free. “The service is based on a prepaid model, so you pay for what you use and you are not locked into a contract, giving you more flexibility and freedom to manage your Internet and call costs,” says Carmen Roux, CEO of FNB Connect. “With our FNB Connect Surf product, ADSL users can save by buying prepaid data at 6.9c per MB or R69 per GB. We don't offer bundles, and carry what you don't use over to the next month, for up to 12 months,” she adds. According to Roux, FNB Connect is easy to use and install on a PC or cellphone, by downloading a free software application developed in-house by FNB. The application, called Digital Phone, lets customers send SMS messages at very low costs and instant messages for free. “Calls to some international destinations can be as low as 31c per minute,” says Roux. FNB Connect CIO, Luis Simoes, says: “The solution works on Windows and Linux platforms and currently on Symbian S60 versions 3.1 and 2.1 and Windows-based cellphones. We are busy developing the solution to support Symbian s60 version 3.0, Java and the iPhone.” Simoes adds that it will take in the region of two months to finalise. “There is no Apple Mac-compatible solution yet.” He also explains that with the Talk solution, customers will be able to make free FNB Connect to FNB Connect calls, via their cellphone, landline or PC, depending on the package they select. The two options available are the ConnectChat option, which is purely prepaid, and the ConnectXtra, which is a prepaid offering, but includes an annual membership of R249. (Source: ITWeb) Mauritius finally gets back .mu domainIt was a battle that lasted for more then a decade but at long last the Mauritian government has the .mu Top level Domain (TLD) back under government control. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed last week between the .mu TLD manager, Yan Kwok of Internet Direct, and the Information & Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA) of Mauritius. With the agreement, Mauritius becomes the second African country to win back its Top Level Domain (TLD). The process went faster only for South Africa. "It is a big step for the history of our country," said Asraf Dulul, minister of Information & Communication technologies. "If Mauritius wants to emerge as a regional platform, it is of uttermost importance that we own and manage our TLD by ourselves," Dulul said. Mauritius is not the only country that has struggled to manage its own TLD. In Africa, there's a general move for countries to take control of their TLDs. The issue caused heated debate at the Africa Telecommunications Union meeting held in Mauritius in March. It was attended by regulators and country code TLD managers. Some delegates suggested that African countries did not have the expertise or infrastructure to manage their own ccTLDs. The forum was a catalyst for the .mu redelegation and it allowed policy makers and regulators from 20 African countries to meet with representatives of different organizations to discuss the best approach to ccTLD administration. The struggle has been hard for Mauritius. In 1995 the .mu ccTLD was delegated by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority to Internet Direct Ltd. But Mauritius and Internet Direct were not able to reach agreement until last week. Now, the Mauritian government intends to confer the management of its TLD to a shared registry model, where the policy, technical and commercial functions are separated. An independent multistakeholder organization represented by government, civil society, private sector, national operators, academia and nongovernmental organizations will be set up to handle policy issues. The commercial aspect will be entrusted to a pool of registrars to allow fair competition. Technical stability of the ccTLD will be left in the hands of the current registry operator, Internet Direct Ltd. "It has the technical expertise and demonstrated proven competence and experience in managing a TLD," explains an official at the ministry. (Source: IDG News) Web-based tax payment portal to be launched in UgandaThe Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) is set to launch a web-based portal in order to provide taxpayers with the possibility to file their returns and pay their taxes online, online news portal allafrica.com reports. Consumers who wish to employ the online portal in question will be assigned an electronic tax transaction code (eTax) which allows them to register for the service, access information regarding the amounts they have to pay, carry out payment transactions as well as track the status of their applications and returns online. The new portal will be made available starting June 2009. The new online payment system is part of an integrated tax administration initiative launched by the URA in 2008 and looking to modernise the Ugandan tax department. (Source: The Paypers) In brief:- Rwanda is to build 20 GSM masts to enable installation of Wibro internet connection in Kigali after failed request to use MTN's masts. The project, which was supposed to be completed December 2008, will be completed in the third quarter of 2009, according to its manager, Mark Kabromba. - With the inauguration of a fibre-optic link to Lichinga, capital of the northernmost province of Niassa, the Mozambican state-owned telecommunications company, TDM, has completed the construction of its National Transmission Backbone. According to TDM, installing the fibre-optic connections, using terrestrial and undersea cables, has cost about 58.2 million euros (77.3 million US dollars). - Starcomms Plc, is rolling out its 1x CDMA data services in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital in Nigeria. Simultaneously the company is introducing its premium data service, the iZAP broadband services to two major Nigerian cities, Ibadan and Calabar. - As the Indian-government-sponsored Pan African e-network project gains ground in Africa, there are now fears that a lack of electricity to power the equipment will keep the initiative from moving forward. The project, which is a joint initiative between the Indian government and the African Union, was first launched in Ethiopia in 2007, followed by Rwanda last year. The aim of the project is to connect African countries to satellite and fiber-optic networks in order to provide e-learning, e-education and telemedicine, among other initiatives. Several African countries are now worried that the project may fail due to the lack of a constant power supply in many African countries.
E-Payment, E-Problem in NigeriaThe commencement of the Electronic Payment system in all Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in January was to introduce cashless regime in all government's transactions with the aim of hastening and quickening payments to the beneficiaries. The concept has been described as a welcome novelty. However, its implementation has been dogged by controversies. When the new system was announced, many civil servants did not receive their salary on time and those who did were either short-changed or were given someone else's pay. The story has not changed up till now. Now, the popular slogan when a payment is delayed in any government establishment "E-payment" is at work. The question is not that people are resisting change. Analysts say that the ideal operating environment for the new system is not yet available in the country. E-payment has been defined as a subset of e-government which is the application of electronic means in the interaction between Government and Citizens and Government and Businesses. A Director in charge of Consolidated Accounts in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), Osibote I, looked at e-payment as a form of direct payments and banking without physical appearance at the MDA or Bank through the means of electronic, interactive communication channels and other technological infrastructure. Analysts believe e-payment should go in pari pasu with e-government where records of everything and everyone are known and are in tact. But they say the new system may not thrive under bad power supply. Other conditions suitable for its success also include: Efficient telephone network system and strong Information Technology (IT) network. The Daily Trust can report that all these facilities are currently epileptic in the country. Like the Automotive Teller Machine (ATM), the e-payment which was conceived to aid easy and quick transaction is rather causing delay. Many people are complaining and the government is finding ways of dealing with this dilemma. For instance, it is expected that an electronic payment system should thrive in a society that has regular electricity, effective and efficient telephone network, etc. While all these facilities are still epileptic, the success of the system could be anything else but what is desirable. While the Nigerian bankable population have been sold the idea of the culture of using e-payment platforms, it acceptance is still at its embryonic stage. The banking industry still has the big challenge of making payment by either credit or full e-payment. Nigeria's banks is still lagging behind in cashless transaction. Quicker payment and transparency were cited as some of the basic reasons for introducing the e-payment regime, but so far, the system is so slow that many people are getting worried. Apart from the slowness in the system, fillers coming out is that the accountant themselves who are suppose to implement it are the ones inhibiting its development. The system is getting delayed because the system does not give room for those charges with the execution of the system to perpetuate their old ways of doing things - corruption- and they are bent on getting it frustrated. Because of the above reasons, Government and other people are worried on how to address some of the identified challenges of the e-payment system. The Minister of Finance, Muhtar Mansur, recently asked accountant and other financial stakeholders to help find solutions to the e-payment problems. Workshops and training are being organised to train and familiarise staff of MDAs on the work of the new system. Analysts are of the view that the major problem that the system would be confronted with is the accountants because the accountants are working against its success to keep their job. At a recent workshop on the e-payment, the Accountant General of the Federation Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo said that government would not do anything to create hardship for the citizens. He agreed that the system is encountering difficulties. "Let me first and foremost say that like any other system that is a new system it's bound to have that kind of fault. When there's a new thing coming; you really want to understand what it's intending to achieve, so what is its effect. Like I have said, the e-payment is basically an electronic form of paying government monies to beneficiaries or people paying government monies, like taxes through electronic means." On the hints that it is the accountants that are trying to create problem for the system, the AGF said: "I have heard it being said that the Accountants area against the e-payments because it is going to take away their job. No, it is not going to take any one's job. Accountancy is not about paying cash. Accountants don't even have contact with cash. It is about providing quality accountability. "If there is any place we suspect problem, we will resolve them", he said. Solutions to the e-payment are what Nigerians are waiting - and hoping that they will come soon. (Source: Daily Trust) SITA pushes open source adoption in South AfricaGovernment policy on open source software use exists, but it still has a lot of work to do, says the State IT Agency (SITA). This follows its signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Free Software and Open Source Foundation for Africa (Fossfa) to promote the use of free open source software in government. Pumeza Ceza, manager of Foss advocacy at SITA, says the agency has prioritised assisting the government with its drive towards using open sourced software and fostering greater acceptance and use of free and open source software. “The work that Fossfa has done - its various activities, certification programmes and work on policy - showed us it was best to use a bigger body. Right now we are looking at improving the open source policy and leverage on what we have already worked on.” Ceza adds that a plan of action has been drawn up and the two organisations will focus on improving three key areas: policy, capacity-building and institutional support. Daniel Mashao, CTO of SITA, says the MOU will promote the increased use of open source software among government departments, and increase the skills and capacity to introduce and manage open source software locally. “We can, through the use of open sourced software, save the government money in terms of licensing fees, but furthermore foster the development of IT skills and, in particular, IT development skills in open source software in SA.” Ceza notes government departments are migrating to open source solutions, but they still need assistance with skills development, and software and migration support from SITA. “At a workshop on Foss implementation, held recently, we asked departments about their work and we found that over 90% of departments are working towards implementing Foss. There are a lot of initiatives going on and we found that most government departments' back-end systems are running open source.” According to Mashao, a number of government departments are already at an advanced stage in introducing open sourced software into their departments. He notes that Seaparo Phalo, CIO of the Department of Arts and Culture, says his department is already at an “advanced stage of migration to open sourced software”. Mashao adds the department has already migrated its mail servers, several desktops and business systems to Foss. In addition, pockets of migration are in progress, both in the national archives and national film archives sections, and all of the boardrooms already use the open source facilities. The National Library of SA, which is partly funded by the Department of Arts and Culture, has also fully migrated its desktops to Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise, Mashao says. He adds that the Department of Science and Technology has also indicated it has progressive plans for back-end migrations, as well as other open source initiatives. (Source: ITWeb) Census to gauge ICT literacy skills in KenyaThe Government will assess the level of computer literacy and compliance when it carries out a national census on August 24. This is seen a move that will reinforce the Information Communications and Technology (ICT) as a key driver of the country’s service and manufacturing sectors. In a break from tradition, the Government now wants to measure the depth of this knowledge during the count by asking households how they embrace ICT in daily activities. The ICT questions are part of this year’s expanded census questionnaire and manuals which were adopted after consultations in 2006. “We will ask individuals if they have ever used computers and if they own computers to evaluate the extent to which ICT is entrenched in the country,” said Dr Edward Sambili, the Planning permanent secretary. The country’s economic blueprint - Vision 2030 - promotes the use of ICT to grow the service and manufacturing sectors by increasing their contribution to GDP by more than 10 per cent per annum in the initial phase which ends in 2012. Kenya’s ICT is headed for growth with the landing of the undersea fibre optic cables at the end of June. The arrival of the cables will position Kenya as a service hub especially for multinational firms prospecting oil in neighbouring Uganda and Sudan. Kenya has also started the process of building Special Economic Zones which will use the fibre cable advantage to process businesses across the region. The changing methods of processing businesses and also the continued promotion of ICT in the manufacturing sector is quickly driving the country to fully embrace computer technology for faster development. Dr Sambili is the chairman of the National Census Steering Committee, which is mandated with organising the count. The country carries out national population census after every 10 years according to United Nations standards. The last exercise in 1999 census put Kenya’s population at 28.7 million. In 2005, it was estimated at 33.8 million. More than Sh7.3 billion has been allocated for the census whose full results will be known by December. Provisional results stating the total population will be out in September. The census will also determine the number of employed Kenyans to ascertain the labour productivity in the country. It will assess housing conditions and availability of accommodation. The Government will also seek to know levels of remittances from the Diaspora by asking households if they had relatives staying outside the country. “The Government is collaborating with US Census Bureau to assist in census data processing. The Bureau is offering technical support, training and system backstopping,” said Dr Sambili. (Source: Business Daily) In Brief:- Veda Technology Limited, a Nigerian computer manufacturing company launched four different ranges of computer laptops into the market. Its Managing Director Bode Pedro, said the new computer products are designed and manufactured in Nigeria with the needs of Nigerian consumers in mind would offer consumer solutions and added value through practical innovations. The company will be in direct competition with Omatek and Zinox, the two main local manufacturers of computers in Nigeria. - All Rwandans above the age of sixteen who are legally entitled to an ID card will have received their new electronic cards by June, says Pascal Nyamurinda, the National Identity Card Project coordinator. - The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) headquartered in Addis Ababa, has awarded Tunisia the ICT Prize of public administration in African countries (TICA) for its judicious use of ICT in electronic administration. The Prize was awarded to the Tunisian trade network for its external trade procedures system, as well as to the national centre of monitoring of pharmaceuticals (CNCM), during a ceremony organized in the Ethiopian capital on April 30, 2009. - First started almost nine years ago SchoolTool, an open student information system built for Ubuntu Linux has released version 1.0 of the application. The project, which began life as a school timetabling tool with Shuttleworth Foundation backing, is now a comprehensive school management system which can manage all aspects of school management from tracking student grades, demographics, enrollments and reporting. - Need a Linux cluster for an hour or two? Powua is a new cloud computing service that uses open source software to allow users to rent up to 64 CPUs for high-demand graphics rendering or scientific applications. - Hot on the heels of the advances made by vehicle tracking companies in Kenya, the government is hatching a grand plan to use technology to trace livestock and reduce cattle rustling incidents. The initiative will see livestock tagged with monitoring devices that will also act as identifiers for animals should they fall into someone else's hands. The ambitious Sh50 billion plan to tag 13 million cows. - Some 50 Tunisian and foreign researchers are Thursday participating in the first examination session held at the Centre for Information, Training, Studies and Documentation on Associations (IFEDA) under an "E-Learning and International Certification in ICTs” project. - Nigeria’s government is relocating Computer Village from Otigba in Ikeja to Agbado in Oke-Odo Local Government Area which is under the former Alimosho Local Government Area.
World Bank shifts focus to West African telecomThe World Bank has turned its focus toward telecommunications in eastern and southern Africa to West Africa, agreeing to set aside US$50 million for ICT infrastructure development, connectivity, skills development and capacity building for Nigeria. The funds come less than seven months after the bank gave $424 million for the development of the eastern and southern Africa communication infrastructure. "The key intervention in Nigeria includes connectivity, infrastructure development and the outsourcing sector," according to Ismail Radwan, a senior economist with the African Finance and Private Sector Development agency. The World Bank is confident that a wider application of ICT as well as the popularization of business process outsourcing could lead to a significant transformation in the region's societies. Nigeria is recognized as the largest ICT market in Africa. With the World Bank funding, however, the country will further consolidate its position as the hub of ICT development and the largest ICT market in Africa, which would attract investment by international telecom companies. Nigeria's continued growth over the next five years is expected to trigger more competition among a growing number of networks in the West African region. Last year, the Nigerian telecom market grew by 23 percent, generating$8.4 billion in overall telecom service revenue. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, with more than 140 million people. Since the liberalization of the market in 2003, Nigeria's telecom market has experienced an exceptional growth rate that is attracting new operators more than any other country in the region. However, the World Bank wants all the African economies to be transformed through the development of ICT and increased investment in the telecom sector. The Rwandan government is using World Bank funds to develop a national capacity to provide broadband services with the hope of reducing the high cost of bandwidth and communication. The financing is also expected to increase the volume of international bandwidth in the region. The World Bank announced the program to fund ICT African infrastructure development in 2007. More than $164 million was allocated to Kenya, Burundi and Madagascar as part of the first phase of the program. Other eligible countries in the region will join future phases of the program a "readiness basis." By the end of the project, the bank said major cities across the region would be linked to competitively priced high-bandwidth connectivity. The lower prices of the international connectivity is expected to decrease the cost of doing business and increase private sector investment opportunities in the region. (Source: Computerworld Zambia) South Africa: Cell C Results Ignore Operating LossesUnlisted cellular network operator Cell C has done its usual trick of issuing only positive trading figures, declining to disclose how much money it actually lost during the year to December 31. Revenue climbed to R8.6bn, up 14% from R7.5bn a year ago, generated from its 6.4-million subscribers, up 34% from 4.6-million. But earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation fell to R812m, dropping from R1bn last year. The main missing figure is the operating loss, however, since Cell C is burdened by billions of rands in interest-bearing debts that drain its cash each month. A year ago those business-building debts stood at R14,3bn, but being unlisted it has no need to issue figures it does not want made public. Outgoing CEO Jeffrey Hedberg said the results were positive, given the tough economy and the pressure on people's disposable income. The increase in customers was achieved as client acquisition and retention strategies bore fruit, and tighter management control had kept costs at "adequate" levels while profit margins remained satisfactory. "I believe the team has met the expectations of both our customers and shareholders," he said. In an effort to deflect speculation that its majority owner, Saudi Oger, may sell the company after failing to make a net profit over eight years, Cell C chairman Simon Duffy said the shareholders were fully committed and would continue to invest in its success. Hedberg has already been replaced after saying he would not be renewing his contract in November. New CEO Lars Reichelt said Cell C had performed well in most areas but still had significant room for improvement. Growth potential remained strong and Cell C would aggressively expand its network coverage and improve its operational and financial performance, he said. (Source: Business Day) FT’s planned acquisition of Sonatel shares abandonedThe government of Senegal has abandoned plans to sell a 9.87% stake in its national PTO Sonatel to France Telecom amid criticism that the move would cost local jobs. The cash-strapped African country had hoped to raise EUR209 million (USD276 million) from the sale of shares in a move that would have made the French firm the majority shareholder in Sonatel with 52.2%. However, critics attacked the plan which they said was ‘colonial’ and would result in redundancies, while in some parts of Dakar, people launched 'go slow' protests in a bid to block it. ‘The government tells us that the solution of selling [the stake] to France Telecom has been cancelled and we can only congratulate the advisors of the president,' Ibrahima Konte, a Sonatel union leader, said on national TV last Friday. Commenting on the climbdown, a senior government official said: 'The state has abandoned the sale to France Telecom but we are not abandoning the selling of shares ... we will seek other means,' he said. (Source: Telegeography) Nigeria’s Swap Technologies Rakes in N5.25 Billion in 2008Despite the economic crunch ravaging companies world over, a Nigerian telecom services company, Swap Technologies and Telecom plc, has announced a turnover growth rate of 52% and a N5.25billion profits at the end of 2008 financial year. The company announced this last week at the annual general meeting and financial year report organised at the Lagoon Restaurant Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victorial Island, Lagos. Addressing the board of Directors and the public at the event, the company's Managing Director, Tunde Titilayo, said that in spite of the difficult macro economic environment in which we operate, towards the last quarter of 2008,the company still came out strong on all our operating indices. Revenue growth of 51.7%, operating profit growth of 57.8% and profit after tax growth of 49.2%. “In the new year 2009, we also expect to record double digit growth. Our West Africa office which is a 100% subsidiary of Swap Plc is in full operation in Accra and has started making waves in that region and will contribute to the group performance. We are also looking at some strategic mergers and acquisitions during the year to spur our growth taking advantage of the present global recession and the benefit of your company's strong balance sheet. This is necessary especially for us to achieve our vision of becoming one of the top 5 quoted conglomerates in Nigeria by 2011”. Meanwhile, the chairman of the company , Adokpaye Godwin, also added that ' despite the global economics crunch that set many company back in making profits, activities in Swap Technologies has recorded a profit that valued 52% over the previous year. With the improvement, Swap has a future investment in Ghana and Nigeria with a new infrastructure sharing licence from the Nigerian Communication Commission(NCC). Adokpaye, further said, the company which has been consistent over the year in living-up to her strategic thrust has differentiated itself as a first class organization as evidenced by its track record and corporate performance presented from its four divisional subsidiaries, they are Swap Mobile Ltd, Swap Energy Ltd, Swap Engineering and Project, and Swap Logistics Services. Swap Technologies and Telecom began operating result in 2008 with confidence, based on our vision, strategy and people. In May 2008, this conviction was bolstered by a successful private placement during which investors injected N3.5billion into the company. The improved funding that led to notable improvements in the performance of our company resulting in business expansion, profitable volume growth and improved project execution. In spite of this, our profit after Tax improved from N344million in 2007 to N513millin in 2008, a rise of more than 49%. (Source: Vanguard) In brief:- Shares in Burkinabe telecoms operator Onatel have been listed on the West Africa regional BRVM bourse for the first time, Reuters has reported. The government of Burkina Faso raised CFA29 billion (USD61 million) earlier this year from the sale of a 20% stake in the company through an initial public offering (IPO) launched in December 2008. The company’s privatisation began in 2006 when the government sold a 51% stake to Maroc Telecom. - The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) has issued 250,000 e-zwich smart cards and distributed over 3000 point of sale terminals, according to a TV3 news bulletin monitored by ghanabusinessnews.com. Telecoms, Rates, Offers and Coverage (briefs)- MTN Ghana has rolled out its 3.5G technology connections in Accra and Tema, both in the Greater Accra Region, and Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. Plans are also afoot to aggressively expand and extend the 3.5G technology to all major cities, as well as commercial towns across the length and breadth of the country. - Nigerian mobile operator Globacom (Glo Mobile) has introduced the concept of 'One Network' over for its customers roaming between its networks in Nigeria and neighbouring Republic of Benin. Both sets of subscribers can now make calls charged at local rates in their own local currency when travelling in either country. The offer is initially limited to voice calls; SMS texts and GPRS data services will be included in due course, whilst Globacom also says it will introduce the concept to other west African countries where it is deploying networks.
Rwanda Adopts Phones for Health InitiativeThe Ministry of Health has unveiled a new technology of using mobile phones to support public health, starting with support for Community Health Workers in mother and child health interventions. The Phones for Health initiative is a unique public-private partnership which uses computers and mobile phones to establish a national electronic reporting system that eases delivery of public health care at the village level. All health workers subscribed to this technology will be able to send monthly reports and emergency calls at no cost as a national method of harmonising health services. Speaking at a one day workshop to discuss and provide input on the architectural plan and integration of mobile enabled applications in Rwanda's National Health Information system, Health Minister Dr Richard Sezibera commended the development. "This will help meet the broader information needs of the country's health sector by improving coordination and communication. It's an effective force multiplier against communicable and non communicable diseases," he said Thursday, at his offices at Prime Holdings. Sezibera admitted that combining biology and engineering will turn the health business into a communication institution which renders medication and healthcare delivery timely, precise, portable and personal. He revealed that in most cases all that Community Health Workers demand during consultative meetings is transport and communication and that the initiative could never have come at a better time."We will do everything in our reach to avail computers and any other services where we operate," Sezibera pledged. Phones for Health partners include leading mobile phone operators like the MTN group, Accenture, Motorola and Voxiva. (Source: The New Times) MXit launches Africa’s first mobile bookMobile social networking company MXit, with 13 million subscribers worldwide, has introduced Africa’s first Mobile Book (MBook), in a bid to promote literacy and reading among its majority youth audience. As of today, MXit users will be able to download an entire book - “Emily and the Battle of the Veil” - on the network, at a cost of ZAR13.50. Says Juan du Toit, International Marketing Manager for MXit: “This is a very exciting project for us because it allows us to add online reading to the already broad online social networking and chatting model that encompasses the MXit lifestyle offering. As MXit is so widely used by the youth as their preferred communication tool, we hope to encourage the youth to develop a love of reading. We will therefore look to provide our users with more titles in the future.” According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 26 percent of the world’s adult population is illiterate and 98 percent of these people live in developing countries. Africa as a continent has a literacy rate of less than 60 percent. The fantasy novel is written by Karen Brooks, and is based on the life of a fictional 13 year old girl in South Africa. It can be downloaded on the MXit mobile portal, and can be read at any time after the download completes. Says Brooks: “MBooks is the evolution of eBook. I thought that access to books via a digital medium was a great way to give everybody access to my novel. More importantly, Emily and the Battle of the Veil is suited to teenagers and I wanted to make it accessible to them - hoping that it will foster a love for reading and writing,” “I also found the concept of a zero carbon footprint very appealing. As book lovers we did not traditionally think about the impact on the environment, however I am pleased that the next generation will have the same access to literature that we did, but in an eco-friendly way”. The launch of MXit’s first MBook follows other educational initiatives from the company, including a maths project called Imfundo Yami Imfundo Yethu, which offers online mathematics classes to learners. It is a joint programme undertaken by Nokia South Africa, MXit and a Finnish company that created the mathematical software. (Source: IT News Africa)
People- The Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Telecommunications Plc (NITEL), Kelvin Caruso, has been redeployed. According to an internal memo dated April 29, 2009, new management structure of NITEL has been constituted with Tom Iseghoghi, as the Group Managing Director, Transcorp, and Chairman, NITEL Transition Committee. Events* INET Africa Meeting 2009 18 May 2009, Cairo, Egypt INET Africa meeting will be held together with AfNOG and AfriNIC meetings that will be held during the same week. Please note that the meeting date has been moved from the one announced on AfNOG and AfriNIC sites. This year’s INET’s title is “IGF Sharm El Sheikh: An Opportunity to Foster Regional Internet Governance”. It is organized by the Internet Society (ISOC) and the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of Egypt. The meeting aims at holding discussions to prepare the African Internet community for the Internet Governance Forum that will take place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, next November. It will discuss the issues of focus of this year’s IGF with an African perspective. For meeting and registration details, please see http://www.afrinic.net/meeting/afrinic-10/registration.htm or contact inetafrica@isoc.org * Elearning AFRICA 2009 4th International Conference on ICT for Development 27-29 May 2009, Dakar, Senegal eLearning Africa 2009 will welcome nearly 300 speakers from 50 countries to Dakar, Senegal. The programme, which is now available on the eLA website, will feature state-of-the-art presentations and interactive workshops, together with practical demonstrations and cutting-edge debates on key issues in the field of eLearning for the African continent. A range of new initiatives will also be presented. For further information visit http://www.elearning-africa.com/ * Mobile Banking & Financial Services Africa 20-22 July 2009, Southern Sun Grayston Hotel, Johannesburg Building on the highly successful inaugural event last year, the conference will again deliver timely insights into the key business, technical and security considerations that all players in the mobile banking and payments industry in Africa must address. For more information and to book your place now, call +44 (0)20 7017 7483 or e-mail your registration to us at registrations@iir-telecoms.com or book online at http://www.iir-events.com/IIR-Conf/page.aspx?id=19296 * MMT 09 - Mobile Money Transfer 26-27 October2009, Dubai. MMT 09 is a 'must attend' event for anyone who is serious about remittances. Over 350 mobile network operators, microfinance institutions, money transfer networks, banks and technology providers will converge at MMT 09 to discuss the best ways to make money from mobile money transfer. Nowhere else in the world will you find so many MMT project leaders all gathered in one place. For more information visit www.mobile-money-transfer.com http://www.mobile-money-transfer.com or email harpreet.sohanpal@clarionevents.com Jobs and OpportunitiesUmts Install Commissioning Engineers - Uganda EngineersTangent International are looking for experienced 3G UMTS Installation and Commissioning Engineers for an urgent project in Uganda.The project is for two months and previous experience with Alcatel UMTS experience is essential.All expenses will be paid including Flights, Visa and AccommodationIf you have the above experience and you are interested in this exciting opportunity please send a copy of your current CV to me urgently! For further click on the following link http://www.cellular-news.com/recruitment/list_job.php?uid=7040 CERTIFICATE IN TELECOMMS POLICY, REGULATION AND MANAGEMENT The Certificate in Telecommunications Policy, Regulation and Management is offered by the LINK Centre, School of Public and Development Management, University of the Witwatersrand - Southern Africa’s leading research and training body in the field of information and communications technology policy, regulation and management. It provides an essential background to understanding regulatory and policy issues and challenges in the rapidly changing telecommunications and broadcasting sectors. This course commences in May 2009. The course web page is available at http://link.wits.ac.za/training/tc1.html Contact Tennyson Mashiloane + 27 11 717-4595 or via email tennyson.Mashiloane@wits.ac.za for more information or to enrol. Contracts* Infotechnology Solutions an Clickatell - Nigeria Infotechnology Solutions has chosen Clickatell to offer interactive text alerts to banking customers in Nigeria - one of the fastest growing African economies. Banks can offer customers real-time SMS alerts with every transaction, giving customers immediate knowledge of account movement on their cards. Using Infotechnology's new solution, named MoneyGuard, customers have the ability to immediately respond to alerts on transactions considered fraudulent. * Libya Telecom & Technology and Huawei - Libya Libya Telecom & Technology (LTT) has awarded Chinese equipment vendor Huawei Technologies a contract to provide it with a fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network. Huawei will roll out an FTTH network covering households in 800 apartment buildings on the Airport Road in Alzohor District, Tripoli, in the first phase, and expand the network coverage to other districts in the second phase. The deployment will enable LTT to offer more stable and more advanced broadband services for end users. The network will be the first commercial FTTH project in Libya, LTT said.
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