Telecom (130)
French telecommunications group Orange is stepping up its investments to facilitate digital transformation in its operating countries. The lab inaugurated is its third in Africa and the 19th worldwide.
Orange, a French telecoms group operating in 16 African countries, inaugurated its 5G lab in Antananarivo, Madagascar, last Thursday, September 28. The lab was inaugurated during a trade fair organized to showcase the 5G internet speed. It enables various players in the technology sector to discover 5G, demonstrate its use cases, and assess the potential of 5G in their products and services.
"This fair marks the launch in Madagascar of an Orange 5G Lab, which is based at the Orange Digital Center Madagascar premises in Ankorondrano. The Orange 5G Lab Madagascar program aims to help digital and economic players better understand the opportunities, value, and usefulness of 5G," Orange indicates in a press release.
5G offers higher upload and download speeds and more consistent connections, revolutionizing the technology sector in many ways. With its labs and similar investments, Orange is increasingly establishing itself as a key player in the acceleration of digital transformation in Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Antananarivo-based Orange 5G Lab is the third it inaugurated in Africa. In June and September 2022, it respectively inaugurated Orange 5G Labs in Dakar (Senegal) and Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire).
Adoni Conrad Quenum
With the ongoing digital transformation, investments are pouring into Africa to guarantee quality internet connection for populations. Over the past three years, new telecoms infrastructures have been commissioned for this purpose.
Demand for high-speed Internet services in Africa has been rising since 2020. This need is currently having a direct impact on the continent's transmission capacity, which has recorded the fastest compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in the world over the past three years, indicates the Broadband Commission of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), in its report "The State of Broadband 2023 Digital Connectivity: A Transformative Opportunity."
Between 2020 and 2023, a dozen new submarine cable systems were commissioned on the continent, boosting total available bandwidth by more than 70 terabits. In addition to cables such as the South Atlantic Inter Link, Orval, METISS, DARE1, EllaLink, Maroc Telecom West Africa, Equiano, 2Africa, etc., thousands of kilometers of terrestrial fiber optic cable have also been deployed by suppliers such as Liquid Telecom. Added to this are the data capacities of national and international satellite communication systems such as Eutelsat, YahClick, Intelsat, Starlink, OneWeb, etc.
Source: Broadband Commission
In its June 2020 Mobility Report, tech company Ericsson reported that in sub-Saharan Africa, home to more than half the African population, monthly internet trafic per smartphone was 1.9 gigabytes in 2019. By June 2022, this monthly traffic had climbed to 4.7 gigabytes. Ericsson estimates that this growth in demand volume will reach 19 GB by 2028, for individual consumers alone. However, the rapid annual growth in high-speed transmission capacity does not always benefit all African populations, even though 83% of them are covered by a telecoms network (49% by 4G and almost 30% by 3G), according to the ITU. The Internet access rate is only 33% (87% in Europe, 81% in the USA, 61% in Asia-Pacific), despite the significant potential for high-speed connectivity. A number of obstacles are still holding back the full exploitation of the various Internet investments made by governments and service providers. These include the high cost of entry-level broadband services. They are still well above the threshold set by the Broadband Commission: less than 2% of monthly gross national income per capita.
Source: UIT
The cost of internet-enabled phones is another obstacle. In its study "To Luxury To Lifeline. Reducing the cost of mobile devices to reach universal internet access" covering 70 countries worldwide, the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) drew up a heat map revealing the markets where the price of a smartphone is most affordable. Access to computers is also expensive. Only 1% of the African population is connected to fixed broadband at home (35% in Europe, 23% in the USA, 17% in Asia-Pacific), out of the nearly 2.5 million km of fiber optic cable already deployed on the continent.
Source: Alliance for Affordable Internet
According to the ITU, the Internet is currently an undisputable catalyst for economic and social development. The UN agency states that improving mobile and fixed broadband penetration rates by 10% would add 2.5% and 1.5 respectively to gross domestic products (GDP).
Muriel Edjo
In 2021, Starlink began negotiations to get the necessary authorizations to provide its satellite internet services in certain African countries. Pursuing the same objective, the company is partnering with African companies with converging ambitions.
Pan-African broadband connectivity provider Paratus announced on Friday, September 22 that it had signed an agreement to distribute Starlink's broadband Internet services on the African continent.
Under the terms of the agreement, Paratus will supply Starlink to customers across the continent as and when licenses are granted to Starlink in Africa. For the time being, Starlink will be available from Paratus in Mozambique, Kenya, Rwanda, and Nigeria, before being extended to other countries.
"This agreement aligns perfectly with our vision of transforming Africa through exceptional digital infrastructure and customer service. It means we can offer industry sectors – such as land and offshore energy, mining, hospitality, education, healthcare, agriculture, and more – the reliable and constant connectivity they need to flourish, no matter how remote they are," said Martin Cox, Paratus Group Chief Commercial Officer.
For Starlink, the new agreement is part of its expansion strategy to bring satellite broadband Internet services to every corner of the globe, including remote and landlocked areas hardly accessible for mobile operators' terrestrial networks.
In this way, the partnership between Paratus and Starlink should help to strengthen competition in the African Internet market and promote digital inclusion. According to a 2022 report by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), in 2021, 33% of Africans used the Internet, compared with 63% for the global average. These figures have risen sharply in 2022 with the arrival of new telecom operators and the construction of new infrastructures in several countries.
Samira Njoya
Sattelite internet provider Starlink has expressed its interest in conquering the African market by 2024. To date, the company has launched operations in five countries and is looking to do the same in Chad, with plans to extend its reach to 23 African markets.
The Chadian Electronic Communications and Posts Regulatory Authority (ARCEP) has issued a warning to individuals illegally marketing and operating Starlink terminals in the country. In a press release published on social networks on Friday, September 22, the telecoms regulator warns offenders of the penalties provided for by law in the event of continuation of the aforementioned activities.
Providing unauthorized electronic communication services or maintaining the services despite legal orders to suspend it is punishable by one to five years imprisonment and fines ranging from XAF100 million ($162,500) to XAF200 million or one of the two penalties, the release informs quoting Article 113 of Law No. 014/PR/2014 on electronic communications.
ARCEP's release comes as the Starlink network is increasingly used in Chad. On social networks, users are approving the new services, which they say are bridging the digital divide in the country by providing Internet access to underserved communities at an affordable cost.
For the telecoms regulator, the problem lies in the license that Starlink would need to obtain before launching operations in the country. Two days earlier, ARCEP held a consultation meeting on Starlink's application to become a Satellite Internet Service Provider (ISP) in Chad. A response is expected in the next few days.
In Chad, the legal use of Starlink should stimulate the digital sector and offer a high-speed Internet connection to a population that constantly complains about the poor quality and high costs of the Internet in the country.
Samira Njoya
The International Telecommunication Union considers broadband access to be an indicator of development. At a time when digitalization is accelerating in Africa, ensuring connectivity for the population is more than just an economic issue.
Repairs on the West African Cable System (WACS), South Africa Transit 3 (SAT3), and Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) submarine fiber optic cables, damaged in early August 2023, have been completed. The three high-speed telecoms infrastructures linking the west coast of Africa to Europe had been severed off the coast of the Democratic Republic of Congo following a rockfall in an underwater canyon. Repairs were carried out by the cable-laying vessel Léon Thévenin, which arrived in South Africa on August 21.
Openserve –the broadband Internet arm of South African telecoms group Telkom, which is also one of the members of the WACS and SAT3 cable consortium– confirmed the successful completion of the repairs on Wednesday, September 20.
“The completion of this work is good news for Internet users as this means that there is more available capacity and improved network resiliency," said Openserve.
Because of the break in the three undersea fiber optic cables, Internet service providers and consumers have been deprived of a total of 154.5 terabits per second (Tbps) of data capacity for over a month. That's 20 Tbps for the ACE system, which connects ten African countries; 120 Tbps for SAT3 and 14.5 Tbps for WACS, which together connect eleven African countries.
For some countries, such as Benin, Cameroon, and Côte d'Ivoire, which host all these cables, the inconvenience caused by the incident to telecoms infrastructures was somewhat more severe. However, the alternative solutions adopted by operators enabled Internet services to continue uninterrupted.
This is not the first time that the SAT3, WACS, or ACE cables have been damaged. In 2017 and 2020, the cables were severed, hampering business continuity in several countries. To remedy the situation once and for all, many countries are increasing their access to subsea systems, while others are opting for satellite technologies.
At a time when the United Nations considers the Internet to be a basic service capable of contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the diversification of connectivity sources is more than just an economic issue for African countries.
Samira Njoya
Since 2011, Congo has been served by a single international fiber subsea cable, the WACS. Frequent outages on this infrastructure disrupt Internet services.
On Thursday, September 7, the Congolese Minister of Posts, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy, Léon-Juste Ibombo, launched the construction of a second national backbone network, resulting from Congo's recent connection to the new 2Africa subsea cable.
The 2Africa subsea cable, initiated by Meta (Facebook's parent company), will enable data transmission between Pointe-Noire and Brazzaville at a very high speed of up to 10 gigabytes per second.
According to the Minister of Telecoms, the new network will improve and further strengthen the capacity of what already exists. "The construction of the new Matombi backbone network, which will serve Pointe-Noire, Brazzaville, and the other cities, is the concrete expression of a strong ambition to improve the speed and reliability of electronic communications, facilitate trade and access to international markets, foster technological innovation and encourage the emergence of startups, and strengthen Congo's participation in the global digital economy," he said.
2Africa is the second international subsea cable the Republic of Congo is connected to. In 2011, the country connected to the WACS (West Africa Cable System) cable, on which it mainly depends for broadband Internet services. However, frequent outages on this infrastructure cause disruption to Internet services.
When completed in 2024, the 2Africa cable will be 45,000 km long, making it the longest in the world. It will serve a geographical area (Africa, Middle East, Europe) home to some three billion people, or 36% of the world's population.
In Congo, 2Africa should not only reduce the cost of Internet services but also extend access to these services to millions more people. According to the latest data from the regulator, the country currently has 3.05 million Internet users, equivalent to a penetration rate of 54%.
Samira Njoya
Broadband Internet service provider Starlink has expressed its interest in conquering the African market by 2024. So far, the company has launched operations in five countries on the continent and is looking to do the same in Zimbabwe with plans to extend its reach to 23 African markets.
Starlink, Elon Musk’s satellite internet company, will have to comply with applicable regulations if it is to operate in Zimbabwe. The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) recently issued a warning to users and resellers cautioning them against using unlicensed operators and internet service providers based abroad.
According to the telecoms regulator, to launch operations in the country, Starlink can either apply for a license or partner with a local company registered as a public network operator. In this case, "the Satellite Operator and the local network Operator enter a Virtual Network Operator (VNO) agreement, that must be approved by the authority, to ensure that the public network operator meets legal and regulatory requirements stipulated in the license," POTRAZ wrote in a public notice.
In December 2022, Starlink announced the launch of its activities in Zimbabwe. On its website, Starlink indicated it was planning to start serving the region in the fourth quarter of 2023. So, for the regulator, if this timetable remains unchanged, the company should have submitted a license application by now.
Starlink's arrival in Zimbabwe is expected to boost the digital sector and provide high-speed Internet connection to the population, who constantly complain about the poor quality and high cost of Internet in the country.
Samira Njoya
We are in the digital economy era, and the impact of tech entrepreneurship on wealth and job creation keeps growing in Africa. However, African innovators still face many challenges, and encouraging local talent and promoting access to certain resources is becoming more and more urgent.
The Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) and the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) recently signed a partnership agreement to provide free communications resources to emerging ICT companies. The move aims to foster an environment that is conducive to digital innovation and allows these companies to thrive.
"The collaborative effort aims to nurture the country's thriving digital innovation landscape, ensuring that start-ups have the tools they need to thrive and contribute positively to society through their technological advances," said TCRA CEO Dr Jabiri Bakari (pictured, right).
"The distribution of these resources makes it possible to offer high-speed Internet services, an important factor in the digital economy," he added.
Two months ago, the TCRA allocated resources to four innovative startups to enable them to submit their ideas to COSTECH for further development. The move also contributes to the Tanzanian government's ambition to provide 80% of the population access to high-speed Internet by 2025, consequently fostering innovation in areas such as entrepreneurship, agriculture, and transport.
Support from TCRA and COSTECH will enable Tanzanian startups to communicate their projects free of charge. Among other things, TCRA provides numbering resources, frequency spectrum, zip codes, residential addresses and mobile money services.
Samira Njoya
After much debate about the TikTok application, the Kenyan government has finally made up its mind. Unlike other African countries, the video-sharing app will not be suspended in the country.
TikTok recently committed to collaborating with Kenyan authorities to better control its content in the country. Kenyan President William Ruto made the announcement last Thursday, August 24, after a virtual meeting with TikTok CEO, Shou Zi Chew, who also agreed to open an office in Kenya to coordinate its operations in the region.
Kenya will work with the short-form video hosting service TikTok in reviewing and monitoring its content to ensure that it adheres to the agreed community guidelines and standards. It is our commitment that we bring up our children in the right environment.
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) August 24, 2023
During a virtual… pic.twitter.com/ua1X8oL1sG
“Kenya will now work with the short video hosting service TikTok to review and monitor its content to ensure it adheres to the agreed community guidelines and standards. This new development means that inappropriate or offensive content will be removed from the platform,” said Ruto.
Barely 10 days before the announcement, Kenyan lawmakers received a petition from Bob Ndolo, a Kenyan businessman, highlighting the sharing of inappropriate content on TikTok and the collection of user data by its Chinese company. The parliament had decided to investigate the platform’s usage in Kenya and said it would decide in the following two months.
Earlier last week, Kenya’s neighbor Somalia banned TikTok, Telegram, and 1XBet, a betting platform. In a statement released on August 29, Somalia’s government blamed the platform of spreading misinformation and content that is harmful to national interests.
TikTok, which has more than one billion active users worldwide, is also suspended in Senegal, with authorities claiming that the platform is used to spread hateful and subversive messages that threaten the country's stability.
Samira Njoya
As part of efforts to develop its digital economy, Zambia has been partnering with various States that share its ambition.
Zambia and Malawi recently teamed up to reduce the costs of broadband connectivity in both countries. The two sides inked last week two major agreements in this framework. The first was between Malawi’s Ministry of Information and Digitization and Zambia’s Ministry of Technology and Sciences. The second was between the Malawi Electricity Supply Corporation (Escom) and Fibercom, a Zambian ISP.
Escom Malawi and Fibercom will, via their optical fiber cables, establish a diplomatic data corridor as part of their deal. This corridor will create an internet pathway through Zambia.
“The agreement on the diplomatic data corridor signed today lays the foundation for such connectivity to meet the communication needs of current and future generations. Escom, as the implementing agency on behalf of the Malawi government, is committed and ready to provide available, reliable, and affordable digital services,” said Escom CEO Kamkwanda Kumwenda.
The two agreements were signed in Lilongwe, Malawi. For Malawi, they will contribute to its ambition to achieve full digitization by 2063, and for Zambia, they are a major milestone towards its goals for accelerating ICT and Telecoms development by 2030.
Also, the partnership will help lower the cost of data, thus boosting access to Internet and consequently stimulating the partnering economies.
According to recent data from the Zambian Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA), Zambia has 20.2 million mobile phone users, and 10.4 million internet users. As for Malawi, it had 5.04 million internet users at the beginning of this year, according to DataReportal. By 2026, the country seeks to have 80% of its population have access to the internet, against only 14% now. It also seeks to raise the mobile penetration rate from 51% to 80% over the same period.
Samira Njoya
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Well aware that the country can have no sustainable digital economy without reliable and quality internet, the South Sudan government has been, since 2020, taking steps to reinforce its capacities in this aspect.
The Presidents of South Sudan and Kenya, Salva Kiir Mayardit and William Ruto, respectively, signed a fiber-optic cable deal last Saturday, August 19, in Nairobi. The cable will connect Eldoret in northwest Kenya to Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
William Ruto, on the occasion, said that the project will enhance connectivity, foster integration, and boost intraregional trade between the two countries.
The signing of a deal on the establishment of a fibre optic cable along the Eldoret-Juba Road validates Kenya’s commitment to strengthening its ties with South Sudan. pic.twitter.com/KcOPaRRN9k
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) August 19, 2023
This project is part of the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport Corridor (LAPSSET) project. Under the latter, seven key infrastructure projects will be developed in the three nations, to achieve economic growth and prosperity and reduce the infrastructure deficit.
Before the recent deal, Kenya and South Sudan already shared a fiber-optic cable. Indeed, in October 2020, 630 km of fiber-optic cable were deployed at the border between the two countries, under the regional project for the facilitation of transport, trade, and development in East Africa. The World Bank and the Kenyan government financed the cable’s establishment at the time.
The new interconnection will link the South Sudanese capital to the rest of the world. It will also reduce the high cost of the Internet, consequently improving cross-border communication and trade.
Samira Njoya
Digital technology is quite important for the Guinean government. The country already has many digital projects underway, and others waiting for funding to be launched.
Guinea's Minister of Posts, Telecommunications, and the Digital Economy, Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, met with a delegation from the World Bank led by Franz Drees-Gross, the institution's regional director for infrastructure, on July 18.
The Minister of Digital Affairs sought the support of the global financial institution for the implementation of several digital projects in Guinea, namely the West Africa Digital Integration Project (WARDIP), e-procurement, covering white areas, stimulating competition in telecoms, launching the national telecoms operator Guinea Telecom, and landing a second submarine cable.
Franz Dress-Gross showed a lot of interest in all of these projects, and new interviews were scheduled to expedite ongoing projects. Before this meeting, Ousmane Diagana, the World Bank's Vice President for West and Central Africa, announced the World Bank's intention to increase its funding in the digital economy in Guinea.
"The digital economy is a factor that can be a development accelerator, but also an element to help equalize access opportunities for all citizens to several services. We plan to significantly increase our funding in these areas. Better yet, ensure that existing programs, which are numerous in these sectors, can be executed more quickly," Diagana stated on Monday, July 17, following a working session with Guinea's Prime Minister, Bernard Goumou (pictured in the center).
The talks were held during a two-day visit to Guinea by a World Bank delegation led by Ousmane Diagana. Several topics were discussed during the visit, including job creation, human capital strengthening, and climate resilience consolidation.
Samira Njoya
5G will soon be deployed in Senegal. Sonatel recently won the bid to commercialize the technology in the country.
Senegal’s telecom regulator, the ARTP, has provisionally awarded the 5G license to the Sonatel group through its commercial brand Orange. Abdou Karim Sall, the director general of the watchdog, announced on July 17, 2023, during a press conference in Dakar.
L' artp a attribué la 5G à la Sonatel. L'opérateur historique a déboursé 34,5 milliards de CFA pour avoir la technologie de la cinquième génération(5G). L’Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications et Postes (ARTP) avait lancé la procédure d’appel à candidature pour… pic.twitter.com/pZo1TlpdMf
— A.P.S - Sénégal (@APS_Senegal) July 17, 2023
According to the ARTP’s boss, Sonatel paid CFA34.5 billion (€52.7 million) for the technology. "The main goal is to allow all operators who wish to have a 5G license for the great benefit of users [...] We had set a reserve price of 19.5 billion FCFA. When we proceeded to the counting, we retained that of Sonatel since its offer was compliant," said Abdou Karim Sall.
The ARTP issued a call for bids on May 31 for operators interested in deploying the technology in Senegal. Three operators – Free, Sonatel, and Expresso – submitted bids.
Following the bidding, Free and Expresso were taken out because they did not respect the clause of the reserve price set at CFA19.5 billion, leaving Sonatel as the winner.
In the coming days, Sonatel will have to sign the concession agreement and specifications alongside the ministries in charge of Telecommunications and Finance. Afterwards, the President of Senegal will issue a decree and the ARTP will give its final approval for the official deployment of the 5G technology.
Deploying the technology in Senegal will enable Sonatel to meet the population’s growing demand for high-speed connectivity and new digital consumption modes, influenced notably by Covid-19.
Samira Njoya
Tech is a pillar of Kenya's socio-economic development strategy. Eager to digitize all the country's key sectors, Nairobi is looking for international partners.
The Kenyan Minister of Information, Communications, and Digital Economy, Eliud Owalo (photo, right), recently showcased his country's telecommunications and digital assets in Geneva, Switzerland.
On July 11, speaking at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2023 Council meeting, Owalo noted that Kenya's digital network is ahead of most African countries. He then invited global development partners and investors to support the country’s ongoing digitization program.
"Kenya is keen on partnerships that will equip our youth with digital skills for digital jobs and also develop our ICT infrastructure, using affordable digital devices and finding jobs for young Kenyans in cyberspace," the Kenyan ICT ministry said on Twitter.
1/2 The Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, Mr Eliud Owalo today was hosted by the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Ms. Doreen Bogdan-Martin, at the ITU Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. pic.twitter.com/kVs1HFJhQg
— Ministry of Info, Comms & The Digital Economy KE (@MoICTKenya) July 12, 2023
Over 5,000 government services have been dematerialized since Kenya started its digitization a few years ago; fiber optics are being deployed throughout the country, and public Wi-Fi access points have already been installed in several localities.
While lauding the achievements, Eliud Owalo said there’s still a lot to do. Indeed, if 98% of the Kenyan population has access to mobile phones and broadband services, around 1.7 million people still don’t. Also, about 45% of the population still doesn’t have access to smart devices in the country.
To meet this challenge, the Kenyan government is counting on its various international partners, including the US, with whom the Kenyan delegation has begun talks in Geneva.
1/3 The Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, Mr Eliud Owalo today held consultations with the leader of the United States Delegation to the 2023 ITU Council Meeting in Geneva, Ambassador at Large, H. E. Nathaniel C Flick. pic.twitter.com/h5Mllmhbdr
— Ministry of Info, Comms & The Digital Economy KE (@MoICTKenya) July 12, 2023
Samira Njoya