Telecoms

Nigerian banks start repaying ₦200 billion USSD debt to telcos nearly a year after agreeing on a payment plan, amid reports of slow progress.

Starkink’s SpaceX has launched more Starlink satellites with direct-to-cell capabilities that would allow connection to mobile devices.

South African-based telecom company Vodacom has arrested 15 suspects for fraud and several other irregularities at various company levels, while dismissing 631 staff and contractors.

As Kenya’s 5G network user base grows, Airtel Kenya has expanded its 5G network to include 39 counties and 285 wards.

Telkom has announced a potential 200% boost in its full-year earnings ending March 31, 2024, attributing the growth to strong demand for next-generation technologies and effective cost-optimisation strategies.

Starlink has announced that it is now available in Sierra Leone, a year after Minister David Moinina Sengeh stated that it had been granted a licence in the country.

Telecom Egypt and SubCom, a subsea data system supplier, have announced the completion of the India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) subsea system landings in Egypt. IEX will connect Mumbai directly to Milan, Italy, allowing for greater diversity and advanced, high-capacity services.

Ghana has announced plans to increase 4G penetration from 15% to 80% and to deploy 4,400 4G and 5G telecommunications sites over three years to improve the country’s high-speed connectivity.

Liberia and Ghana have begun talks on free roaming between the two countries to reduce communication costs.

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), South Africa’s telecoms regulator, is set to hold public hearings on June 13, 2024, roughly 5 weeks after publishing a draft to review call termination costs.

Starlink has been granted a licence to operate in Botswana, nearly four months after its application was rejected.

Raxio Group has opened its first data centre in Mozambique and has revealed plans to launch more facilities in Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Democratic Republic of Congo by the end of 2024.

British International Investment has announced a $30 million anchor commitment for Helios Towers’ $850 million public bond offering to refinance existing debt and expand its service offerings.

Safaricom Ethiopia has announced the arrival of the first batch of 13 telecom towers manufactured locally by Woda, the first company in Ethiopia to produce network towers. This comes a month after the telco revealed plans to invest $1.5 billion in building 5,000 new towers.

Ghana will have access to low-cost mobile broadband services by the end of 2024, thanks to a partnership between Next-Gen Infrastructure Company (NGIC) and Radisys Corporation, a Reliance Industries Limited subsidiary owned by Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani.

MTN Uganda has announced a secondary market purchase of ordinary shares by MTN International (Mauritius) Limited that will be open to the public from Monday, May 27 to Monday, June 10, 2024.

Google has announced Umoja, the first fibre optic route connecting Africa and Australia. The tech giant will also work with Kenya on cybersecurity, digital upskilling, and AI.

Telecom Egypt, a telco majorly owned by the government, will host Huawei Cloud’s new public cloud platform to provide Egypt-based businesses with secure and reliable cloud-based solutions.

PAIX Data Centres has announced the expansion of its Ghana data centre. This comes two years after securing $20 million to fund the company’s data centre capacity expansion and growth plans into new African markets.

TowerCo of Africa Tanzania (TOA Tanzania) has signed a $30 million financing agreement to build approximately 200 additional telecommunications sites across Tanzania.