Africa’s leading technology group, Liquid Intelligent Technologies (Liquid.Tech), is now delivering affordable high-speed connectivity to communities in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) using state-of-the-art Wireless Optical Communication technology (WOC) from Project Taara at X, Alphabet’s moonshot factory. This achievement marks a robust high-capacity communications bridge between Kinshasa and Congo Brazzaville.
Soon 5G will be the fastest adopted mobile generation, and for that, the 4G rollout taught mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that they must take a more proactive approach if they are to successfully compete with larger mobile network operators (MNOs). Here, Hamish White, CEO of telecommunications software provider Mobilise, explores the 5G future of the MVNO.
In 2020, a comparison was made between multiple mobile networks and the results came as follows: in sub-Saharan Africa, 3G mobile technology represented 52% of mobile networks compared to 36% for 2G and 12% for 4G. The GSMA said that in 2025, 3G will account for 58% of mobile networks compared to only 28% for 4G. As for 2G, it will drop to 11%. However, 5G will only represent less than 10%.
The Republic of Sudan has become the 32nd African country to join the Smart Africa Alliance by signaling a strong intention to place technology at the center of Sudan’s reconstruction. One of the marks of its return to the international scene after the lifting by the United States in 2017 of the embargo to which it was subject since 1993. The government of Sudan will benefit from the support of Smart Africa, the alliance of African countries committed to accelerate the socio-economic development of the continent through information technology and communications, in achieving its digital ambitions. Several agreements were signed in this sense by members of the Sudanese government and Lacina Kone, the CEO of Smart Africa, during his working visit to the country.
Broadband telecom service provider Dalkom Somalia has secured a €12 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to connect the country to a new submarine fiber optic system, the 2Africa cable. Part of the money will also finance the deployment of the first segment of a new national fiber optic backbone that will interconnect Mogadishu to other regions of the country.
According to a statement from the Council of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), the temporary radio frequency spectrum assigned to licensees – Telkom, MTN, Vodacom, RAIN Networks, Liquid Telecoms – will now have to be returned to the authority by no later than November 30, 2021.
Following the GH¢10 million grant from MTN to support the Girls in Information Communication Technology (GICT) program, the Ministry of Communication and Digitalisation and the Ministry of Education are now exploring the integration of robotics and coding into the educational curriculum of young children.
Egypt's ministry of planning and economic development plans to raise the contribution of the telecommunication and information technology sector in the state’s gross domestic product (GDP) to 5% by 2025, from an expected target of 2.6% for fiscal year (FY) 2020/2021, minister of planning and economic development Hala El-Said has revealed, according to state news reports.
Broadband connectivity provider, Paratus Africa, has pumped about $6 million into the development of an optical fiber network through Botswana. Managing director, Shawn Bruwer, stated that the brand new infrastructure will further connect all of the country’s main industrial and trade regions as the project is 98% completed.
Egypt’s Aswan governorate will receive a number of projects, including the construction of 81 mobile towers to support the communications service, and the connection of fiber-optic cables to 110,000 homes, in addition to developing 44 post offices.
