Nigerian telecom services ‘one of the best in the world’
18 February 2020
The quality of telecom services provided by Nigerian operators is up there with the best in the world, according to the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators (ALTON).
Its chairman, Engr Gbenga Adebayo, also said despite the extremely high operating costs of providing such services in the west African nation, the telecom industry is the only sector in which prices have remained stable.
“In the first place, we make bold to state that the quality of telecoms services in Nigeria is amongst the best in comparable jurisdictions,” Adebayo said in a statement.
Find out more ETC looking for $1.3m funding boost
18 February 2020
A global network of organisations working to provide shared communications services for humanitarian emergencies needs US$1.3m to operate effectively in the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2020.
The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) requires the funds mainly for the purchasing of relevant equipment, which will support the Telecommunications Security Standards (TESS) recommendations to enable emergency responders to communicate in deep field areas in the conflict prone CAR.
One planned exercise is the radio programming training for United Nations (UN) and non-governmental organisations (NGO) staff in the city of Paoua and to deploy radio and satellite equipment, as recommended by TESS.
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Tunisian govt to launch SMS disaster alerts under GSMA ‘We Care’ scheme
18 February 2020
This new service will use text messaging to provide information before and during major natural disasters, improving preparedness and response
The Tunisian government has partnered with the country’s mobile operators to develop an SMS-based early warning system to alert the public to risks of major natural disasters.
It forms part of the launch of the GSMA’s ‘We Care’ initiative in Tunisia by Ooredoo, Orange and Tunisie Télécom and is the first launch of ‘We Care’ in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
Find out more Uganda Telecom gets new administrator
06 January 2020
Former Uganda Law Society boss, Ruth Sebatindira, is the new administrator of cash-strapped operator Uganda Telecom.
The company was originally placed in receivership in April 2017, following a dispute between the company and the country’s ministry of finance over unpaid dues, as its debts rapidly out stripped its asset base.
It is understood that at the point it was placed into receivership, Uganda Telecom had debts and liabilities of around US$245m, whilst its asset base was valued at only US$40m).
Uganda’s president Yoweri Museveni previously stated that the former government owned telco was a victim of corrupt officials who sort to strip the company’s assets and pay themselves exorbitant salaries.
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