Kenya’s regulatory authority has abandoned its proposal to split Safaricom into two separate entities, one focused on telecoms and the other one on financial services. The break-up plan was initially suggested in February 2017 following the regulator’s plan to reinforce competition in the sector.
Vodacom, the South African subsidiary of UK-based Vodafone, has signed a MoU with Nokia under which the companies will trial Nokia 5G technology to accelerate the launch of the new technology and enable Vodacom to drive digitalization for the benefit of businesses and individuals in South Africa.
Millicom announced that it has signed an agreement to sell its Rwanda operations to subsidiaries of Bharti Airtel Limited as the latter reiterated its commitment to a number of African markets following speculation about its plans.
South Africa’s MTN filed its plea in the long-running litigation where Turkcell is claiming damages against MTN as a result of MTN having acquired a 49 percent interest in Irancell, which was awarded the second GSM License in Iran in November 2005.
Telecom Review continued its dedication and commitment to the ICT industry and exceeded all expectations by holding the best and largest high-level executive ICT gathering. The award for 'Best African Operator' was given to Maroc Telecom, the main telecommunications company in Morocco, owned by Etisalat.
The acquisition of 9mobile, formerly Etisalat Nigeria, looks to be competitive, as 16 firms have submitted their interest to bid for the operator. Etisalat Group was forced to pull out of Nigeria this year after its firm couldn't come to an agreement with its lenders to restructure $1.2 billion debt after missed payments. Following Etisalat's exit, the Nigerian firm announced it had rebranded as 9mobile and said it is open to discussions with new investors.
Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel is battling it out with Nigerian rival Globacom to purchase Nigerian mobile operator 9mobile, formerly Etisalat Nigeria. The recently rebranded operator is expected to be sold by the end of the year as bankers push for a conclusion to the bidding war that’s been ongoing since July.
Etisalat Misr (Etisalat Egypt) has signed a four-year contract with Ericsson to modernize and expand its core network and business support systems, which will help the operator capitalize on the growth in 4G and pave the way for 5G and Internet of Things. The partnership will play an important role in further developing the services offered by Etisalat Misr, one of Ericsson’s largest customers for business support systems.
