Communications Africa 1 2013

CAF 1 2013 Cover_Layout 1 15/02/2013 11:43 Page 1

Issue 1 2013 Édition 1 2013

Africa

Afrique

www.communicationsafrica.com

Mobile World Congress Innovative applications, services and network structures

Near Field Communications Improving processor performance, optimising power consumption

Ethernet Simplified structured cabling for converged connectivity

Le potentiel d'inclusion financière et la mise en œuvre des points mobiles de systèmes de vente (gauche-droite: Dr James Mwangi, Equity Bank PDG, et Ajay Banga, MasterCard Worldwide Président et PDG)

Réseaux Backhauling mobile IP/MPLS

Europe m15 - Kenya KSH300 - Nigeria N400 - South Africa R20 - UK £10 - USA $16.50

FEATURES: ● Internet ● Mobile ● Infrastructure REGULAR REPORTS: ● Bulletin - Agenda ● Equipment - Équipement

S01 CAF 1 2013 Start_Layout 1 15/02/2013 14:48 Page 2

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CONTENTS

Issue 1 2013 Édition 1 2013

Afrique

Africa www.communicationsafrica.com

Mobile World Congress Innovative applications, services and network structures

Near Field Communications

Bulletin

4

Events

8

Agenda

9

Improving processor performance, optimising power consumption

Ethernet Simplified structured cabling for converged connectivity

Le potentiel d'inclusion financière et la mise en œuvre des points mobiles de systèmes de vente (gauche-droite: Dr James Mwangi, Equity Bank PDG, et Ajay Banga, MasterCard Worldwide Président et PDG)

Equipment

32

Réseaux Backhauling mobile IP/MPLS

Europe m15 - Kenya KSH300 - Nigeria N400 - South Africa R20 - UK £10 - USA $16.50

FEATURES: ● Internet ● Mobile REGULAR REPORTS: ● Bulletin - Agenda

● Infrastructure ● Equipment - Équipement

FEATURES

A note from the Editor

Mobile World Congress

THIS ISSUE’S SHOWCASE of processes, techniques, equipment and Industry debate includes a preview of key industry players at Mobile World Congress (p.16), as well as references to near field communications (p.20), to capacity (p.22), the Internet (p.23), developments in unified communications (p.26) and machine-to-machine architecture (p.28), to e-learning (p.29) and to mobile money (p.30)

The key technical issues affecting the implementation and operation of African networks, at Mobile World Congress

16

Near Field Communications

20

How Qualcomm’s processor development supports ultra-low power near field communications on mobile devices

Capacity

22

What is required to create and support capacity for high-speed, latest technology networks

Internet

23

How the deployment of low-voltage applications contributes to converged IP Ethernet network operation

Unified Communications Main Cover Image: Plessey Insert: MasterCard

26

Introducing and maintaining best practices for security and business continuity

Machine-to-Machine

28

Implications and expectations associated with dedicated data communication

E-learning

29

Reporting on Africa’s educational landscape, and how this is benefitting from digital content and new technologies

Finance Une note du rédacteur CE NUMÉRO ATTEST aux innovateurs dans la connectivité africaine, et dans les affaires locales et internationales. Les développements dans ces pages garantissent les plate-formes efficaces pour les entreprises s'efforçant d'attirer un maximum d'abonnés et de générer un maximum de revenus (p.27). Ces articles representant, aussi, la condition de l’internet (p.21) et le finance africain (p.31).

30

Making money management a distinct possibility for the underbanked and underserved

ARTICLES Internet

21

Comment des particuliers et entreprises pourront profiter de nouveaux services grâce à un réseau IP hautes performances

Réseaux

27

Les centres créent de nouveaux espaces des entreprises africaines de demain

Finance

31

Autour de la sécurité et la commodité des paiements électroniques

Managing Editor: Andrew Croft - andrew.croft@alaincharles.com

Audit Bureau of Circulations Business Magazines

Editorial and Design team: Bob Adams, Prashant AP, Lizzie Carroll, David Clancy, Ranganath GS, Kasturi Gupta, Meenakshi Nambiar, Rhonita Patnaik, Genaro Santos, Zsa Tebbit, Nicky Valsamakis, Julian Walker and Ben Watts Publisher: Nick Fordham Advertising Sales Director: Pallavi Pandey Magazine Sales Manager: Steve Thomas - Tel: +44 (0) 20 7834 7676, Fax: +44 (0) 20 7973 0076, Email: stephen.thomas@alaincharles.com Country China India Italy Nigeria Russia South Africa Qatar UAE USA

Representative Ying Wang Tanmay Mishra Camilla Capece Bola Olowo Sergei Salov Annabel Marx Saida Hamad Brett Pearson Michael Tomashefsky

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Email ying.matthieson@alaincharles.com tanmay.mishra@alaincharles.com camilla.capece@alaincharles.com bola.olowo@alaincharles.com mne@acpmos.ru annabel.marx@alaincharles.com saida.hamad@alaincharles.com brett.pearson@alaincharles.com michael.tomashefsky@alaincharles.com

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Production: Nathanielle Kumar, Donatella Moranelli, Nasima Osman, Devolina Pal, Nick Salt Jeremy Walters, and Sophia White - Email: production@alaincharles.com Subscriptions: circulation@alaincharles.com Chairman: Derek Fordham Printed by: Wyndeham Grange Ltd Communications Africa/Afrique is bi-monthly magazine ISSN: 0962 3841

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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BULLETIN Supporting the culture of communication through social media WITH ITS TWITTER-CRM integration service, Mobily has found an innovative way to interact with Twitter users by integrating Twitter usernames with its internal system for customer relationship management (CRM), so allowing the Mobily Social media team to get to the user's full information and history (once users mention @Mobily1100, Mobily's account on Twitter for customer care - or @Mobily); the aim with this initiative is the achievement of excellence in customer care, whereby customers communicating with Mobily get instant responses and solutions to complaints or enquiries.

the Web for OEMs and carriers, consumers and developers alike - with OEMs and operators able to provide content and services across their entire device portfolio, regardless of OS, and able to customise user experiences, manage app distribution and retain customer attention, loyalty and billing relationships; using HTML5 and the new Mozillaproposed standard Web APIs, developers will be able to develop for multiple platforms, web, mobile, tablet, using HTML5 and one set of WebAPIs - so consumers who use devices based on the Open Web platform can easily access their own content, apps and data, regardless of which OS they use and to become creators of content as well.

A smartphone experience for mass-market phones

BY OVERCOMING THE constraints of mass-market phones and local bandwidth issues, biNu provides services in emerging economies, providing fast and affordable access to the Internet, and gateways to global social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter, and its own social networking community - biNu’s educational and social services include Wikipedia, the Quizlet online learning app and Jobberman, which allows users to apply for jobs; biNu’s partnership with the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs addresses the growing global demand for English language learning materials by distributing e-books, audio content and a language practice game, and its collaboration with Worldreader helps transform reading by bringing e-books to under-served families in Zimbabwe and Ethiopia.

High-quality health care ETISALAT’S MATERNAL HEALTH programme Mobile Baby is enabling birth attendants and midwives to ensure safer pregnancies and births by enabling them to identify issues quickly and accurately, to communicate and act on obstetric emergencies and provide post-natal care of children with severe acute malnutrition; the service is introduced and optimised under the close supervision and governance of the Ministries of Health and Central Banks of participating countries (at present, including Tanzania, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Nigeria), with all algorithms used by birth attendants being integrated around guidance from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the non-profit health organisation JHPIEGO, service transactions that are compliant with service quality standards, platforms uptime and PMCI strictures - and transactions (including customer data and financial transactions) executed in the endto-end secured environment in accordance with ISO-1 and ISO 8583.

Engaging millions in the world of electronic commerce ETISALAT, MASTERCARD AND Oberthur Technologies combined forces last year to enable Etisalat’s commercial roll-out of a fully interoperable, industrial grade, open-loop commerce ecosystem across its operations addressing payments (merchants, utility, transportation), transfers (domestic and International), bank accounts management, secure access and ticketing; the ecosystem, called Flous, has been developed and implemented as a commercial foundation for mHealth, mIdentity and mEducation for strategic vertical operations, accessible across NFC, on-line, STK, Companion Card and IVR.

Adapting the Internet to Algerian locales ALGERIANS HAVE NOT been able to access the Internet everywhere in the country, since ADSL is not available at all locations and there is only the incumbent fixed operator offering it; so, Nedjma is marketing an Internet USB key to serve the prepaid mobile market, which accounts for 95 per cent of the nation’s mobile communications users - in the process, multiplying the number of Nedjma data customers (via dongle) by more than 10.

A compelling and affordable smartphone experience THE NEW FIREFOX OS offers a mobile ecosystem built entirely with open web technology, promoting openness, innovation and opportunity on

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Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

Browsing for less NOKIA’S XPRESS BROWSER is available in 87 languages and in 250 countries, and on the highly successful Series 40 platform - over 1.5bn Series 40 devices have been sold globally; the Xpress Browser helps consumers use up to 90 per cent less Internet data, having a real and dramatic impact on often-prohibitive mobile data costs - leading to savings, on average, of 1.8mn South African rand and 18mn Kenyan shillings a day every year in real-life user studies - the equivalent of around US$75mn a year in total saved data costs.

Nokia’s Asha 308, with the Xpress browser

Encouraging community and digital inclusivity FACEBOOK VIA USSD forms part of Orange’s strategy to provide access to mobile services such as Facebook to the widest possible range of customers - thus supporting efforts aimed at democratising Internet access in Africa; the solution is being implemented and replicated by Orange Technocentre and Myriad in many Orange affiliates in Europe, the Middle East and Africa - with a particular focus on Mali, Uganda, Guinea Bissau and Kenya.

Drug authentication in East and West Africa TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY BHARTI Airtel and the social enterprise Sproxil have been developing and implementing a solution to combat counterfeit drugs at the consumer level, leveraging the effectiveness of using an SMS solution called MPA; the MPA solution is offered in Kenya (serving East Africa), Nigeria and Ghana (serving West Africa) - with one of its Nigerian pilot programmes - GlaxoSmithKline’s Ampiclox Pilot - seeing 480,000 patients sending more than 600,000 text message verifications alone for the GSK antibiotic Ampiclox in Nigeria.

Overcoming the barrier to adoption of solar power M-KOPA SOLAR MAKES high-quality solar energy affordable to Kenyans whose households are not directly connected to the electricity grid; using embedded Safaricom enabled SIM cards, M-Kopa Solar allows a customer to enjoy use of solar home system, paying daily installments of Kshs40 (US$0.50) via M-PESA for one year - this credit-sale model is targeted at low income households in rural areas currently dependent on kerosene for lighting and on local shops for phone charging.

Live updates for census data sets MOST AFRICAN COUNTRIES conduct a census every 10 years, creating immense gaps in accurate population projections for socio economic development plans; Airtel MAPI (Mobile Aided Personal Interview) could be used to change the way African countries conduct the census and can be a live way of updating census data sets for both retail and non-retail environments.

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BULLETIN MasterCard drives contactless payments MasterCard Worldwide has announced record growth of its contactless payments technology, MasterCard PayPass, across the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) region in 2012, citing a 28 per cent (YoY) increase in merchant locations; the PayPass contactless payment network now boasts nearly 700,000 merchant locations in 51 countries as of Q4 2012, reflecting a strong demand from consumers for fast and convenient alternative to cash for everyday purchases.

Global Knowledge host Bring Your Own Device events IT and business skills training specialist Global Knowledge has arranged a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): A Blessing or a Curse? roadshow across the Middle East and Africa region; from 17-27 February 2013, the free-to-attend roadshow marks a fresh focus on the wide range of critical security and management aspects companies need to consider when allowing employees to use their own iPhone, Androids, iPads, and other gadgets instead of companyowned and supplied devices.

Vir2o Joins HotSauce at Social Media Week Lagos Representatives from East Coast Diversified Corporation’s new social media subsidiary Vir2o join its country representative partner, online and social media marketing agency HotSauce, at Social Media Week Lagos from 18-22 February 2013; "Behind the glitz and hype of social media experience is the ecosystem, and ecosystem powered by hardworking and innovative bloggers, tech developers, businesses, agencies and government," says HotSauce COO Dayo Adefila.

EarthSearch Communications joins Halogen Security at Nigeria Oil and Gas Conference in Abuja Representatives from EarthSearch Communications International join licensee partner Halogen Security at the Nigeria Oil and Gas Conference from 18-21 February 2013 in Nigeria's capital city, Abuja;

now in its 13th year, the Nigeria Oil and Gas Conference is coorganised by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) - and is expected to be attended by more than 1,000 senior level delegates from around the globe and more than 7,500 visitors from 180 international companies.

LITC and Huawei Marine start Silphium cable system Libyan International Telecom Company (LITC) and Huawei Marine Networks Co, Ltd. have completed the commercial launch of Silphium, the first wholly-owned submarine cable system designed to meet the increasing demand of international communications for the Libyan market; the Silphium system leverages optical technology and is one of the longest unrepeatered subsea cable systems in the world, at over 425km across the Mediterranean Sea with a total design capacity of 1.2 Terabits per second at 10 Gbps per wavelength and a provision to upgrade to 40 Gbps and 100 Gbps in the future.

Ologa and SkyeVine acknowledged for enhancing connectivity services in Mozambique Representing a new era in satellite connectivity services to business in Mozambique, SkyeVine reseller Ologa was recently awarded with a prize for Mulweli Rebelo, Directordistinction as the Best National SME, in General of Ologa (left) receiving the award for the innovation category; the company distinction in SME Innovation uses a two-way satellite broadband from Mr Ibraimo Ibraimo. CEO system designed by satellite equipment of BCI in Mozambique recently specialist Newtec for IP-based service providers, looking to deliver competitive data and voice services in areas where insufficient terrestrial connectivity is available.

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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BULLETIN Grupo Visabeira invests in TVCABO Moçambique PORTUGAL-BASED GRUPO Visabeira has invested US$10mn in three new optical fibre operations in Nampula, Pemba and Tete for TVCABO Moçambique, a cable data and content distribution operator within Africa that is jointly owned by Visabeira and the Mozambique Telecommunications Company (TDM); Fernando Azevedo, general manager of TVCABO, says the operator is seeking to improve customer support in “the areas of television and internet service, sales and aftersales service, as well as payment of installments, among others”.

IMAGE: Grupo Visabeira, optical fibre, Moçambique/AntenasMZ_Site CAPTION: Grupo Visabeira has invested US$10mn in optical fibre operations for TVCABO Moçambique.

CommProve’s Safaricom contract KENYA MOBILE OPERATOR Safaricom is working with CommProve to deploy its network monitoring solution, CommProve NetLedge, across Safaricom’s network during the first half of 2013; “Safaricom has aggressive plans for growth and as we expand further in the region we need to further enhance the network performance for our subscribers,” said Thibaud Rerolle, Technical & IT Director, at Safaricom.

réglementaire a tenu une réunion dans les locaux de l’Autorité de Régulation; la nouvelle réforme du secteur est articulée autour des objectifs suivants : pérenniser et renforcer la concurrence, l’investissement et l’innovation (i.e. déterminer la meilleure manière de d’insuffler une nouvelle dynamique concurrentielle et de promouvoir l’investissement et l’innovation dans les télécommunications) ; renforcer la protection des consommateurs, préserver les droits des utilisateurs ; optimiser les retombées du secteur sur l’économie et la croissance mauritanienne ; et mieux réguler.

D’un réseau haute capacité ultrarapide tunisienne TUNISIANA ET ALCATEL-LUCENT ont signé un accord de quatre ans pour la construction d’un réseau d’accès haut débit fixe qui permettra de fournir un accès Internet haute vitesse et des services voix et vidéo haute qualité à des millions de professionnels et particuliers tunisiens; Faical Haffoudhi, directeur des activités d’Alcatel-Lucent pour la Tunisie, le Maroc et la Mauritanie, d’ajouter : « Tunisiana sera en mesure d’assurer à ses clients une qualité de service optimale à tout moment, grâce à notre offre unique conjuguant nos produits d’accès fixe et notre expertise avérée en gestion de l’expérience client. »

Upgrading a satellite network for the mining sector VT IDIRECT, INC (IDIRECT) is workign with ITC Global to upgrade its mining-sector satellite network to iDirect's soon-to-be-released iDX 3.2 software featuring Adaptive TDMA, and will deploy the next-generation Evolution X7 remote; The upgrade allows ITC Global to satisfy the 20+ Mbps bandwidth requirement the mining sector now demands.

GSA confirms increasing momentum of mobile HD voice AN UPDATED REPORT from the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) confirms which mobile networks in African countries have launched HD voice services; there have been rollouts in Egypt (Mobinil), Kenya (Orange Kenya), Mauritius (Orange Mauritius), Nigeria (Airtel), Réunion (Orange Réunion), and Uganda (Orange Uganda).

Orange arrive en République Démocratique du Congo DEPUIS L'ACQUISITION DE CCT en octobre 2011 et conformément à sa stratégie, Orange a investi 87,4 milliards de FC (95 M$) pour étendre et mettre à niveau son réseaux en en République Démocratique du Congo; Orange RDC dispose d’un réseau de 22 boutiques en propre, proposant l’ensemble de ses offres mobiles, et s’appuiera sur 22 000 points de vente indirects pour permettre un large accès à ses produits et services.

Une collection de livres enrichis sur le Web et sur tablette ORANGE ET LA BNF sont lancé une collection de livres enrichis sur le Web et sur tablette; ce projet, à destination du grand public et des scolaires, a pour finalité d’explorer l’apport du numérique dans la diffusion des savoirs.

Le déploiement des communications cellulaires en Afrique INTELSAT S.A., fournisseur des services de satellites, a annoncé avoir conclu un accord de capacité pluriannuel avec Vodacom dont le siège se trouve en Afrique du Sud et cela sur la flotte de satellites d’Intelsat; Jon Osler, directeur général d’Intelsat en Afrique, a déclaré, « Cet accord perpétue notre longue décennie de support pour Vodacom en Afrique et vient à un moment où la demande pour un accès fiable aux communications, est sans précédent ».

Autour de la réforme du secteur des télécommunications LE COMITÉ INTERMINISTÉRIEL chargé du suivi et de la validation des travaux relatifs à l’étude relative à l’évaluation de la réforme du secteur des télécommunications et la révision de son cadre juridique et

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Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

Faical Haffoudhi, directeur des activités d’Alcatel-Lucent pour la Tunisie, le Maroc et la Mauritanie

Formation au Web 2.0 UN SÉMINAIRE SOUS régional de formation sur le Web 2.0 dont les travaux ont été placés sous le parrainage de Mathurin Bako, président de l’Autorité de Régulation des Communications Electroniques et des Postes (ARCEP); initiative de l’Association pour Linux et les logiciels libres au Burkina Faso, A3L-BF, ce séminaire est organisé en collaboration avec l’Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie - et réuni des professionnels venus du Bénin, du Burkina, de la Cote d’Ivoire du Mali, du Niger, du Sénégal et du Togo.

S02 CAF 1 2013 Agenda A_Layout 1 15/02/2013 14:51 Page 7

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S02 CAF 1 2013 Agenda A_Layout 1 15/02/2013 14:51 Page 8

AGENDA

Events/Événements 2013 MARCH/MARS 11-13

Information Security World Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

11-22

Wireless Networking for Science in Africa

Miramare, Trieste, Italy

12-14

CABSAT

Dubai, UAE

13-14

Banking & Mobile Money West Africa

Lagos, Nigeria

aitecafrica.com

19-20

Banking & Mobile Money West Africa

Accra, Ghana

aitecafrica.com

6-11

NAB

Las Vegas, USA

10-11

MilSpace

London, UK

16-17

Globalcom Angola

Luanda, Angola

26-29

Cairo ICT

Cairo, Egypt

15-16

Rwanda ICT Summit

Kigali, Rwanda

21-22

Cloud Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

21-22

East Africa Com

Nairobi, Kenya

21-24

Critical Communications Congress

Paris, France

27-30

Broadcast Show Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

www.terrapinn.com

27-30

IP Networks Show Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

www.terrapinn.com

27-30

SatCom Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

www.terrapinn.com

27-30

Submarine Networks World

Johannesburg, South Africa

www.terrapinn.com

www.terrapinn.com www.ictp.it www.cabsat.com

APRIL/AVRIL www.nabshow.com www.military-space.com www.globalcomangola.com www.cairoict.com

MAY/MAI

MTN Uganda hotspots available to all MTN UGANDA HAS launched a Wi-Fi service with a number of MTN hotspots around the country, which will be available to MTN and non-MTN customers. Customers with Wi-Fi capable devices will have access to this service in areas where there is MTN WiFi coverage.

To use MTN hotspots customers will be required to register. MTN customers will need to have an Internet bundle of airtime on their number while non-MTN customers will have to load MTN airtime onto their accounts on the portal. To buy an Internet bundle, MTN customers just need to dial *150# and make a selection of a preferred bundle.

Some of the devices the customer can use include smartphones, tablets and laptops. These devices must be Wi-Fi compatible in order for them to access the network. MTN Chief Marketing Officer Ernst Fonternel said, “MTN hotspots will provide both MTN and non-MTN customers with a secure internet access in a number of

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Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

locations across the country.

Customers have a choice from a number of tailor-made bundles to suit their internet usage needs.”

Over the last two years, MTN has made major investments to its data infrastructure in Uganda. MTN Uganda launched the first Mobile Money service in Uganda with tremendous success, introduced 3G+, expanded the mobile distribution foot print, and greatly enhanced the mobile core, radio capacity and infrastructure technology.

Furthermore, it extended the fibre network backbone and built regional switching centres in the East, West, North and Central regions.

Added Fonternel, “Last year, we further improved and widened our 3G+ network coverage to deliver the newly improved speed to our close to one million data customers supported with the widest network coverage, a wide range of devices and affordable tariffs.”

aitecafrica.com cloudafricasummit.com eaafrica.comworldseries.com criticalcommunicationsworld.com

Ceragon’s growing sub-Saharan footprint CERAGON NETWORKS LTD. has been expanding its footprint in Africa with long-term equipment and services orders from two large customers in sub-Saharan Africa. Totalling US$28mn, both orders are from existing customers who have already deployed large scale highcapacity wireless backhaul networks throughout the sub-region, based on Ceragon’s Evolution and FibeAir solutions.

A recent report commissioned by the GSMA indicated that subSaharan Africa is the fastest-growing mobile market in the world, with an average annual growth rate of 44 per cent since 2000. Mobile connections have jumped to 475mn, compared to 12.3mn fixed line connections, representing the highest proportion of mobile versus fixed line connections globally.

“Africa is a key region for us and will continue to represent one of our primary growth engines,” said Ira Palti, CEO and President of Ceragon Networks. “The mobile market in Africa continues to expand, despite lengthening sales cycles due to macro-economic factors.

Ceragon is well positioned to continue to play a significant role in network deployments in this region as existing and new customers favour comprehensive solutions providing cost-effective highcapacity and feature rich solutions with turnkey capabilities.”

Ceragon’s business wins include follow-on orders of more than US$6.5mn with Mozambique Cellular (mcel) to expand the carrier’s microwave network, first established in 2010. Ceragon is extending mcel’s backbone network, based on Ceragon technology, from Beira in central Mozambique to Nampula in the north of the country, as well as upgrading access links nationwide, providing the only broadband connection available for millions of Mozambicans.

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AGENDA

TSF restores connectivity in Timbuktu IN MALI, 14 satellite lines set up by Télécoms Sans Frontières have enabled 550 connections for the benefit of 4,200 beneficiaries, for whom it is often the first call they make for several months.

The mobile network has been restored but functions only partially. TSF’s efforts mean people can make international calls (to the USA, Senegal, Ivory Coast, France, Liberia and other countries) to tell their loved ones they are safe and sound.

The Mayor of Timbuktu testifies: "The army delivered us, Télécoms Sans Frontières reconnected us!

I was able to call Bamako

and directly inform the authorities about the situation here in Timbuktu."

The TSF experts also installed an Internet satellite connection at the town hall for the benefit of the NGOs, the crisis unit, the hospital staff and the local authorities. The TSF satellite equipment reinforces the capacities of humanitarian workers in the region of Timbuktu enabling them to share vital information to manage the very critical humanitarian situation in this area.

The communication is very disturbed in northern Mali, where land lines and mobile network have been cut off in several towns, and the activities of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in this region are very limited

because of the degradation in safety conditions.

Given the extremely complex security context in the Sahel region, TSF is using both fixed and mobile satellite equipment to connect its humanitarian Hubs and the teams during their trips.

Broadcom’s ADSL gateway solutionfor entry level deployments BROADCOM CORPORATION, A specialist in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications, recently announced an optimised, entry level ADSL gateway solution for emerging markets. With small memory support, the ninth generation Broadcom BCM6318 ADSL2+ gateway complements Broadcom's existing xDSL product lines by offering an ultra-low cost solution for entry level products.

"As ADSL deployments increase in emerging markets, they become more mature. Simple bridge products must be replaced by more sophisticated — yet cost-effective — gateway products," said Greg Fischer, Broadcom Vice President and General Manager, Broadband Carrier Access. "Broadcom understands that low cost solutions must perform to the unique demands of these markets and are essential to growth. We will continue our focus of combining the desired features with the performance needed in affordable, integrated solutions."

Focused on the entry level ADSL router and gateway market, the BCM6318 enables service providers to leverage Broadcom's

Broadcom's BCM6318 features multiple Ethernet ports coupled with expansion ports to enable USB 2.0, and Wi-Fi connectivity enabling a powerful home networking experience for the entry level market segment of a service provider's connectivity offering turnkey software offering across an even wider range of xDSL solutions. Broadcom's BCM6318 features multiple Ethernet ports coupled with expansion ports to enable USB 2.0, and Wi-Fi connectivity enabling a powerful home networking experience for the entry level market segment of a service provider's connectivity offering.

Aviat Networks expands services for MTN Ghana AVIAT NETWORKS IS committed to providing MTN Ghana with a spares management service in addition to the existing support services it offers the mobile telecoms company through AviatCare, its customer support division.

Aviat’s Eclipse Packet Node radios comprise the highest proportion of MTN Ghana’s microwave backhaul and play a crucial role from the access portion of the network to the backbone.

Aviat has supplied Eclipse equipment to MTN Ghana since 2007 alongside its ProVision element management system.

ProVision acts to support MTN Ghana’s network visibility so that the mobile telecoms company may monitor and manage its Eclipse microwave backhaul network. Deon Meyer, Ghana country manager at Aviat Networks, said, “Over

the course of three months, AviatCare support professionals visited more than 900 MTN Ghana sites to ensure network visibility to ProVision by checking all critical equipment cabling.”

Aviat Networks’ ProVision system supports network visibility at MTN Ghana With ProVision management tools, the MTN Ghana network management centre remotely controls thousands of IP devices as well as conducts fault detection and network troubleshooting.

Sa-id Mukhtar Abubakar, SLA enforcement controller – network group at MTN Ghana,

said, “Aviat has proven itself as a major network services SLA provider for wireless network transmission equipment, and we are pleased with their level of expertise and performance.

“We are confident that with this new relationship with Aviat, our infrastructure management will be enhanced to provide seamless delivery of voice and data services to our cherished subscribers.”

Aviat Networks also provides the ProVision element management system to support network visibility in order for MTN Ghana to monitor and manage its Eclipse microwave backhaul network.

With the ProVision management tools, MTN Ghana’s network management centre remotely controls thousands of IP devices as well as conducts fault detection and network troubleshooting.

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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S02 CAF 1 2013 Agenda A_Layout 1 15/02/2013 14:52 Page 11

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d

Supporting vaccination in sub-Saharan Africa VODAFONE IS DRIVING two partnerships to use mobile technology to increase childhood vaccination levels in sub-Saharan Africa - supporting the global goal to vaccinate an additional quarter of a billion children and avert four million deaths from vaccinepreventable diseases by 2015.

The World Health Organisation has identified vaccinations as the single most cost-effective public health intervention after the provision of clean water supplies.

However, more than one million children die every year from vaccine-preventable diseases and 22 million children worldwide remain unimmunised.

With access to mobile phones rapidly rising in the developing world, a significant opportunity exists for mobile technology to help healthcare providers save hundreds of thousands of children’s lives by increasing the take-up of vaccinations. Effective methods include alerting mothers to the availability of vaccinations by text message, enabling health workers to access health records and schedule appointments through their phones and helping health facilities in remote locations monitor stocks to ensure that vaccinations are available when mothers and children arrive.

The three-year partnership between Vodafone and GAVI will explore how health ministries in GAVI-supported countries in subSaharan Africa can use mobile technology solutions to improve their immunisation programmes.

The Vodafone-GAVI partnership is the first private sector in-kind contribution through the GAVI Matching Fund, under which the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the UK Government have agreed to match private sector contributions to GAVI. The UK Department for International Development (DfID) will match Vodafone’s contribution of technology and services with a US$1.5mn cash contribution to GAVI. The fund has raised US$52.4mn to date and aims to raise US$260mn for immunisation by the end of 2015.

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An app for payment and transport DIGITAL SECURITY SPECIALIST Gemalto is providing Standard Bank with a multifunction EMV contactless payment card enabling users to pay for transit fares and other goods and services with one digital wallet.

In South Africa, Standard Bank customers can use the new MasterCard debit card to wave and pay directly at the gates in the public transport stations, without needing to carry cash or a separate travel card. The 'Muvo' card initiative will help cardholders gain greater convenience while at the same time provide competitive advantages to Standard Bank and reduce the burden of managing cash on public transportation in the city of Durban.

The partnership has already resulted in the provision of more than 100,000 cards for the Ethekwini Municipality, which is looking to improve ticketless payments for its public transport system in the coastal city of Durban. Commuters can load funds into their cards at around 30 sales points throughout the city. The ‘Muvo’ card complies with the exacting requirements of the National Department of Transport (NDoT), which mandates the combination of payment and transport in one single application. It can also be customised to reflect the profile of individual public transport users, enabling NDoT to adapt its fares accordingly.

The 'Muvo' card adds value for existing account holders, and offers considerable potential to acquire new customers. These will include many who previously have been excluded from mainstream banking. Furthermore, by eliminating the need for cash on public buses, security will be considerably enhanced. Queuing and disruption to travel schedules will also be reduced, as travellers and staff no longer have to fumble for change.

Gemalto provides data preparation and personalisation services associated to the “Muvo” card, as part of the ongoing service delivered to

The 'Muvo' card represents a new era of card convergence, with multiple services increasingly being combined on a single product

Standard Bank for its portfolio of debit and credit cards.

“The new card showcases the innovative value we strive to offer our customers by integrating the transit ticket inside a banking card - secured with bankstrength security - along with a payment wallet,” commented Mike Hughes, Business Development Manager of Beyond Payments, Standard Bank’s innovation and new business division. “We are looking to extend EMV contactless payments to a number of different market sectors including events, schools and university campuses, as well as toll roads and other players in the transport sector.”

“This is a new era of card convergence with multiple services increasingly being combined on a single product that maximises convenience for the end user,” added Gabrielle Bugat, Senior Vice President at Gemalto. “We’ll accompany Standard Bank in making financial services more accessible to the underserved population by using transport as a stepping stone.”

Alvarion supports high quality voice and data in Guinea Conakry ALVARION LTD, WHICH provides optimised wireless broadband solutions addressing the connectivity, coverage and capacity challenges of public and private networks, has been working with ETI, an Internet service provider in Guinea Conakry, deploying its 4Motion 802.16e solution to expand the ETI broadband network from the capital city, Conakry, to cover the entire country - an area of 246,000 square kilometres (94,981 sq mi).

ETI’s network is designed to deliver voice and data services in the 2.5 GHz spectrum to a wide range of customers, including both high-end enterprise customers as well as residential customers.

“After having gained experience with Alvarion’s 4Motion over past four years, we were confident in our decision to continue using it as we expand our network from Conakry to cover the rest of the country,” states Latif Taleb, Founder and CEO of ETI. “Alvarion’s solution demonstrated the necessary QoS, including wire-quality voice and heavy data services that we require in order to

deliver a superior customer experience.”

Alvarion’s 4Motion is highly suitable to offer both voice and data services over the same network. With an advanced dynamic scheduling mechanism, the network prioritizes voice transmission to deliver a large number of voice sessions simultaneously enabling voice services with a MOS score equivalent to wire-line quality.

“We are delighted to continue working with ETI on expanding its network. Winning this expansion project is positive proof of our outstanding technology and expertise,” states Hezi Lapid, President and CEO at Alvarion.

“Alvarion is known as a technology leader in wireless broadband and as a high-end solution provider. This is the foundation upon which Alvarion’s leadership position in Africa was built and will be maintained.”

ETI has been an Alvarion customer for over a decade, using its licensed solutions to provide internet access, voice and data services, and backhauling.

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Tunisian telecoms gets a boost from Alcatel-Lucent ALCATEL-LUCENT IS HELPING Tunisiana to build a new superfast, high-capacity network to provide broadband services across the country.

To support Tunisiana - part of the Qtel Group - in building its nationwide wireline access network, Alcatel-Lucent is providing a complete network solution – including designing, building, managing and maintaining the network.

Included in the package are Alcatel-Lucent’s market-leading gigabit passive optical networking (GPON) and VDSL2 broadband access products, which will provide Tunisian households with high connection speeds and reliable services. On top of its fixed access products, Alcatel-Lucent provides elements of its Motive customer experience solution (CXS): the Motive Network Analyzer which ensures high-quality network performance through its advanced troubleshooting capabilities, and the Motive Home Device Manager which allows service personnel to remotely manage a wide range of broadband devices in customers’ homes.

Hatem Mestiri CTO of Tunisiana said, “Our mobile customers have come to expect a very high level of service quality and innovation. As we considered the challenges of building and managing a wireline network, we sought a solution that is as efficient as possible and keeps complexities to a minimum.

Alcatel-Lucent’s expertise in providing network

Faical Haffoudhi Country Manager of AlcatelLucent Tunisia, Morocco and Mauritania

solutions as well in the management of those networks has been demonstrated over many decades and made them the best choice for Tunisiana, making sure we can meet the needs and expectations of both existing and new customers.”

Faical Haffoudhi Country Manager of AlcatelLucent Tunisia, Morocco and Mauritania, said, “Our agreement with Tunisiana provides an exciting opportunity for Alcatel-Lucent to build a completely new wireline access network in a country that is experiencing a rapid adoption of new communications technologies. Tunisiana will be able to provide its customers with the highest service quality at all times, thanks to the unique combination of Alcatel-Lucent’s fixed access assets and our proven expertise in customer experience.”

Capitalising on Angolan opportunities IIR ANGOLA HAS been organising a 4th annual meeting point for the telecommunications market.

Globalcom 2013 serves as a platform to reinforce the need for dynamic telecommunications infrastructure to support economic growth, and how such infrastructure could serve Angola.

There is increasing demand for improving coverage in quality, service and value-added pricing.

Operators and companies have been keen to capitalise on the opportunity to meet with industry leaders and international leaders, conduct profitable business and find solutions to business challenges.

Globalcom Angola is a reference event, held in Luanda on 16-17 April 2013 at the Hotel de Convenções de Talatona. www.iirangola.com

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Why mobile is a catalyst for economic growth THE GSMA CONFIRMED recently that sub-Saharan Africa is the fastest-growing mobile market in the world, with average annual growth of 44 per cent since 2000. Mobile connections have leapt to 475mn, compared to just 12.3mn fixed line connections, representing the highest proportion of mobile versus fixed line connections in the world. With necessary spectrum allocations and transparent regulation, the

“In many sub-Saharan African countries, mobile broadband is the only possible route to deliver the Internet to consumers. However, to maximise the potential gains, governments need to continue to support the development of mobile broadband, notably through the provision of appropriate spectrum.”

- Chris Williams, Deloitte telecommunications partner

mobile industry could fuel the growth of 14.9mn new jobs in sub-Saharan Africa between 2015 and 2020.

Based on research from Deloitte, the ‘GSMA subSaharan Africa Mobile Observatory 2’ provides a comprehensive evaluation of the region’s mobile industry and its socio-economic impact.

The region has some of the highest levels of mobile Internet usage globally. In Zimbabwe and Nigeria, mobile accounts for over half of all web traffic at 58.1 per cent and 57.9 per cent respectively, compared to a 10 per cent global average. 3G penetration levels are forecast to grow by 46 per cent through 2016 as the use of mobile-specific services develops.

The rapid pace of mobile adoption has delivered huge economic benefits for the region, directly contributing US$32bn to the sub-Saharan African economy, or 4.4 per cent of GDP. Approximately 3.5mn full-time jobs are attributed to the mobile industry, which has also spurred a wave of technology and content innovation. More than 50 ‘innovation hubs’, which develop local skills and content in the field of ICT services , have been created, including the Hive Colab in Uganda, the iHub in Kenya, and Limbe Labs in Cameroon. Safaricom’s M-PESA mobile money transfer service in Kenya has achieved greater scale than any other service in the world. Today, there are more than 80 mobile money operations for the unbanked across Africa compared to 36 in Asia.

Liquid takes on Altech’s East African assets LIQUID TELECOM HAS recently completed a deal to acquire the East African telecom assets of The Altech Group - including Altech’s 61 per cent stake in Kenya Data Networks (KDN).

The deal, under which Altech becomes a minority shareholder in Liquid with a stake of 8.6 per cent, creates Africa’s largest single fibre network spanning Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, DRC, Lesotho and South Africa.

This network will provide reliable, high-speed, cost-effective connectivity to carriers, Internet service providers (ISPs), homes, financial institutions and businesses of all sizes.

Kenya Data Networks is the country's largest private data carrier and infrastructure provider, operating a combination of microwave radio and fibre optical links, over which it provides layer 2 carrier services (Ethernet, Frame Relay) to corporate customers.

Furthermore, KDN houses and maintains a number of international Internet gateways,

14 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

which it sells to corporate customers - including ISPs. Liquid Telecom CEO Nic Rudnick said, “KDN has built the largest fibre network in East Africa and is a company with huge potential. I strongly believe that its people, its network and its loyal customer base will all add value and opportunity to our current operations.”

Liquid Telecom has built the largest fibre network in Southern Africa and Central Africa. It was the first to cross country borders and covers some of the world’s most challenging parts, where fixed network has not existed before. It works mostly with contractors from around the world. Telecoms operators on the continent have often preferred to outsource their requirements to this highly specialised operator rather than build their own.

Liquid Telecom is a member of the Econet Wireless Global, group of companies. It was started by Econet Wireless founder, Strive Masiyiwa in 1997 as a satellite communications provider.

Improving antenatal services in Kenya SAFARICOM FOUNDATION PARTNERED with Huawei recently to upgrade Isecha Clinic, health centre in Kisii County, in Kenya, which offers services including antenatal, curative outpatient services, family planning, growth monitoring and promotion and immunisation.

Safaricom Foundation contributed KSh5mn (US$57,000).

Speaking when he received a cheque of KSh3mn from Huawei Technologies, Safaricom Foundation Chairman Joseph Ogutu noted that the expansion of Isecha clinic will benefit the area residents who will now access quality healthcare services.

He said without up to standard health facilities, many patients risk their lives as they may not access some of the critical health services they may need from a health facility.

“Access to health care services is a basic human right and it must be respected, promoted and protected by the government as well as society,” he said.

Observations on the emergence of the information economy EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OF Google Eric E Schmidt has followed business meetings in cities around sub-Saharan Africa with a number of observations on the continent’s economy and connectivity. He observes that: the despotic leadership in Africa, which peaked in the 1970s and 1980s, is in decline, and being replaced by younger and more democratic leaders; that a huge youth demographic boom is underway, with a majority of the population younger than 25 years old; and that mobile phones predominate, with the Internet in Africa expected to be primarily mobile. Amongst Schmidt’s more detailed observations, he notes that Nairobi has emerged as a technology hub and may become the African leader. A combination of relatively stable politics, the British legal system, and a benign climate are attracting a significant share of foreign investment. Incubators are hosting potential solutions to many problems - including connecting M-Pesa with payment systems for local stores. He observes, also, that Nigerians have retained their entrepreneurial, stylish and educated corps - and have retained the belief that their country can emerge as the next Brazil. With 170mn citizens, and eleven years of democratic government, compound growth and a shared memory of internal conflict virtually guarantees short-term success. Schmidt sees, also, the emergent model of the African Internet as based around a set of competitive fibre suppliers to capitals, a set of fibre rings owned by local operators, and 3G and 4G networks. Some of the countries are late with licensing plans for 3G and 4G, however - which could prove a costly delay for countries that have very little residential broadband. Solar charging can help with the power needs of handsets, but the electricity needs to be more reliable or costly backup systems will have to be built at towers. Furthermore, some countries are reluctant to turn on the data portion of their telecommunications industry, which could add costly delay to future digital commerce, education and entertainment industries.

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eLearning revenues in Africa set to double to US$512.7mn by 2016 SELF-PACED ELEARNING REVENUES in Africa reached US$250.9mn in 2011 and will more than double to US$512.7mn by 2016, according to a new Ambient Insight report called ‘The Africa Market for Self-paced eLearning Products and Services: 2011-2016 Forecast and Analysis’. Forecasts for sixteen countries are included: Algeria, Angola, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Senegal has the highest growth rate in Africa at 30.4 per cent, followed by Zambia and Zimbabwe at 27.9 per cent and 25.1 per cent, respectively.

"In all the years I have been doing learning technology research, I have never seen a regional market grow so fast. The dynamics in Africa are amazing. The major finding in this report is that the supply and demand metrics for eLearning in Africa are evolving so fast that the market bears little resemblance to the competitive landscape as recently as two years ago," reports Sam S. Adkins , Chief Research Officer.

"Essentially, any commercial market research on the adoption of eLearning in Africa that is older than two years is effectively obsolete."

"Africa now represents a lucrative opportunity for suppliers. Ambient Insight has revised our previous forecasts significantly upward for most African countries for three major reasons. First, there are far reaching academic digitization programs underway in every country in this report. Second, the sharp rise in online higher education enrolments in Africa is nothing short of astonishing," comments CEO Tyson Greer.

"And finally, we are seeing a spike in the uptake of eLearning in the corporate segment, particularly in the booming economies. According to the World Bank, seven of the top ten fastest growing economies in the world are in Africa."

The supply-side section provides revenue forecasts for five types of Self-paced eLearning products and

services including: packaged content, custom content development services, cloud-based authoring tools and learning platform services, installed authoring tools, and installed learning platforms.

"Due to the exceptionally promising market conditions in Africa, the region has the highest growth rates in the world for four out of the five eLearning product types. The growth rate for cloud-based eLearning products in Africa is a breathtaking 38.6 per cent," adds Adkins.

"The eLearning product type that will generate the highest revenues in Africa throughout the forecast period is packaged content."

D’une plateforme en Afrique de l’ouest COMVIVA, QUI FOURNIT de solutions mobiles au-delà de VAS parie grandement sur la croissance du mobile data avec sa Plate-forme de Données primée Mobile data platform (MDP), qui aide les opérateurs à fournir aux abonnés une expérience de navigation plus rapide, plus fluide, fortement personnalisée et cohérente.

Comviva a aussi confirmé que sa Plate-forme Mobile Data sera bientôt disponible chez l’un des opérateurs au Congo Brazzaville appartenant à un groupe leader.

L’objectif est de modifier la façon dont les services Internet mobiles sont offerts dans la région. Cela devrait changer radicalement l’ARPU liés aux données et l'expérience utilisateur. La plate-forme mobile data de Comviva est une plate-forme éprouvée sur le marché qui augmente le volume de données des opérateurs de plus de 40% et augmenter l'ARPU (revenu moyen par utilisateur) de 20%. %. De plus, il intègre une optimisation avancée, la gestion des données et les techniques avancées de monétisation pour augmenter l'expérience utilisateur en améliorant la vitesse de téléchargement de données de plus de 70%.

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Mobile World Congress

A glimpse at 2013’s New Mobile Horizon The key issues of relevance to Africa, addressed at Mobile World Congress, where the limitless possibilities mobile offers for innovative applications are explored and highlighted

I

F YOU’VE BEEN before, you’ll know that Mobile World Congress just gets bigger every year - and now that it has outgrown its previous stamping ground in Fira Montjuic in Barcelona, Spain, the GSMA is moving the event down the road to the new and larger Fira Gran Via - which the GSMA describes as “a large state-of-the-art event space which will allow the show to grow and expand in the years to come”. No doubt they hope it will keep us all happy for some time, though this jury member is still out as regards the travelling that will be needed to reach a venue, which is only 2.5km from the airport. And what if, like last year, there’s a transport strike? No walking back to the hotel this time. But from the looks of the grand tour of the site offered by the GSMA - at www.mobileworldcongress.com - it should be impressive, so let’s reserve judgement until after the event.

A quick look back at 2012 From 600 visitor delegates and eleven table top ‘stands’ in 1993, to 67,000 visitors and 1,500 exhibitors in 2012, the leviathan that is the GSMA Mobile World Congress seems unstoppable. Cities and their populations change their behaviour, venues construct new buildings and we all just keep on coming. Why? Well, as the GSMA states, “The mobile ecosystem is expanding at lightning speed, with endless innovation and new applications of mobile technology,” and one of the best ways to keep up with what’s going on is to keep up with the MWC each year.

Last year, there were 38,000 C-level attendees among the 67,000 visitors from 205 countries, and 3,500 of those were CEOs themselves. And filling 70,500 square metres of exhibition and meeting space at the Fira Montjuic were the record 1,500 exhibiting companies. How sweet the prospect of the new venue’s 200,000 available square metres must sound to this year’s exhibitors – can it possibly mean more walking? Hopefully not, just more room to breathe.

And as the new mobile horizon includes app developers aplenty last year’s ‘largest-ever’ gathering of more than 12,000 mobile app developers sets the stage for even more to join the show this year.

Importantly, representatives from mobile operators made 16 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

In 2012, Mobile World Congress attracted 67,000 visitors. This year, the GSMA expects to manage an even larger contingent seeking knowledge and networking for the global communications industry

up 16 per cent of last year’s attendees; and according to GSMA CEO John Hoffman those mobile operators such as AT&T, China Mobile, Deutsche Telekom, Sprint-Nextel, Telefónica, Telenor, VimpelCom, and Vodafone. But will the mobile operator be the most important player on the 2013 stage? Let’s see…

The New Horizon Keeping our African readership abreast of all key developments expected at MWC makes sense, although there are areas of specific

importance to the still developing nature of many of Africa’s markets and we’ll do our best to touch on some of those here.

To set the ball rolling Communications Africa spoke with Claire Cranton, Director of Communications at the GSMA, as we’re curious about the GSMA’s Mobile for Development group and whether they are expecting to announce any new strategies or projects in emerging/African markets at MWC. “Yes,” Cranton told Communications Africa/Afrique, “we have an evolution of our Green Power for

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Mobile World Congress

Mobile programme, Community Service from Mobile, which will look at how mobile infrastructure such as mobile money, marketing and distribution channels and basestation infrastructure can be used to increase access to water and energy services.”

Certainly, the session on energy+mobile development will address some of these issues. MWC is for emerging market delegates and visitors in terms of business opportunities, and the chances of discovering news technologies relevant to support the growth of mobile in Africa, Cranton said that, “MWC is the global congress for the mobile industry, and as our recently released Africa Mobile Observatory showed, Africa is the fastest-growing mobile market in the world,” making it, in her words, “as important and represented as other regions”.

She added, “We have new board members attending the board meeting this year, such as Sifiso Dabengwa the CEO of MTN group, who

will bring a strong perspective from the African market. We will also have some keynote sessions devoted to emerging markets, with CEOs from those regions speaking.”

As for any new green power issues or drives, which will be highlighted in Barcelona this year and of relevance to emerging markets where off-grid power sources for remote base stations are critical and where innovation and alternative energy are crucial to making a viable business case, Claire Cranton was able to tell us that, “Our new Community Services from Mobile programme will work on this, looking at supporting innovative new business in an area we’re seeing a huge amount of potential in; products such as M-Kopa - which is a solar system you pay for using small MPesa payments in Kenya – is an innovative partnership between Safaricom and a new start-up. We want to encourage and support more innovation like this, and help it to scale.”

The Green Technology pavilion will certainly

Backhaul solutions for mobile telecoms operators WIRELESS EXCELLENCE, WHICH designs and manufactures the CableFree range of products for high performance wireless connectivity, is launching a new set of solutions for LTE/4G and 3G backhaul, which combine millimetre-wave (MMW) using Eband and 60GHz technologies with free space optics (FSO) to provide high capacity Gigabit backhaul networks to power today’s and tomorrow’s cellular networks.

The new CableFree MMW links offer fullspeed Gigabit capacities and advanced, user-friendly features such as 1Gbps full duplex capacity with forward error correction (FEC), power-over-Ethernet and fibre optic interface options, and can be fed by either AC or DC power as site conditions permit. With ultra-low power consumption, the MMW links can be powered off existing sources such as street lighting fixtures, and for remote areas, alternative power sources such as solar with batteries. Using integrated advanced high gain antennas, the MMW links utilise narrow ‘pencil beam’ transmissions which minimise potential sources of interference and maximise spatial re-use for the dense network deployments needed in busy cities.

The 60GHz frequencies, which are ideal for sub-kilometre applications, are used for short links. To implement longer links, Eband (70-80GHz) frequencies are used up to 8km (depending on rain zone region). For ultra high availability, dual-technology links combining MMW and FSO are used which provide 2Gbps of capacity, falling back to 1Gbps when either path is disrupted. As FSO and MMW have complementary fade patterns in fog and rain, high availability

Wireless Excellence’s MMW link for LTE

exceeding 99.999% as well as high throughput of 1Gbps minimum are ensured in all conditions, as well as adding path protection and equipment resilience.

www.wirelessexcellence.com

address this area comprehensively.

As for the wider efforts of the GSMA in Africa, Cranton told Communications Africa/Afrique that, “We’ll be opening our first office in Africa later this year. It will have a small permanent staff but will be the base for a lot of staff who work across the region. We’ll also be recruiting a new Director of Africa to be based there and lead more activity for the GSMA in the subSaharan region in particular but can’t give you an exact date on this yet!”

Well, we’ll certainly be watching this development with interest post-MWC.

mHealth – an MWC must-see for African visitors As the designated Mobile World Capital with its Mobile World Centre and Mobile World Hub inauguration to take place early in February, two of the key initiative areas of focus set out in an early meeting chaired by the Mayor of Barcelona, Xavier Trias, were those of mHealth and mWallet.

Chetan Sharma, president of Chetan Sharma Consulting, said last year of mobile health and wellness that ‘Developed countries are driving mobile wellness, and developing countries are driving mobile health.’ Well, this year, the MWCapital team is said to be involved with ‘two mHealth projects: the Personal Health Folder - offering complete mobile medical histories available through mobile devices for patients and their doctors, as well as a control and treatment platform patients with heart failure. These fall more into the Chetan Sharma category of mobile wellness, but nevertheless are likely to be under the spotlight at MWC in the Mobile Health Pavilion in Hall 7, where the latest mobile health devices will be on display together with leading companies riding the wave of expansion in the global Mobile Health market. Why the boom?

As with everything else, healthcare costs are rising astronomically and providers see mobile as a means of delivering more for less.

Although a McKinsey report suggests patients globally are willing to pay between US$15 and US$58 a month for remote monitoring, this kind of factor will be of less import to African populations.

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute there are currently more than 10,000 health and fitness apps for mobile devices and through the advent of mobile broadband, costeffective satellite backhaul and the unstoppable growth of smartphones, mobile health care is set to change the face of effective health care delivery across Africa and is perhaps one of the most important aspects of MWC 2013 for visitors from this great continent.

So let’s take a closer look.

Amongst those 10,000 apps are some incorporated into mHealth strategies driven often by pharmaceutical companies, or by

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public-sector health services, both adopting new approaches such as direct-to-patient relationships enabled by communications.

SMS is already being used to remind patients of appointments or to take their medicine at the right time and the likes of Google and Microsoft, have launched their own mobile medical apps including Google Health and Microsoft Health Vault, which both deliver consumer medical-record applications. Other mHealthcare services being trialled by a range of players and likely will be visible in the mHealth Pavilion at MWC, include: • Messaging-based drug-logistics applications.

• Disease/lifestyle-management services.

• Epidemiological studies and projects.

• Drug-verification applications.

For Africa, the relevance of mHealth and enthusiasm is already apparent. In Tanzania, the Tanzanian Ministry of Health and Social Welfare a drug stock management project, SMS for Life to support pharmaceutical company, Novartis, in meeting the high demand for antimalarials during seasonal increases, but the programme involved Vodafone, the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, and IBM, as it relied on the use of SMS to track the stock levels of antimalarial drugs in 129 of the country’s rural health centres. This is the kind of application we hope to see more of and hopefully will find highlighted in the Hall 7 at MWC. The GSMA Development Fund’s Mobile Health programme, also expected to be highlighted in Hall 7, is driving a Pan-African mHealth initiative to help increase health access to underserved populations in emerging markets currently with limited or no access to healthcare.

Mobile World Congress

What else is over the ‘New Mobile Horizon’ for Africa?

The MWC 2013 conference programme will take a close look at the impact of mobile on individuals and businesses in both developed and developing markets, and across numerous industry verticals. Of particular interest to the African visitor – who, of course, will be just as interested in the latest smartphone as the next person - are likely to be sessions on topics of pressing importance to support the growth of mobile across Africa.

Energy+Mobile for Development is just one of these sessions and is a seminar open to all MWC attendees illustrating work by the GSMA’s Green Power for Mobile (GPM) and Community Power from Mobile (CPM) programmes. As part of its partnership with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation, GPM has seen a migration from CAPEX to OPEX models for viable green power solutions and this session will likely discuss these developments. As for the CPM, its initial idea of using excess power from running community base stations to provide energy for local communities – schools, shops, lighting, refrigeration - has evolved into ways of leveraging strengths of the mobile operator and these, such as outsourcing power services for mobile towers and extending phone charging services via last mile distribution, are expected to be discussed during this session.

On the subject of agriculture, the seminar on Taking Mobile Agriculture Innovation to Market will look at how subscriber growth over the next five years will be driven by demand among an estimated unconnected 1.8bn people in developing countries. With a huge majority of these people located in remote, rural locations

Each year, Mobile World Congress presents new technologies that extend mobile network capabilities to domestic and enterprise consumers

18 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

and dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods, this is a significant untapped market for the mobile industry. This session will include a panel of ‘leading practitioners from the Agricultural Value Added Services (Agri VAS) industry’ and attendees (open to all comers) will hear about mobile agr-initiatives being undertaken by MNOs for rural populations in their markets. This is a subject Communications Africa/Afrique has looked at in the past but we’ll be hoping to highlight in more detail after MWC. Sure, a disaster can happen anywhere, not just Africa and emerging markets, and the seminar session: Mobile: A Lifeline in Disasters, doesn’t discriminate looking closely at recent disasters in the Philippines, the United States, Latin America and the Horn of Africa. Hosted by the GSMA Disaster Response Programme, the Monday session will look at how mobile communications plays its part as a humanitarian tool in a sector that must be prepared for the next, inescapable, requirement. Confirmed speakers at time of writing include: Smart Communications, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UN Global Pulse and Telefónica Group.

Of the many country pavilions at the show only Egypt and Tunisia represent the Northern African contingent but following recent and ongoing geo-political events, Communications Africa/Afrique is sure visits to these will be of great interest. Of the remaining pavilions the Green Technology Pavilion will look at some of the latest green power technologies as mobile network operators seek greener alternatives to the ubiquitous diesel genset. Not only are fuel costs rising but the logistics in remote regions of delivering diesel means that the supply chain costs drive or often destroy the viability of delivering services to remote regions, and if only renewable, self-sustaining energy sources can be deployed will all the unconnected ever be connected.

So, ‘Green Technology Extend Mobile Beyond the Grid’ will be the pavilion theme, highlighting if the GSMA’s Green Power for Mobile programme reached its goal of ‘helping the mobile industry use renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, or sustainable biofuels, to power 118,000 new and existing off-grid base stations in developing countries by 2012’. A key issue here is whether the goal was reached and in how many cases did renewable energy sources actually ‘replace’ diesel as a sole source of power. Cell sites in remote regions often use both. Why? Because you can’t always rely on the sun to shine or the wind to blow and as biofuels often come with a high price tag and a hidden cost to the environment, this will be an interesting session for Africa, indeed.

The GSMA says that by achieving that target some 2.5bn litres of diesel per annum would be

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EVENTS

Mobile World Congress

aimed at enabling some 150mn underserved women gain access to mobile phones and tools by 2014. The award will recognise an innovative product or service designed to meet the needs of underserved women across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the Pacific.

The use of mobile in disaster scenarios will be recognised by the Best Use of Mobile in Emergency or Humanitarian Situations award, a category for mobile services, initiatives, applications, solutions or products that have been in place, developed or deployed to provide emergency support to communities hit by natural disasters including: earthquakes, tsunamis, famine, tornadoes and floods, as well as humanitarian disasters created by war and conflict.

Mobile communications can be a vital lifeline in times of disaster and whether as an integral part of an emergency warning system, supporting first responders, providing a survivor locator service or deploying an emergency base station, how mobile is used, in any fashion, to enable the likes of aid agencies to function after a disaster will be recognised by this award.

The final sub-cat of Category 3 is the Green Mobile Award for mobile players focused eco-friendly, innovative policies, products, programmes or initiatives, to reduce environmental impact of their activities to deliver mobile communications.

Vertical sector organisations which use mobile to support eco-friendly programmes, services and initiatives will also be eligible for this award.

A final MWC 2013 pre-word

Major industry players offer insights into key technical developments in Barcelona

saved, thereby cutting annual carbon emissions by up to 6.8mn tonnes. It also paints an interesting picture of improved technology resulting in more commercially attractive alternatives and environmental benefits of reduced diesel use. This pavilion will be an essential stopping off point for any regional operators visiting from Africa.

Awards 2013 A piece about MWC would not be complete without a word on the Global Mobile Awards 2013, with Category 3’s sub-cats on Social & Economic Development of particular relevance to developments in Africa – borne out by the participation on one of the judging panels of this journal’s managing editor, Andrew Croft. Watch out for winners in Day 2 of the show daily.

The first of these sub-cats is for Best Mobile Product, Initiative or Service for Emerging Markets and will recognise mobile initiatives, programmes, products and services that have had a real effect bridging the digital divide in emerging markets and that have connected unconnected communities by bringing affordable mobile voice and data communications, apps and services to people for the very first time. Products and services that have had a proven social and economic impact on businesses and individuals will be in the running.

The Best Mobile Product or Service for Women in Emerging Markets sub-cat is inspired by the GSMA mWomen Programme ( www.mWomen.org ), a global public-private partnership between the international development community and mobile industry

As if the MWC elements above were not enough to keep African visitors occupied, the MWC GSMA Ministerial Programme, which is run during the show, takes place over three days and sees government leaders debating and sharing insight into how mobile is impacting their respective countries. This year the programme will include five in-depth thematic sessions for governments looking at leveraging mobile for development and economic growth and there will be greater regional focus on Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, as well as other emerging regions with remote communities. With attendees expected from national telecommunications ministries, regulatory authorities the invitation-only Ministerial Programme is open to one C-level representative from each GSMA member/associate member organisation, as well as the Minister of Telecommunications and head of telecommunications regulation from each country. Definitely worth taking time to participate if you’ve already decided to make the journey to Barcelona. See you there. ✆

Tim Guest

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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INFRASTRUCTURE

NFC

The NFC solution that drives next-generation mobile payments The fruits of Qualcomm’s development of an ultra-low power near field communications chip for mobile devices

Q

UALCOMM ATHEROS, INC. - A subsidiary arm of Q u a l c o m m Incorporated, recently introduced a new ultra-low power near field communication (NFC) solution that will enable mobile devices with contactless communications and data exchange - including nextgeneration mobile payments. The QCA1990 is the industry’s smallest, ultra-low power system-on-chip (SoC) with an overall footprint that is 50 per cent smaller than current NFC chips available in the market.

When paired with Qualcomm Atheros’ WCN3680 1-stream, dualband 802.11ac Wi-Fi/Bluetooth 4.0/FM chip, the QCA1990 will enable seamless user experiences in the mobile, computing and consumer electronics markets.

The QCA1990 offers platformlevel integration with the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 and next-generation processors and modems to seamlessly enable NFC on Qualcomm’s OEM partner smartphones and tablets. The QCA1990 software stack complies with the NFC Forum Controller Interface (NCI) and is fully integrated to enable faster time-tomarket for customers. Its state-ofthe-art radio frequency (RF) performance exceeds requirements established by EMVCo and the NFC Forum. With supported antenna form factors that are eight times smaller than current market offerings, QCA1990 offers significant cost savings for OEMs to integrate NFC at a significantly lower price point.

Energy issues for e-commerce As consumers continue to rely more on their mobile devices for new and extended applications, battery drain can be a significant issue; the QCA1990 employs extremely lowpower polling algorithms to prolong 20 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

Qualcomm's Snapdragon platform offers processing performance and optimised power consumption for smart mobile devices

battery life. The QCA1990 also offers a wide range of secure element options, both embedded and SIMbased, while supporting multiple secure elements concurrently, including support for a dual-SIM configuration.

“Qualcomm Atheros believes NFC will be another key element of an enriched experience for smartphone and tablet consumers.

As consumers continue to adopt functions like mobile payments and contactless data exchange, Qualcomm intends to be at the forefront of delivering simple, easyto-use solutions to OEM partners,” said David Favreau, vice president of product management, Qualcomm Atheros.

“By enabling client devices, Qualcomm Atheros is paving the way for rapid adoption of products that incorporate NFC technology.”✆

The QCA1990 is the industry’s smallest, ultra-low power system-on-chip - over 50 per cent smaller than other NFC chips available today Snapdragon chip acknowledged for innovation and integration THE QUALCOMM SNAPDRAGON S4 processor was recently branded the ‘Best Mobile Processor of 2012’, taking top honours in a prominent research firm’s annual Analysts’ Choice Award.

The Linley Group, an independent research body, gave the award to the Qualcomm MSM8960, the top-tier Snapdragon S4 processor found in dozens of devices - including the Samsung Galaxy S III, the HTC One X, the Motorola RAZR M and the Nokia Lumia 920.

The processor won due to its performance, innovation in Wi-Fi integration, and time-to-market advantage for 28nm technology, says Principal Analyst Linley Gwennap. Qualcomm Snapdragon processors integrate many different cellphone components onto a single, tiny chip. That gives them both impressive power and best-in-class battery life - in short, benchmark-busting performance.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

IP

Un réseau à travers l’Afrique Particuliers et entreprises pourront profiter de nouveaux services grâce à un réseau IP hautes performances

A

LCATEL-LUCENT AIDE BHARTI Airtel à gérer la rapide hausse de la demande en services haut débit mobile sur ses marchés africains en lui fournissant une nouvelle technologie réseau IP (Internet Protocol) permettant de proposer de nouveaux services données et vidéo haut débit mobile.

L’essor des smartphones sur le continent africain génère une forte demande en services de données haut débit mobile, notamment pour la visioconférence et les jeux en ligne. En réponse à cette croissance actuelle et future, Alcatel-Lucent équipera les réseaux de transport et de backhauling1 mobile d’Airtel Afrique de sa technologie IP/MPLS (IP/Multiprotocol Label Switching).

performance, la fiabilité, la convergence de la capacité et les mécanismes interopérables pour un rétablissement des services plus rapide si besoin. Airtel investit notamment sur une plateforme commune pour l’activation des services de couches 2 et 3 pour réduire le temps de diffusion des différents types de services. Ce projet permettra d’accroître les débits Internet des solutions mobiles et professionnelles proposées par Airtel, de renforcer la qualité

Particuliers et entreprises pourront profiter de nouveaux services grâce à un réseau IP hautes performances

L’essor des smartphones sur le continent africain génère une forte demande en services de données haut débit mobile

La convergence, la capacité, les mécanismes Ce nouveau réseau d’infrastructure prendra en charge tous les services haut débit mobile des 17 filiales d’Airtel en Afrique – soit 60 millions de clients – et assurera une interconnexion plus robuste avec les réseaux mondiaux, y compris avec le Royaume-Uni. Ce réseau international unique sera doté d’une structure plus simple pour améliorer la

de la téléphonie et de multiplier les services pour une meilleure expérience client et une réduction des coûts d’exploitation.

Eben Albertyn, directeur technique d’Airtel Afrique, a déclaré : « Alcatel-Lucent nous aide à exploiter tous les avantages de la technologie IP/MPLS pour gérer efficacement et à moindre coût une multitude de services données et vidéo haut débit mobile. Ce nouveau déploiement renforcera considérablement la qualité des services que nous proposons à nos clients, et c’est aussi un excellent moyen de préparer Airtel Afrique à de futures expansions à l’international. » Et Daniel Jaeger, directeur des activités d’Alcatel-Lucent en Afrique, d’ajouter : « Ce réseau IP/MPLS transportera l’intégralité du

Daniel Jaeger, directeur des activités d’AlcatelLucent en Afrique

trafic international (voix, Internet, informatique) d’Airtel en Afrique, avec une connexion au point d’appairage au RoyaumeUni. Grâce à notre solution de backhauling mobile IP/MPLS de pointe, nous pouvons aider les 17 sociétés d’exploitation d’Airtel Afrique à proposer de nouvelles offres de services encore plus fiables et répondant aux besoins des abonnés. » ✆

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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NETWORK

Capacity

Improving the network through intelligent antenna design To meet the need for increasing the capacity of high-speed, latest technology networks, innovative antenna solutions, such as bi-sector arrays, can dramatically improve network service capacity and quality

W

ITH AFRICA NOW the world’s fastest growing mobile market, it makes sense for operators here to ensure they get the most out of their networks any way they can, in order to support the booming demand for data on a continent where subscriber growth had been predicted, by the GSMA, to have reached 735mn subscribers by the end of 2012.

But there’s a catch; countries in Africa have allocated much less spectrum for the support of mobile services than in other global markets and this factor alone will inhibit the uptake of mobile broadband services over 3G, HSPA, LTE and the like. It makes sense, therefore, for all mobile operators to be aware of the most spectrumefficient network equipment available to maximize the efficiency with which the spectrum, that is available, is used, and this is where smart antenna design can make a real difference.

Solving capacity needs with smart antennas Smart antenna solutions can help operators meet growing capacity needs without compromising quality or data throughputs and will work with all existing cell-site equipment with minimal changes required. Such solutions use advanced phased array methods to help achieve their spectral efficiency, capacity and coverage improvements and can be used to implement sites with Higher Order Sectorisation, i.e. beyond the traditional three sectors. This is an effective way of growing network capacity without rolling out expensive new sites (which also takes too long) or acquiring new frequencies, particularly when there’s no spectrum available. This approach uses and adapts existing site spectrum and infrastructure to deliver additional capacity at much lower cost and can be achieved through the use of such smart solutions as bi-sector arrays (BSA), which are technology-agnostic and will support capacity growth in all networks, whether PCS, 2G/3G GSM/EDGE, 3G/UMTS, CDMA/WCDMA, 4G/LTE, and AWS. Using a BSA has been shown to increase cell site capacity in a range of 2.1 up to 3.8 times, as well as decreasing the number of dropped calls from the site, and network planners can factor the BSA into their normal plans using standard tools and methods. The solution allows a direct one-for-one replacement of existing antennas in a standard cellular deployment, each array producing two beams, and can be used to boost capacity of existing sites that have reached maximum traffic carrying capability by expanding a site to six sectors, which achieves the same traffic capacity gains as putting in a new site using traditional 3-sector antennas but without the typical $250,000 price tag that comes with a new site roll-out. The BSA produces an asymmetric beam pattern contoured to match the original 65° sector, which is commonly used to build 3-sector sites, and has enabled network planners to overcome deployment issues which have previously prevented operators from adopting higher order sectorisation in their 3-sector sites. Operating costs are also minimised using a BSA. Statistics from typical urban site deployment in an emerging market show the BSA to offer the lowest cost of providing capacity in an area both in terms of CAPEX, where 50% efficiencies are seen, and for OPEX, where 60% efficiencies are seen. Compared to standard 22 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

900 MHz Bi-sector array antennas deployed for GSM

base station antennas, the BSA significantly increases the performance and efficiency of site designs and has been proven in many network scenarios and deployments.

The bi-sector array in a nutshell For operators in Africa needing to increase capacity in a mobile environment where spectrum is scarce and costs need to be minimised, the coverage provided by a bi-sector array solution will enable them to match the current footprint of a traditional cell site and, in some cases, will more than double the capacity of a cell site.

Introducing the BSA solution into the network provides the operator with the equivalent of doubling their useable spectrum. Using a BSA removes the need for adjacent site changes, new site roll-outs or optimization activities to increase capacity and these solutions have been widely accepted in the industry as being more efficient than any other antenna system available. ✆

Peter Jackson, Director, CCI

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NETWORK

IP

Achieving the ultimate in efficient network architecture How low-voltage applications can operate over just one or two pairs within each four pair cable as part of a system that runs a converged IP Ethernet network

C

ONVERGED IP NETWORKS offer many benefits (capex, opex, green), which all stem from the idea of using one cabling system to support multiple building services. Taking this converged system concept on an additional step, cable sharing can offer further efficiency and avoid waste.

It’s now well accepted that a converged, IPbased, intelligent building cabling system using a simplified structured cabling infrastructure creates a smarter, greener building. Convergence allows end users to turn their structured cabling system into a critical building asset and reduce costs, plus simplify application deployment and enhance the workplace, whilst maximising energy efficiency with greater control of systems.

The concept, quite simply, is for a single IP Ethernet network to run low-voltage building automation systems (BAS) on one integrated, physical infrastructure, including those supported by PoE (Power over Ethernet) and PoE+. This single system delivers many services; voice, data, wireless devices, audio/video, energy management, lighting controls, security, fire/safety systems and HVAC; blending the traditional lines between IT and facilities management.

Lee Funnell, EMEA Technical Manager, Siemon

The case for convergence The ISO 16484 and ANSI/TIA/EIA-862 series of building automation systems standards raised the industry's awareness of the capabilities of structured cabling by specifying planning requirements for the support of low-voltage, non-telecommunications applications using modular RJ-45 style connectivity and twistedpair cabling. Draft standards, such as those

under development by the IEEE 802.1 Audio Video Bridging (AVB) task force, go even further by specifying protocols that ensure high quality audio and video streaming over Ethernet. The advantages of AVB technology include potentially lower equipment costs, ease-of installation, and the ability to network applications that traditionally operated on widely varying and non-compatible platforms.

Deploying a converged network means that capital expenditure is reduced at installation as less material is demanded at the outset and a single contractor may be used to install one converged system, compared to multiple contractors installing multiple systems.

However, the more compelling saving is in operating expenditure over the longer term, where an intelligent, converged system supports energy efficient protocols that will save money year-on-year, whilst playing a major part in more sustainable operation that controls the carbon footprint of the building.

With challenging economic conditions, many have welcomed this financially efficient approach to BAS, however in practice it sometimes stumbles during planning when those in different departments seek to retain and defend their independent systems and budgetary control. This is perhaps the single

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NETWORK

IP

from power efficiency, perhaps from intelligent, sensor enabled provision of lighting, served to specifically meet demand of the buildings inhabitants and also HVAC that operates automatically to control temperature and air movement, based on chosen climate settings.

Beyond convergence

biggest challenge for the deployment of convergence, but unequivocal evidence wins out when the convergence conversation is taken to the board room.

Operational advantage Beyond the compelling financial case for convergence, there are operational advantages that an integrated system delivers: Network management is made possible with IP-enabled devices that can be centrally monitored, accessed and managed by administrators. This device management can facilitate energy efficiency initiatives such as automatic lighting and HVAC control, whist building security may be enhanced and emergency response times can be cut.

On a converged network, assets may be more rigorously controlled and monitored in real-time, including both physical assets and data. This serves the demands of regulatory compliance, which is now, of course, a critical consideration in the wake of Sarbanes-Oxley,

24 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability, the Real ID Act and the Information and Technology Infrastructure Library for information technology management.

Just as convergence reduces the number of systems in operation, it can also reduce the number of suppliers on call to support and maintain the site. Both time and money can be saved by the building occupier if there’s one point of contact for all the services in demand - another appealing aspect of this infrastructure consolidation.

Energy efficiency carries double benefits for convergence. By this approach it is possible to reduce wastage during the design and installation phases, plus provide greater control of systems that can optimise energy usage over the lifetime of the building.

To qualify this environmental advantage of convergence, the EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) suggests that green buildings can reduce energy use by up to 70 per cent. This should predominantly come

Just as convergence allows many low-voltage applications to run over one, integrated network, it is possible to run a number of lowspeed, high-density applications over different pairs of a 4-pair twisted-pair copper structured cabling channel using the concept of ‘cable sharing’. It could be described as ‘converged convergence’, whereby the cost savings of a converged network are compounded by the savings associated with the utilisation of cable sharing.

This standards-approved strategy takes convergence on a major step, or indeed leap, as it frees up valuable pathway space by reducing the number of cables required. It further reduces the number of outlets required, which can result in lower installation labour costs. By using cable sharing, unused pairs can reduce by up to 70 per cent – over and above the system efficiency afforded by a converged IP network.

In a typical converged network environment, a wide range of applications (eg VoIP, CATV, CCTV, Internet, security cameras, automation control systems, and intercom) are deployed that utilise only one or two pairs for transmission. However, cable sharing - which is possible with some fully shielded, category 7A/class FA cables - supports multiple lowvoltage applications over one cable, using all four pairs rather than just one or two.

When UTP or F/UTP copper media is

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NETWORK

IP

sharing solutions is to provide a minimum of one dedicated 4-pair category 6A or higher rated outlet in addition to the shared class F outlets to ensure a migration path for highspeed data upgrades.

Efficiently cutting cost

deployed to support a range of applications, multiple unused pairs can contribute to excessive cable congestion, overfilled pathways, and additional cost. This obstacle can be overcome by utilising the practice of cable sharing with category 7A/class FA cabling. Because of its fully shielded construction, the signals on individual category 7A pairs are fully isolated from each other and multiple applications transmitting on just one or two pairs may be run over a category 7A/class FA channel without concern for interference. In fact, category 7A/class FA media is so robust, that two PoE applications (12.95 W maximum power delivered to the each powered device) can be supported over one channel as long as power is delivered using IEEE 802.3-2005 Alternative A. As an example, if six services (VoIP, CATV, CCTV, Internet, security cameras, automation control systems, and intercom) are required for a specific network implementation, providing a

dedicated 4-pair cable for each low pair count application would require six outlets at the work area or zone box; leaving a total of 16 unused pairs! A more efficient solution would be to implement a cable sharing approach whereby each work area or zone box would support the six services over two category 7A/class FA channels.

By this cable sharing approach, we can reduce the number of cables physically installed into a building, thereby reducing the size of containment systems and the number of patch panels and cabinets. This has obvious and potentially significant cost saving benefits for the building owner.

When designing cable sharing solutions, it is critical to plan for the types of applications to be supported and understand their equipment lifecycles. Although there are many benefits to be realised from implementing cable sharing design strategies, it is important to remember that the recommended practice for all cable

Cutting the number of cables, containment systems, outlets, patch panels, cabinets and contractors makes great sense for the end user, but can send chills down the spine of any integrator or installer. It means selling less materials and labour and this concept can be met with some resistance. However, the concept of convergence means that, perhaps for the first time, those in the IT market will have the opportunity to deliver systems that run the services normally held within the facilities management domain. This breaks down functional boundaries and greatly widens the scope for IT infrastructure experts.

Convergence encourages end users to consolidate their BAS suppliers, potentially to just one, so it’s important for those in the industry to be able to be well informed and able to be this single point of contact.

In summary, there are many benefits to convergence; financial, environmental, practical and operational. The case for convergence is well proven. Here, we’ve considered the less well-known concept of cable sharing, which offers additional advantages to the concept of convergence.

Using this efficient approach to structured cabling, we take one system that serves many needs and streamline it to maximise operational usage, reducing waste and controlling installation cost even further. With fewer cables we are able to offer much more than ever before and deliver a myriad of services that operate in the most sustainable way. ‘Converged convergence’ sounds like the intelligent future of the intelligent building. ✆

Lee Funnell, EMEA Technical Manager, Siemon

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NETWORK

IP

Organising defence whilst ensuring integrity Guidance on best practices and associated considerations to help secure unified communications to ensure business continuity

U

NIFIED COMMUNICATIONS (UC) offers enterprises access to multiple benefits, as a result of the ability to conduct multiple communication tools over a single Internet Protocol (IP) network. However, the very nature of this IP network means that it is subject to the same security threats as the corporate network, whether it is run on the same pipe or not. When it comes to communication, denial of service and other malicious attacks could bring an organisation to its knees, so securing UC is of the utmost importance to business continuity. Some of the best practices around securing UC are understandably similar to those involved in securing any IP network, however there are certain unique characteristics of UC that need to be taken into account when it comes to developing and maintaining a best practice UC policy.

Firewalls and making sure UC devices work with them The first step in securing UC, and indeed in securing any IP network, is to implement a robust firewall to stop attacks from penetrating the network. Most UC enabled devices are basically computers and have remote management capabilities, so it is considered best security practice to disable these capabilities if the device needs to be deployed outside of the corporate firewall. This closes any loopholes that attackers may attempt to take advantage of. As with any IT asset, UC devices should for preference be deployed behind the corporate firewall, as this provides the greatest levels of security.

However, because of the nature of UC, there are additional considerations to take into account here. A session border controller (SBC)/firewall traversal (FT) system is required to enable media streams such as video to cross over the firewall without compromising

security, by working with the firewall to ensure availability of video without exposing the UC infrastructure or corporate network to attack.

Using a firewall with a UC SBC ensures that Internet-based attackers are not able to reach open ports and services on the UC infrastructure, such as those required for video, while at the same time enabling outside users, customers and business partners to make video calls to UC devices.

Assessing and managing systems for optimal security (and performance) Security is not a static environment, and as such best practice recommends periodic scanning of UC devices for vulnerabilities and risks. This step is also critical when new UC devices are deployed onto an existing UC infrastructure, as it ensures holes are not opened up as a result of non-performance of simple tasks such as changing default configurations and passwords. Organisations should scan for vulnerabilities both inside and outside the firewall for a complete view of the potential threat landscape. This will alert administrators to missing patches, security misconfigurations and weaknesses that could be exploited from outside of the corporate network.

For the purposes of administration and security, UC devices, particularly video, should be treated as typical computing devices, and the same steps should be taken to manage and secure these as would be done for say, a server. Any unnecessary functions and unused

To make corporate unified communications secure, implement a robust firewall to stop attacks from penetrating the network

services should be disabled, to provide fewer points of security failure as well as to optimise performance on services that are being utilised. A vulnerability scan will also help to highlight which services are open and reachable so a decision can be made on which services to enable or disable for optimal security and performance.

Auto-answer, meeting rooms and other UC idiosyncrasies Videoconferencing endpoints have the ability to automatically answer incoming calls, which makes the system very easy to use but also has security implications that need to be understood if they are not to pose a threat.

If auto answer is disabled, it is not possible for an attacker to dial into a room without the active cooperation of a user in the room. A more open option is to enable auto answer and take mitigating actions, such as disabling the ability to control the far camera remotely, using a camera lens cover when the system is not in use, restricting calls allowed to only registered numbers, and monitoring and keeping a record of incoming calls. Obviously the most secure option is to disable auto answer, but in many cases this is not an option. Organisations need to strike a balance between security and the need to use this service.

Auto answer is a dial-in paradigm, where outside users call into a UC meeting room.

There is also a dial-out use case where video devices can call a meeting room on a central control unit. This is a more secure architecture than dial-in, as there is no direct connection between two endpoints, which means that attackers cannot access the meeting room even if they connect to the call. This can be further extended into virtual meeting rooms, where all parties dial into a centralised location and not endpoint to endpoint, minimising the risks involved. ✆

Best practices for UC in business UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS HAS revolutionised the way organisations do business and opened up a whole new landscape of integrated, multi-channel communication. Along with this it also brings with it a host of security concerns and issues that need to

26 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

be dealt with. However, these security concerns, once identified, are fairly straightforward to manage. By following best practices for securing UC infrastructure, and by treating these end points in the same fashion as organisations would treat

computers, businesses can take advantage of the benefits of UC while ensuring security vulnerabilities are kept to a minimum.

Divesh Nathoo, pre-sales manager at Kathea

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RÉSEAUX

Développement

La révolution technologique en Afrique Comment un rapport relève des innovations et des solutions endogènes dans huit secteurs clés

E

N AFRIQUE, DES innovations dans le domaine des TIC donnent naissance à des solutions endogènes qui transforment les entreprises et dynamisent l'entrepreneuriat et la croissance économique. C'est le constat d'un rapport conjoint publié par la Banque mondiale et la Banque africaine de développement (BAD), avec l'appui de l'Union africaine.

Ce rapport, intitulé ‘eTransform Africa: The Transformational Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Africa’, présente de nouvelles données sur la révolution technologique en Afrique qui est en train de transformer sur le développement du continent. Au début de 2012, on comptait environ 650 millions d'abonnements à la téléphonie mobile, chiffre qui fait de l'Afrique un marché plus important que celui de l'UE ou des États-Unis dans ce secteur. Quelque 68 000 km de câbles sous-marins et plus de 615 000 km de réseaux de dorsales nationales ont été installés, augmentant considérablement la connectivité sur le continent africain. La bande passante ouverte à plus de un milliard de citoyens africains est 20 fois plus large aujourd'hui qu'en 2008.

Des perspectives de développement Jamal Saghir, directeur du Développement durable de la Banque mondiale pour la région Afrique, explique : « Le réseau Internet et les téléphones portables transforment les perspectives de développement en Afrique. Ils introduisent un nouveau dynamisme dans des secteurs clés. Le défi désormais consiste à faire passer ces innovations et ces réussites à l'échelle supérieure afin qu'elles exercent un impact social et économique plus visible sur le continent au cours des dix prochaines années. » Le rapport eTransform Africa insiste sur la nécessité de bâtir un secteur des TIC suffisamment concurrentiel pour promouvoir l'innovation, créer des emplois et dynamiser le potentiel d'exportation des sociétés africaines. Il énumère les pratiques exemplaires d'utilisation des TIC dans huit secteurs clés. Par exemple : Agriculture : au Kenya, le programme Kilimo Salama est un programme d'assurance des cultures qui tire parti du système de transfert d'argent par téléphone MPESA et permet aux exploitants agricoles de mieux gérer les risques naturels tels que les sécheresses ou la surabondance de précipitations.

Adaptation au changement climatique : au Malawi, un projet de déforestation forme les communautés locales, à l'établissement de relevés des villages sur GPS et à l'élaboration de stratégies d'adaptation en fonction de leurs besoins.

Services financiers : au Sénégal, l'opérateur SONATEL (filiale d'Orange) a lancé récemment un service d'envoi de fonds, permettant à ses 200 000 abonnés d'envoyer et de recevoir de l'argent par le biais de leur téléphone portable.

Santé : au Mali, la télémédecine contribue à pallier le manque de travailleurs et de spécialistes de la santé dans les zones rurales, grâce notamment au programme de télé-radiologie IKON.

D’un esprit créatif « Ce rapport présente la voie dans laquelle l'Afrique s'est engagée et encourage l'esprit créatif concernant la manière d'utiliser les TIC au profit du plus grand nombre », explique Gilbert Mbesherubusa, vice-président suppléant des opérations de la Banque africaine de développement.

Le rapport décrit de quelle manière des pays comme le Kenya et le Sénégal mettent en œuvre des initiatives de facilitation du commerce grâce aux TIC. Il précise aussi le rôle prépondérant que les communautés économiques régionales peuvent jouer en favorisant une plus grande intégration régionale à laquelle arrimer la croissance économique à coût réduit.

Le rapport eTransform Africa fournit également des informations sur le développement des centres technologiques en Afrique - tels que iHub et NaiLab au Kenya, Hive CoLab et AppLab en Ouganda, Activspaces au Cameroun, BantaLabs au Sénégal, Kinu en Tanzanie ou infoDev’s mLabs au Kenya et en Afrique du Sud. Ces centres créent de nouveaux espaces de collaboration, d'innovation, de formation, de développement d'applications et de contenu et de pré-incubation des entreprises africaines de demain. « L'Afrique prend rapidement l'étoffe d'un chef de file dans le domaine des TIC. Les innovations qui ont connu leur essor en Afrique – comme les téléphones portables à deux cartes SIM ou les envois de fonds par téléphone - se répandent sur tout le continent et au-delà » indique Tim Kelly, expert en politique des TIC à la Banque mondiale et l'un des auteurs du rapport. Le défi à relever pour l'avenir du continent est de réussir à faire en sorte que les innovations en matière de TIC profitent à tous les Africains, y compris les pauvres, les plus vulnérables et les habitants des régions les plus reculées. » ✆ Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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NETWORK

M2M

Working through the M2M value chain The prospect of machine-to-machine communications across the continent raises several significant concerns for operators

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ACHINE-TO-MACHINE COMMUNICATIONS IS a growth market with huge potential: the largest European, American and Asian-Pacific operators are currently in the process of deploying M2M platforms and services. Operators worldwide have recognised the potential of M2M as a great source of new revenue as voice and data services become saturated and average revenues per user stagnate.

In Africa, the use cases for M2M are many and varied because of the nature of continent: there are many rural areas without good infrastructure where M2M communications can help improve services such as healthcare, utilities and others.

For example, M2M technology is being used by rural medical clinics to wirelessly receive HIV test results of expectant mothers within days of testing, allowing infected mothers to begin anti-retroviral drugs much earlier and therefore decrease the risk of transferring the virus to their babies. M2M is also being used to tackle diabetes, which affects over 7.5mn adults in Africa, with regional governments and healthcare organisations working with equipment manufacturers to make mobile monitoring devices and applications to help with treatment.

As the M2M market begins to develop in Africa, operators and the other players in the M2M value chain will need to consider their back-end services and support systems so that they can fully take advantage of M2M opportunities in the region.

Why M2M is different It is important to bear in mind that the M2M sector is characterised by high-volume, lowvalue transactions: M2M is about automating activity and driving down costs. As a result, M2M providers’ costs, including their billing costs, must also be kept low. Machine-tomachine billing therefore requires a different approach in order to meet the specific character of the sector, with providers able to respond quickly and easily to its requirements and innovation with new deals, services and pricing.

A billing system that is straightforward to maintain and low cost to alter will enable operators to meet the challenges that M2M billing presents. The combination of many 28 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

There are many rural areas without good infrastructure where M2M communications can help improve services including healthcare and utilities industries and many business models, managed by one M2M platform, means that operators need to be extremely versatile in supporting all business models and various partner settlements within complex value chains.

In order to meet the growing and rapidlychanging demands of the market, M2M billing platforms need to support recurring and usagebased payments and micro-payments and be built around tiered pricing, usage-based fees, time-based charging and real-time management of balances. M2M billing should fully integrate with existing billing platforms with minimal hardware or functional modifications and reduce operational costs by automating the entire M2M process so that operators can counteract the low-value transaction nature of M2M. Implementing a billing solution designed for M2M is a worthy investment for Africa’s operators. Service providers can easily and effectively configure pricing and rate plans onthe-fly and without incurring expensive change requests, so innovative business rules can be introduced at the speed of marketing.

The future of M2M in Africa Whilst M2M does have a future in Africa, it is currently not yet clear what that future will be. As with the examples already explored, healthcare is one industry that will benefit noticeably from M2M communications, connecting rural areas to medical centres. As the utilities market develops, too, expect to see smart electricity and water meters. And in the incredibly successful adoption of mobile money in Africa, there is sometimes crossover with M2M technologies and operators stand to benefit greatly with the combination of both technologies.

Another area of growth potential for M2M billing is IPTV. For many people, monthly TV packages are too expensive. With the arrival of fibre on the continent IPTV becomes a reality.

Smart set-top boxes with embedded SIMs will enable people to access TV on a pay-as-youwatch basis; paying with their phones to activate the service and only paying for what they use. Hotels are already employing this technology, letting guests download programmes or applications from set-top boxes enabled with SIMs. In the not-too-distant future, the potential and possibilities that the M2M industry presents for Africa’s telecoms operators will become clear. When and how this huge future market will take off is as yet uncertain but when it does, M2M will prove itself an exceptional revenue generator for operators and of huge benefit to the African people. ✆

Nir Asulin, Chief Executive Officer, FTS

GL announces support for DS3 subrate and scrambling GL COMMUNICATIONS INC. has released an enhanced T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer with DS3 Subrate and Scrambling feature. Mr Vijay Kulkarni, GL’s CEO, said, “GL's T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer Pod is one of the smallest and lightest (weighing only 1.75 lbs) analyzer units in the world. The pod when connected to Notebook PC is capable of capturing two full T3 (DS3) / E3 data streams, dropping and inserting T1 or E1, and Analysis of HDLC, ATM, Frame Relay, and PPP Protocols.”

He added, “GL's T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer is now enhanced with scrambling and subrate features. Sub rate allows DSU manufacturers to control bandwidth from service provider end and sell user specific bandwidth. Data Service Unit (DSU) Subrate feature in T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer allows to configure the DS3 networks for the following DSU vendors' algorithms for T3 interface: Digital Link, Larscom, Verilink, and Adtran.”

Mr. Kulkarni further added, “The analyzer allows to choose scrambling in each DSU mode. Scrambling was implemented to address various 0S-density when used in WAN interface. User can monitor such communications using GL's USB T3 E3 Analyzer.” www.gl.com

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NETWORK

E-Learning

Technological influences on Africa’s e-learning landscape

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O BE PUBLISHED by ICWE GmbH, which organises eLearning Africa - which brings together over 300 speakers and chairpersons from 50 countries for workshops and plenary sessions featuring internationally acknowledged eLearning experts, networking opportunities and a wide variety of session formats - the eLearning Africa 2013 Survey monitors African opinion on how the continent’s learning landscape is changing under the influence of new technologies.

Under the overarching theme of ‘Mobility and the MDGs in Africa beyond 2015’, this major panAfrican survey forms the foundation of the report, which will be launched at the eLearning

Africa 2013 conference in Windhoek, Namibia, held from 29-31 May 2013.

Building on the key findings of The eLearning Africa 2012 Report, the 2013 report will analyse the integration of learning technologies in Africa, explore the development of locally-produced digital content and examine the challenges and opportunities that are shaping Africa’s eLearning sector.

Issues affecting eLearning Launched by Benin’s Minister of Communication and ICT Max Ahouêkê at the eLearning Africa 2012 conference, The eLearning Africa 2012 Report found that the main factor constraining the African eLearning sector is lack

The experience of eLearning in Africa is one of increasing mobility and more available content of bandwidth, the most important change agent is the government, and the main motivation for using ICT is to improve the quality of teaching.

The eLearning Africa 2013 Report will measure progress in these areas and engage with new ways of approaching Africa’s systemic developmental challenges and priorities for the post-2015 development agenda.

According to Shafika Isaacs, the editor of the Report and eLearning Africa Programme Director, “There remains a

significant knowledge gap in consolidating the African experience of ICT for Development from an African perspective. This report will document the views and insights of African researchers, policy makers and experts on Africa’s experience with eLearning. It will provide authoritative analysis and critical reflection on emerging technology trends and their role, influence and value for human development in Africa.” ✆

www.elearning-africa.com

Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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COMMERCE

Finance

The challenges and potential of mobile money in Africa Understanding the planning and implementation requirements to get more people into the financial ecosystem

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F YOU HAD wanted to buy goods or services in Africa a few hundred years ago, you would have had to haul along a bag of cowry shells, beads, or salt in exchange. Today, all you need to do is click a few buttons on your mobile phone. Soon, Near Field Communication (NFC) enabled technology will allow you to tap your phone against an NFC reader at the point of sale, making transactions even quicker and easier.

The increasing acceptance of such technologies suggests that we are headed towards a cashless society. And nowhere are these developments more remarkable than in Africa.

The continent is fast leap-frogging traditional payment systems, and embracing the mobile phone not only to store and spend money, but also bring large swathes of the populace into the banking fold.

One of the key players in the market is MoreMagic, a mobile payments solutions provider operating as a subisidary of secure technologies specialist Oberthur Technologies.

Together, the two companies are working to create a comprehensive mobile money services suite that will help mobile operators and financial institutions offer innovative banking, commerce, and financial services.

The companies have already closed two major deals, and are currently in the process of developing an NFC road map for customers.

Africa’s mobile money Journey In Sub-Saharan Africa, 16 per cent of adults report having used a mobile phone to pay bills or send or receive money over the past 12 months. In East Africa, more than half a billion dollars are transferred using cell phones each month. Kenya has been the biggest success story thus far. But other African countries such as Tanzania, Nigeria, and Uganda are gradually catching up. Africa is well on its way to becoming a mobile money centered economy.

Yet, according to Pankaj Gulati, CEO of MoreMagic, that will take time.

He says, “When a new mobile money technology is deployed in a market like Africa, the first five years are more or less a pilot phase during which time the key players try to figure out what the various parts of the ecosystem should be, what kinds of incentives can be deployed in the market, and who gets what from a business perspective."

30 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

The other challenge is building customer loyalty. Says Pankaj, “If a consumer or retailer needs to accept a payment via mobile phones, they have to receive a message validating the transaction in a timely manner. Otherwise, their trust in the service goes down quickly. We have met many users who have considered various mobile payment solutions for their business, but ended up questioning the reliability, scalability, and availability of those solutions.”

As a result, there is still some amount of hesitation among users. “Investments made by mobile operators in mobile money technology have been relatively small. You don’t hear of multi-million dollar deals,” observes Pankaj.

Even when mobile payments are adopted, the challenge lies in bringing the end customer on-board. Take the case of international remittances. A person abroad who is used to sending money to his relatives in Africa

“The quality of network operations needs to improve, banks need to scale up their operations and encourage more real-time transactions, and people must be willing to accept and invest in wireless POS infrastructure” - Pankaj Gulati, CEO of MoreMagic

through traditional money transfer services may not want to shift to a mobile channel if there is no real incentive to do so.

Yet things are gradually changing. More and more people are embracing mobile phones not just for remittances, but also for paying household bills, accessing banking services, shopping, or even accumulating savings. NFC is being adopted in a big way to enable contactless payments.

Improving the mobile money uptake Mobile money isn’t a one-size-fits-all service. It may work in a certain way for customers in Kenya, but require a completely different approach for Tanzania. It’s important to understand the unique user behavior and cultural attributes of each region, and accordingly customize mobile services as well as the technology behind them.

It is equally important to ensure that the technology is reliable and available. Observes Pankaj, “Traditionally, bank cheques take at least 24 hours to clear, while international transfers take about three days. In the mobile world, that is unacceptable.”

Even with NFC technology, transactions have to become increasingly real time if they are to be adopted. That, in turn, requires significant investment and scaling up of operations.

MoreMagic’s strategy in this regard is to team up with mobile operators and financial institutions in Africa not only to share the investments, risks, and rewards, but also to bring to the table the best practices, experiences, and best-in-class processes that they have developed over the years. ✆

More mobile money in Sierra Leone SPLASH MOBILE MONEY Limited and MoreMagic Solutions have been expanding the Splash Mobile Money ecosystem in Sierra Leone to include DStv, a satellite television provider, two additional commercial banks – Access Bank and Ecobank Microfinance – and the national network of nearly 50 rural banks set up by the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Ministry of Agriculture.

MoreMagic provides technology underpinning the Splash Mobile Money service. With MoreMagic’s platform, stakeholders are able to interconnect within a mobile commerce ecosystem to enable a secure service that is available to all mobile customers across Sierra Leone, irrespective of their service provider.

Splash is bringing greater convenience to more than 5,000 DStv customers who are now able to make payments for their satellite subscriptions direct from their mobile phones. Previously, customers had to queue up at a DStv agent location to pay for additional credit and then wait for their account to be updated. Now they can make these payments from anywhere using their mobile phones and their account is credited immediately.

After this successful deployment in Sierra Leone, the parties involved are now exploring opportunities in other markets across Africa, where DStv boasts more than four million subscribers in over 40 countries.

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COMMERCE

Finance

Un champion de la prospérité socio-économique Un programme visant à accroître l'inclusion financière, stimuler la migration EMV et introduire des points mobiles de systèmes de vente

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ASTERCARD ET EQUITY Bank de Kenya ont annoncé avoir conclure un accord lors d'une cérémonie de signature à Nairobi pour émettre cinq millions de cartes MasterCard prépayées, de débit au cours des 18 mois prochains. Ce programme permet aux consommateurs africains d’utiliser des paiements électroniques qui fournissent un moyen sécuritaire du paiement en espèces par rapport à d'autres moyens de paiement.

Suite à ce partenariat, les cartes prépayées, de débit de MasterCard avec la technologie à puce seront émises d'abord sur le marché kenyan avant de s’étendre en Ouganda, en Tanzanie, au Rwanda et au Sud du Soudan, signalant ainsi le plus grand déploiement des cartes de paiement EMV en Afrique sub-saharienne jusqu’à nos jours.

Les cartes introduiront également MasterCard PayPass avec la première installation du point de vente PayPass dans toute la région.

Un grand déploiement des cartes de paiement La gamme des produits qui sera disponible dans la région de l’Afrique de l'Est comprendra la technologie du Point Mobile de Vente (Mobile Point of Sale (MPOS)) qui permet aux commerçants de recevoir des paiements via des suppléments à faible coût liés aux applications sécurisées sur leurs appareils mobiles (comme un téléphone intelligent ou une tablette). Cette technologie permettra de prolonger la sécurité et la commodité des paiements électroniques pour les commerçants et leurs clients qui dépendaient auparavant de l’argent en espèces pour effectuer leurs transactions.

Ajay Banga, président et chef exécutif à MasterCard a déclaré, «MasterCard s'est engagée à étendre l'inclusion financière en Afrique de l’Est et dans le reste du continent, en introduisant les non-bancarisés et les sous-bancarisés aux avantages des paiements électroniques». «Notre vision d'un monde au-delà de l’argent en espèces n'est réalisable que grâce aux collaborations avec des intervenants industriels, tels que le partenariat avec Equity Bank. Grâce à notre collaboration avec les gouvernements, les institutions financières, les commerçants et les entreprises, nous

Dr James Mwangi, Equity Bank PDG, et Ajay Banga, MasterCard Worldwide Président et PDG

serons en mesure de contribuer à la modernisation de l’industrie des paiements en Afrique de l'Est», a conclu Banga.

Autour de l'inclusion financière Selon l'enquête Finscope Rwanda 2012, l'inclusion financière au Kenya, à l'Ouganda, à la Tanzanie et au Rwanda représente respectivement 33%, 30%, 56% et 28,1%, ce qui indique la possibilité pour l’Equity Bank et MasterCard d’étendre l'inclusion financière à ceux qui n’ont pas été précédemment exposés aux avantages des solutions de paiement électronique.

Pour sa part, Dr James Mwangi, chef exécutif et directeur général d’Equity Bank a estimé, «Nous visons à aider les gouvernements de l'Afrique de l’Est pour réaliser leurs objectifs en faveur d’une inclusion financière accrue. Le partenariat avec MasterCard permettra de consolider notre position comme étant l'une des banques pionnières en Afrique de l'Est. La coopération avec différentes banques

centrales de la région est essentielle à la compréhension de ces objectifs et la conception de solutions pour chaque marché. A titre d’exemple, la Banque centrale du Kenya estime que si les institutions financières dans la région ont atteint les 12 millions de kenyans, qui n'ont actuellement pas accès aux services financiers formels, une somme de 300 milliards Kshs (3,5 milliards de dollars) environ sera ajoutée au système bancaire formel».

«Nous avons choisi MasterCard comme partenaire en raison du fait que nous partageons une vision commune une Afrique de l'Est financièrement plus inclusive pour tous ses citoyens et moins dépendante de l’argent en espèces. Les titulaires de cartes pourront utiliser leur MasterCard ou leurs cartes PayPass prépayées de débit à n'importe quel endroit qui accepte MasterCard dans le monde entier. Des offres promotionnelles spéciaux seront aussi annoncés lors du déploiement de la campagne», a conclu Mwangi. ✆ Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

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EQUIPMENT

An enterprise strategy for software-defined networks ALCATEL-LUCENT IS introducing new technologies to meet demand for so- deployments. However, greater benefits will appear as new SDN called ‘software-defined networks’, the growing enterprise market trend applications focused on end-user experience and operational being fuelled by an increasingly mobile workforce and network improvements deliver on the promise of the application fluent corporate management challenges brought on by the ‘growing virtualisation within network.”

CandIT Media, a digital media solutions company based in Belgium, is the data centres.

Software-defined networking gives enterprises the ability to programme first customer to validate Alcatel-Lucent’s application fluent approach to networks and control the traffic flow, inspection and modification of enterprise scale SDN. CandIT Media provides proprietary digital media production solutions that meet massive applications on them. By building data storage and real-time file transfer greater programmability, application requirements. By using Alcatel-Lucent’s awareness and end-to-end visibility into OmniSwitch 6900, it has created a its Application Fluent Network, Alcatel“content aware” digital network that Lucent is delivering an enterprise-scale dynamically supports the large traffic Software Defined Network (SDN) that peaks specific to media flows. In moves beyond offering basic awareness addition to providing a higher quality of the applications running on it, to a user experience, CandIT Media can network that can make automatic realdeliver solutions to its customers at time adjustments. lower costs since the network is more Alcatel-Lucent’s application fluent efficient in transporting large files. approach to SDN extends to the entire enterprise network, going beyond basic Alcatel-Lucent’s approach to SDN goes beyond basic network Luc Andries, CTO, CandIT Media, said, configuration to create a better user experience "The high volumes of media traffic we network configuration to create a better user experience. This approach gives mid-sized and large enterprises deal with have a bursty nature that makes Ethernet switches suboptimal highly automated and simple to use solutions that are scalable and for their transport. By using off the shelf hardware and Alcatel-Lucent’s OminSwitch 6900, we were able to achieve and significantly improve compatible with existing networks.

Mark Fabbi, Vice President, Distinguished Analyst, Gartner said, “The focus Quality of Service by optimally tuning the transfer of media content which for early SDN related use cases has been primarily on automation to also resulted in a much higher utilisation of physical components." remove the need for the human middleware required for network reconfiguration related to adds, moves and changes of virtual machine www.alcatel-lucent.com

Ethernet-enabled communications infrastructure FOR MANY YEARS, the mainstay of Fixed Carrier networks has been SDH infrastructure, whilst remote communities have often been linked by Radio and/or Satellite services.

Throughout much of the world until recent times, fixed Corporate communications links have typically been delivered as 2Mbps, or lower, bandwidth connections.

These are delivered via 'clear-channel' or sub-rate E1 services and terminated onto IP Routers, often physically connected via X.21 or V.35 Serial access converters.

Communications equipment vendor Metrodata understands this well, having been in the Interface Conversion & Access Networking market since the '80s.

More recently, customers worldwide are demanding both higher bandwidth and less complex WAN connectivity solutions, presenting Service Providers with a problem.

In densely populated areas, Carriers have rushed to complement their SDH infrastructures with 'Next Generation' packet-based networks, delivering Layer-2 and/or layer-3 high-bandwidth switched solutions. At the network edge though, particularly in less developed or lightly populated communities, the economies of transition to such infrastructure can be unattractive.

MetroCONNECT Metrodata's family of connectivity solutions, appropriate for both Service Provider and Corporate deployments, quite literally 'bridge the gap' between the Ethernet connectivity requirements of Corporate customers and legacy SDH infrastructure, as well as Radio and Satellite services. As Richard Kirby, Managing Director at Metrodata explains, "The MetroCONNECT range

32 Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

comprises a complete family for Ethernet Access & Service Extension, all with fully consistent features and functionality. The range offers advanced Management with support for VLAN segmentation and Traffic Prioritisation, over a variety of media including single or multiple 'bonded' E1/T1, E3/DS3, SDH/STM-1, Serial and Fibre."

In the simplest case, delivery of 2Mbps Ethernet bandwidth might be provisioned via an existing E1 link, either Terrestrial or via Radio, for which the majority of traditional Microwave equipment offer SDH/PDH series interfaces. Metrodata offers "Ethernet over E1" interface equipment for this task. For higher bandwidth applications, multiple E1 services can be 'bonded' into a single higher bandwidth Ethernet connection. For this, Metrodata handles up to 16 bonded E1 (or T1) service connections, enabling Ethernet connectivity at ~30Mbps.

The 'GFP' protocol is used for Ethernet encapsulation across such links, and VCAT/LCAS used to ensure service flexibility and integrity.

For higher bandwidths still, Ethernet services can be extended over E3/DS3 and STM1/OC3. Interfaces are also available for Ethernet Extension over Serial links, including EIA-530, V.35 and HSSI, offering high-speed Serial Connectivity to the ubiquitous generation of Satellite Modems not having direct Ethernet/IP interfaces.

Flexibility & Consistency

used Metrodata Ethernet Extension and Service Delivery products for National and International connections.

Mobile carriers, requiring high-speed Ethernet trunk services typically borne over E3 and STM-1 links, appreciate the flexibility and consistency of the range, which also includes advanced Ethernet Demarcation Devices for High speed Metro-area services of up to 1Gbps over fibre.

Ahmad Elhakim, Telecom Business Unit Manager at Metrodata Partner SALEC in Egypt comments, "In many countries across the region, including Egypt, emerging Service Providers are heavily reliant on the SDH/PDH infrastructure of the incumbent National Carrier and the need to extend Ethernet connectivity across E1, E3 and STM-1 circuits, as well as other media, is paramount. Costeffective, flexible solutions, with consistent manageability across the range has been key to our success."

Flexibility in the POP and Central Office is offered via the MetroCONNECT MC12000 chassis system, offering a mix of single and multi-connect service modules with a number of different aggregation options, providing the Carrier with a choice of customer connection strategies.

"Infrastructure Carriers are no longer focused on growing their traditional SDH/PDH estate, but whilst 4G LTE services may be today's important topic, there is a need to maximise the return of investment made in SDH over many years, whilst Ethernet-enabling the underlying terrestrial infrastructure", says Mr. Kirby at Metrodata.

Service Providers across the Middle East and Africa Region, particularly in Egypt, Nigeria and Ghana, have

www.metrodata.co.uk

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EQUIPMENT

SIM trouble A TRAILBLAZER IN mobile anti-fraud solutions (it picked up a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in April for International Trade and Innovation), Revector has worked in over 75 countries in the last four years, several of them in Africa. This has enabled the firm to collect some impressively detailed statistics, for example, in a job conducted last year the firm calculated that more than 10 per cent of all international phone calls into Ghana were subject to SIM Box or GSM Gateway fraud.

This type of fraud takes place when individuals or organisations acquire hundreds of SIM cards which offer free or low cost calls to mobile numbers. The cards are then used to channel national or international calls away from a mobile network and display them as local calls on their networks. The practice results in the significant loss of international call revenues.

In September 2011, Airtel Ghana’s Revenue Assurance Manager Nixon Wampamba admitted that the company was losing US$500,000 per month to fraudsters, and the National Communications Authority (NCA) of Ghana stated that an incredible 98.44 per cent of all SIMs detected for gateway bypass in Ghana were located on the Airtel network. One crime syndicate managed to rake in US$3.6mn in an eight month operation before their arrest in June. An Oregon, US-based company, UPM Telecom, was thought to be the brains behind the group, as it hosted a SIM server in the US, while the six accused fraudsters stationed their clients’ 25 servers and 18 Cisco routers from their own bedrooms and other strategic locations in Accra.

This is where Revector excels, according to company Director Andy Gent, who is a veteran of the telecoms industry with a career spanning 42 years. “A team of graduates, we’ve mixed the old and new. We’ve developed a real-time system enabling us to look at gateways across the world. In places like Tanzania and Kenya, we can tell you live what’s going on.” The main types of fraud he sees are interconnect fraud, GSM gateway bypass, illegal termination, and subscription fraud. “My view is that it’s always a re-creation of something that was around before, but using new technology. In the days of telex machines, termination was done by callback. People will always look at the weaknesses of operations and pick out the areas they can take advantage of.”

A message to mobile operators Considering his vast experience in the field, Gent is dismayed by the operators’ apparent lack of concern.

“They simply don’t put enough focus on the fraud and risk area,” he says. “They don’t put the right people or expertise in place. It’s more reactive. The name of the game is to get some revenues in, get numbers online and launch all these fancy marketing promotions. In one country…we’re monitoring hundreds of thousands of SIM cards. We’ve talked to the operator but they don’t understand the fraud problem, they’re just into marketing.”

His message to the mobile operators is to “get some expertise. I’m not necessarily talking about Revector, I just mean generally. It should be in-house and they should consider fraud a key area. Would you start a business personally, even a retail shop, without looking at the risks?

Even established operators don’t spend enough money here; we’ve found there is no budget. To stop say £100,000 of fraud, we’d probably charge around £10,000.”

His advice to operators is to analyse their spending carefully and to avoid compartmentalising their budget for areas like fraud.

SIM Box fraud is not unique to Ghana. Revector has detected the practice in locations across the continent, including the Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda. The company found that in some cases SIM cards were generating up to 10 cents per minute for more than 20 days per month, costing an operator up to US$3000 per SIM card, per month in lost revenue. In Kenya last year, 50 per cent of all traffic was terminated illegally.

Andy Gent has been a Director at Revector since 2003

“We’re talking roughly 10 per cent to 20 per cent on average, though,” says Gent. “I’ve heard of one GSM gateway with 50,000 SIM cards in it.

That was unfortunately encouraged by the operator who didn’t know what they were doing in the early days.” Gent explains that illegal termination has been going on from the early 2000s, but took off from 2004 to 2005. With the advent of the Internet, 2000 onwards, products were being developed by criminals to undermine existing fraud management systems.

Keep ahead of the criminals Gent is working on new solutions to keep one step ahead of the criminals.

“The boxes out there are becoming more advanced,” he admits. “We now offer a service where we can locate the fraudsters to a building and send the security forces or agencies in to go and arrest them.” In fact, Revector’s Locate and Eliminate is so precise that it will identify a transmitting location down to a room or apartment. The main trend Gent sees ahead, though, is that anti-fraud technology will become more centralised in a ‘group function.’ He says Revector already provides a group view for its clients. “If you’re working in 10 countries, you want to see how well the local people are doing on each type of fraud, so you can do more proactive work.”

He adds, “We’re working on a number of products and we’re working with other people. Revector has a very good brand now across the world.

We know all the operators. We’ve developed our company using modern techniques and it’s cost effective, using redundant servers, rather than relying on lots of manpower. We lose some business, because rival firms have salespeople on the ground. But, we are making inroads into new technology.”

Barry Mansfield Communications Africa Issue 1 2013

33

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EQUIPMENT

Une plateforme cloud universelle DÈS SA CRÉATION, la plateforme Windows Azure a été pensée pour accueillir tous les OS, les langages et les bases de données disponibles sur le marché.

Dans un environnement technologique de plus en plus hétérogène, Microsoft souhaite offrir à l’ensemble des clients et acteurs de l’écosystème IT, un accès simple et rapide à sa plateforme Cloud, adapté à leurs besoins et spécificités, ne nécessitant aucune formation spécifique ni transformation de leurs solutions existantes. Avec Windows Azure, flexibilité, sécurité et fiabilité dans le nuage sont désormais à la portée de tous les utilisateurs, développeurs et professionnels de l’IT. De nouveaux services pour toujours plus d’ouverture: Portail HTML 5, gestion de machines virtuelles Linux et Windows, création de sites web Wordpress, Drupal ou encore Joomla, nouveaux langages supportés et nouveaux SDK pour Python, Java, PHP… Windows Azure propose un ensemble de services innovants qui ont en commun une ouverture totale, pour permettre aux utilisateurs de migrer ou de développer leurs applications à partir des langages et plateformes de leur choix.

Nouveau Portail HTML 5 : Microsoft a sensiblement amélioré le portail HTML5 de Windows Azure pour permettre d’accéder aux services disponibles sur la plateforme depuis tout type de périphériques Linux, Mac ou Windows.

Web Sites : Windows Azure offre la possibilité de créer des sites web et des applications Node.js et PHP. et NET, en utilisant les techniques de déploiement communes telles que Git et FTP. Par ailleurs, Windows Azure Web Sites facilite le déploiement d'applications open source comme WordPress, Joomla!, DotNetNuke, Umbraco et Drupal dans le Cloud en quelques clics seulement.

www.microsoft.com

E-learning pour réussir les mathématiques au BFEM SONATEL ACCOMPAGNE LE développement d’un site interactif de cours et d’évaluation des mathématiques du programme officiel du Ministère de l’Education National du Sénégal avec plus de 50 vidéos de cours réalisés et dispensés par des professeurs sénégalais rigoureusement sélectionnés. Destiné gratuitement aux élèves des cycles moyen et secondaire, ce site est conçu et réalisé par la société Savoir Prod en partenariat avec un financement intégral du groupe Sonatel dans le cadre de sa politique de Responsabilité Sociale des Entreprises.

Le portail répond à un besoin de relance du niveau des mathématiques dans l’enseignement moyen et secondaire afin d’inciter les jeunes à emprunter les filières scientifiques et techniques.

Le groupe Sonatel offre des solutions globales de télécommunications dans les domaines du fixe, du mobile, de l’Internet, de la télévision et des données au service des particuliers et des entreprises. Sonatel a construit un réseau moderne, entièrement numérisé par des boucles de transmission et des liaisons internationales par câbles sous-marins à fibres optiques haut débit.

Sonatel dispose de l'une des bandes passantes Internet les plus importantes d'Afrique 6.5 Gbits/s. Il présente au Sénégal, au Mali, en Guinée Conakry et Guinée Bissau. Sonatel est opérateur global et sousrégional de référence. Dans le cadre de sa politique de Responsabilité Sociale des Entreprises, il apporte à travers cette classe virtuelle sa contribution pour inciter les élèves à faire des TICs un outil d’apprentissage et d’acquisition de connaissances, dans le but de préparer notre jeunesse à un horizon professionnel large et diversifié.

Sepura’s intrinsically-safe radios SEPURA HAS LAUNCHED a full keypad version of its STP8X series of Intrinsically-Safe (IS) IECEx/ATEX approved hand-portable radios. The addition enhances the company’s intrinsically-safe portfolio and enables customers to source both full- and reduced-keypad ATEX radios from one manufacturer.

The new-generation sets are designed to meet the communication requirements of users who not only need a rugged and robust intrinsically-safe TETRA radio, but also require swift and easy access to a full set of features.

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