Speaker Interview with Bayo Puddicombe

Bayo Puddicombe is the Co-Founder of Pledge 51. 

The Com World Series team caught up with Bayo ahead of the NigeriaCom conference and exhibition, taking place at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, Lagos, Nigeria, 17-18 September to find out a bit more about his experiences and focus at the event.

Com World Series: How is your company positioned in Nigeria and what are its future objectives?

Bayo Puddicombe: We are one of the pioneer mobile game/app development companies operating in the Nigerian space. We recently launched our mobile gaming community, Chopup, which integrates all of our portfolio games and allows users to trade achievements and points between content items. 

Our primary objective is to unleash the potential of African content in the mobile gaming space.

Com World Series: What do you think are the top 3 major trends that are affecting your business in the region in 2013?

 Bayo Puddicombe: In no particular order, I would say that these are the top three trends affecting the region;

- Faster data networks

- Smart phone penetration

- Mobile payment systems 

 Although, we are already seeing the emergence of fast data networks, there’s still quite a way to go in getting the most out of our data infrastructure. It would really go a long way in improving user experience for data hungry games and applications.

 Research shows that in most African countries, 2G networks will have to be supported for quite a while due to a mobile device distribution tilted more towards feature devices and dumb phones. We do know that smart phones can take full advantage of the possibilities offered by higher capacity data pipes, so as their penetration increases there will be increased consumer demand for high bandwidth and data capabilities.

 Mobile payments is also a key link in the value chain and we expect that in a before long, some of the mobile money providers will finally unlock the magic formula for enabling m-commerce in Nigeria. This could easily spurn the emergence of several innovations in the local technology space.

Com World Series: What are the remaining challenges in terms of connectivity and quality of services in the region and which technologies are most likely to resolve these issues?

Bayo Puddicombe: Connectivity and quality of service has always been a major challenge in Nigeria. The emergence of wireless data plans from mobile operators made significant impact in bridging some service to the region. However, it’s obvious that this is not sufficient to address the data needs of an emerging market of this size.

What we really need is high-speed fibre-based connectivity straight to homes, offices, businesses, etc in all major cities across the country. Until then, we cannot have the right kind of infrastructure to support this market.  

Com World Series: How are smartphones/tablets and cloud services impacting mobile/internet service providers in Nigeria?

Bayo Puddicombe: Smart phone penetration is currently low possibly approaching 10% penetration maybe less. However, most of these devices readily connect to the internet via mobile operator data networks and are quite data hungry. As smart phone users gained access to higher capacity mobile data networks (3G), some have actually discarded their primary internet service providers as data speeds from the mobile networks are beginning to compare reasonably to what can be obtained from ISPs.

This trend will possibly continue as more people adopt smart phones as their primary mobile device.

Com World Series: In your opinion, which companies are spearheading innovation in the region and what can be learnt from them?

Bayo Puddicombe: Firstly, I would like to put things in context by saying that innovation is relative. What is considered mundane in developed markets could actually be quite innovative in another context. My definition of innovation is combining technology/tools from disparate fields and combining them in a way that solves significant problems. With that said, I think Sproxils is doing some fantastic things with SMS based technologies in providing drug verification services. 

Com World Series: Who are you most looking forward to meeting/hearing from and what do you hope to achieve from taking part in NigeriaCom?

Bayo Puddicombe: I think just being at NigeriaCom would give us a fantastic opportunity to meet with stakeholders across the mobile/digital landscape.

Find out more at NigeriaCom. Bayo Puddicombe will be joining a panel of speakers on Day 2 at the APPGIG at 14:30 on the session “Africa paving the way in app development: trends, challenges & monetisation”. 

Find out more at NigeriaCom. Steven Evans will be leading the session “Keynote Panel Hosted by Etisalat” on Day 1 at 10:00.

Register here

Silver Lining or Troubled Skies? Cloud in Africa

AfricaCom 2013 

12 - 14 November 2013
CTICC Cape Town South Africa

Cloud@AfricaCom
Co-located with AfricaCom - 13 November 2013

Pre-register & Quote your booking code: LIN/AFRICACOMEM1 HERE

ITM analysts peg Cloud as the fastest-growing new revenue opportunity for telcos worldwide, with over 300 operators already offering Cloud services ranging from SaaS to IaaS.

Moreover, investment in IT infrastructure is soaring across Africa and Cloud is the dominating the headlines and headspace of African CIOs. Telcos are uniquely positioned in the Cloud Ecosystem to offer and expand their service and many have already started making the most out of this new revenue opportunity.

As part of AfricaCom, the continent’s largest gathering of telecoms, media and IT professionals, Cloud @ Africa Com is a unique platform that showcases the “how-to” strategies for dealing with and profiting from the advent of Cloud.

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Download the preview brochure here 
http://africa.comworldseries.com/2013-preview-brochure

Register for your Free Exhibition pass here 
http://secure3.eventadv.com/Informa/Registration/VisitorReg.aspx?EventID=21

Pre-register for a conference pass here
http://africa.comworldseries.com/register/

Quote your Booking Code " LIN/AFRICACOMEM1 " 

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Cloud Pioneers Confirmed Include: 

	Theo Bensch, Managing Executive, Telkom Cybernest, Telkom South Africa
	Evans Nyagah, Head of Enterprise Sales & B2B, Safaricom
	Adedipo Olagbegi, Head IT Technical Infrastructure, Etisalat Nigeria
	Adrian Cornelius, General Manager, MTN Business
	Juergen Urbanski, Chief Technologist Big Data and Cloud, Deutsche Telekom Group

To see the full speaker list, click here 
http://africa.comworldseries.com/conference/speakers/

Now is your last chance to join the speaker line-up! Contact georgios@cloudworldseries.com today

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By attending the event, African telcos can:

- Discuss and develop the business case for launching a telco Cloud service offer
- Learn how to transform your infrastructure for deploying robust Cloud services
- Benchmark your Cloud service offering against that of leading Cloud vendors
- Uncover the secrets of a robust security and privacy framework across the region’s markets
- Explore the future role of the telco industry in the African Cloud ecosystem

We look forward to welcoming you to AfricaCom, 12-14 November, CTICC Cape Town, South Africa 

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COME AND SEE THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL AFRICA

Data, content & apps set to flourish in Africa

Digital Services Africa 

25-26 June 2013

Hilton Sandton, Johannesburg

Visit our website: http://comworldseries.msgfocus.com/c/1XbckzqtCPObNv87pp6XOg6

Data, content & apps set to flourish in Africa - Digital Services Africa

Digital Services Africa event has now shut its doors after two days of intense debates on the opportunities offered by digital services on the continent. Digital services (including mobile data, content, apps, mobile money, mobile marketing) are creating new business models and partnerships in an ecosystem that is no longer dominated solely by mobile operators. The relations between OTT players and telcos have evolved greatly in the last few years but there is still work to do to ensure partnerships are working and that revenues are shared equitably. Representatives of all parts of the digital ecosystem shared their views in lively debates during the event: OTT/content players (Google, Iroking, Spinlet, Bozza), social media (Mxit, 2Go), operators (Orange), devices specialists (Nokia, Anabel Mobile), solutions providers (Spice Africa, Jinny Software, Intersec), app developers and more.

"From the debates we heard at Digital Services Africa this year, it is clear that what we're seeing now is only the beginning of what will be a great market. There is still a lot of work to ensure the digital market grows for the benefit of all - including customers. We are proud to be able to provide a forum where market stakeholders can get together, exchange ideas and build partnerships" says Julie Rey from organisers Informa Telecoms & Media.

The event will return to Johannesburg in 2014, co-located with MVNOs Africa. This will provide more opportunities to discuss new partnerships and models to deliver attractive services to African users.

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See You Next Year @ The Maslow Sandton!

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Digital Services Africa 2014

24-25 June 2014

The Maslow Sandton

www.comworldseries.com/digitalafrica

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Thank you to our Sponsors of 2013!

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Digital Services Africa opened today at the Hilton Sandton Hotel in Johannesburg...

***Join us for day 2 *** Share your thoughts on #DigitalServicesAfrica @allaboutcom

The digital ecosystem is going through great changes in Africa: new players, new services, and new customer demand.

Digital Services Africa opened in Johannesburg today at the Hilton Sandton, providing a forum for players in the ecosystem to discuss how to make the most of it: what services will drive the market, how to monetise them, what partnerships will work best? 

The conference opened with a session on innovation and entrepreneurship, followed by a panel on partnerships between operators and new players. The afternoon sessions looked at mobile money services and digital music. The variety of companies represented among the speakers and in the audience provided great debates and networking opportunities: operators (Orange, MTN, and Vodacom), OTT players (Google, Iroking, Spinlet, and Mxit), financial services companies (Standard Bank, Pbell, Wizzit, and Zunguz), app companies (People Input, Rlabs), and solutions providers (Spice and Jinny Software). 

The debates today not only showed the great amount of innovation taking place in Africa’s digital market: they also gave an opportunity to discuss how the market is shaping up and how the different players are gearing up for the many opportunities it offers.

The second day will look more closely at content and apps, with a panel on social media (including speakers from Mxit, 2go and Google), one on content (with representatives of Bozza, DSTV, BBC and Umuntu), a session mobile marketing and the AppGig led by event partners Mobile Monday.

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View Day 2 of the latest agenda  
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Agenda:
http://bit.ly/10qC780  

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Tweet about your presence #DigitalServicesAfrica  
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Make sure to let everyone know your thoughts about the show on twitter using #DigitalServicesAfrica

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Hear from Day 1 Attendees... 
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“This was a very informative conference and it has given me the necessary exposure. Thanks for the opportunity.”
Abiodun Akandi, Broadband System Planning, MTN Nigeria

“Not even a million can buy this valuable information gathered at the event”
Ian Jindela, Senior reporter, Africa Business Media South Africa

“The event was well prepared and the presentations were relevant”
Amine Haddad, CEO, Actel Lebanon

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Thank you to our Sponsors of 2013!  
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Comza Africa
Intersec
Jinny Software
Spice

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Have you joined our networking community? Here's how:  
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Download Bizzabo (iPhone, Android) - http://www.bizzabo.com/download  
Search for: Digital Services Africa
Click 'Join'!  

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Join us for Day 2 @ The Hilton Sandton 
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Hilton Sandton
138 Rivonia Road
Sandton
South Africa 2196
Tel: +27-11-322-1888
Fax: +27-11-322-1818

Directions: http://bit.ly/12E193V  
  

Steven Evans, CEO of Etisalat Nigeria reveals the cornerstone of their success in Nigeria ...

Steven Evans is the CEO of Etisalat Nigeria.

The Com World Series team caught up with Steven ahead of the NigeriaCom conference and exhibition, taking place at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, Lagos, Nigeria, 17-18 September to find out a bit more about his experiences and focus at the event.

Com World Series: How is your company positioned in Nigeria and what are its future objectives?

Steven Evans: When we launched commercial operations in 2008, we had one goal in mind – to turn around the telecoms industry, exceeding every Nigerian’s expectation of what a telecom organization should be. We went ahead to develop Etisalat’ s business strategy based on four strategic elements – Innovation, Quality of Service, Customer Focus and Efficiency/Value for Money.

With these core pillars The Etisalat team operate on a daily basis with an outstanding sense of Customer Centricity – this along with Innovation (in products & services) has become the major positioning of the brand.

The Etisalat brand has also enjoyed an amazing affinity with the youth market to date and has a phenomenal percentage of its base between the ages of 18 – 24. Moving forward, we intend to continue to push this affinity with innovative products and services that speak directly to our customers.

Com World Series: What do you think are the top 3 major trends that are affecting your business in the region in 2013?

Steven Evans: The top 3 trends here can only be summarised with the phrase “Data, Data and more Data”!

As voice revenues level out, data, over well designed, well deployed, well managed 3G networks, is the next frontier for telecoms in Nigeria. Market growth in this 3G era is a major focus with over 55% (nearly 8 Million) of our subscriber base being data users.

This evolving behavior means the market, our customers need data-driven propositions, tariffs, content and Apps that provide a new and exciting communications experience. Recent launches like our very popular EasyFlex tariff, an exclusive partnership with award winning music App Spinlet and collaborations with major device manufacturers for low cost smartphones all tick our brand values of Innovation & Customer Focus ensuring improved data usage on the network.

The quality of our network, and therefore our service, is the key to unlocking the potential of our base and so we have a very aggressive focus on utilising the best possible network solutions to lead in this market.

Com World Series: How are Smartphones/tablets and cloud services impacting mobile/internet service providers in Nigeria?

Steven Evans: In comparison to markets in the West, Smartphone penetration in Nigeria is relatively low at around 15%.
Key to driving the goals mentioned above will be the right device choices for our customers. We recently launched a new, low-cost Android Smartphone with Chinese device manufacturer, Techno. This move puts more and more data-enabled devices in the hands of the Nigerian Subscriber, driving our market forward.

Com World Series: What are the remaining challenges in terms of connectivity and quality of service in the region and which technologies are most likely to resolve these issues?

Steven Evans: Power is the most disruptive issue for all mobile operators in the region. The lack of a viable, existing structure for power and fixed-line telecommunications presents a huge challenge to network expansion and improvement. Moving forward, efforts must focus on feasible solutions to extend networks and manage traffic in the absence of these basic structures. Fibre, Wi-Fi and LTE will be key to reaching the market’s full potential.

Com World Series: Who are you most looking forward to meeting/hearing from and what do you hope to achieve from taking part in NigeriaCom?

Steven Evans: The concept of the event itself, bringing together the ecosystem of the Nigerian telecommunications market is an exciting one. Well done Informa! I’d have to say I am certainly looking forward to hearing from our Minister of Communications and the Regulator on how they will continue to successfully collaborate on driving this great success story. Inevitably, contributions from my operator peers will be insightful as we increasingly team-up to face some of our shared challenges. Finally, as this ecosystem expands, I’m excited to understand how we can better serve our client base with innovative partnerships on content and mobile functionality.

Find out more at NigeriaCom. 

Steven Evans will be leading the session “Keynote Panel Hosted by Etisalat” on Day 1 at 10:00.

Register here

Telkom South Africa writes down assets to tune of $1.2bn

South African operator Telkom has written down the value of its assets by R12bn ($1.2bn) following a review by its board. The operator said the decision to revalue it’s assets is important in enabling it to become competitive and efficient.

“We are committed to transforming Telkom’s financial performance,” said Sipho Maseko, group CEO at Telkom who took the over from former CEO Nombulelo Moholi in April of this year after leaving Vodacom, where he was COO. “This will require bold and decisive action. Tough and urgent decisions will have to be made, particularly regarding costs and the decommissioning of unprofitable services.”

Maseko added that the operator will accelerate the upgrade of its network in the medium term, and this will be essential for improvingservice delivery, efficiency and competitiveness.

The Telkom board explained that reasons it wrote down its assets, which included the extensive time period that shares have been trading at a lower value to its net asset value (NAV) and the fact that obsolescence of some of its legacy assets.

The migration of services from legacy assets to assets that are based on new technologies which will rapidly escalate over the next few years and further reduce the returns from some of the above noted legacy assets.

The impairment charge is a non-cash item and it will not impact the firm’s cash flow, said Telkom, adding that  after the impairment, the NAV per share is circa R34.

June 13, 2013 Written by Dawinderpal Sahota

This article first appeared on telecoms.com 

News, Analysis and Opinion for the global telecoms industry

Telecoms.com is the leading provider of news and analysis, combined with in-depth features, interviews, reports and much more. The site keeps more than 80,000 unique monthly users worldwide up to date and in touch with the latest technological advancements and market trends, addressing the key business and technology issues facing the industry.

Telecoms.com provides innovative marketing solutions through different channels such as webinars, TV interviews, newsletters, print products, events and custom-made opportunities. Whether you are looking to reach Operators or Vendors our targeted marketing options and vast industry databases will ensure that your message reaches the right people.

Bharti Airtel’s acquisition of Warid Telecom could challenge MTN’s dominance in Uganda

By Danson Njue May 8, 2013

Bharti Airtel has recently signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of Warid Telecom Uganda in a move that will increase its market share to about 39.3%. Through the acquisition, Airtel will strengthen its position as the second-largest mobile operator in Uganda. According to Informa Telecoms & Media research, Airtel had 4.63 million subscriptions at end-2012, while Warid Telecom had 2.82 million. MTN was the market leader, with 7.7 million subscriptions and 40.67% share.

As the deal awaits approval from the regulator before the transfer of license is granted, concerns are rife about MTN’s dominance in a market with eight operators. The launch of two networks, K2 Telecom and Sure Telecom, at the beginning of the year caused a lot of concern from the large operators, which felt that the Ugandan telecoms market was perhaps too small for so many players. Some of them even concluded that the new operators would only contribute to the poor quality of telecoms services being experienced in the market. The new merger can therefore be seen as good thing after all.

In addition to boosting its subscription base, Airtel hopes to benefit from Warid’s network infrastructure and human capital to boost its growth and profitability in Uganda. However, the acquisition should not be looked at from a Ugandan or African perspective but more from a global perspective, as a strategy to expand Airtel’s position in the world’s mobile market. Bharti Airtel is the world’s seventh-largest operator, with more than 265 million mobile subscriptions at end-2012. In January 2010, it acquired 70% of Warid Telecom Bangladesh, in a deal whose value was not disclosed. It has recently announced plans to buy out the remaining 30% in a move to consolidate its position in Asia Pacific.

Airtel’s acquisition in Uganda is the first in-market consolidation in Africa’s mobile market. It also involves a larger operator buying out a smaller one. This might just encourage larger operators, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, to follow suit, so as to improve their profitability, which has been greatly affected by the 2010 price wars that saw operators reduce their call rates.

From a Ugandan-market point of view, the acquisition will be a game changer, accelerating growth through innovative products and services and improving overall quality of service. However, it might not challenge MTN’s dominance in Uganda just yet. MTN is reportedly evaluating possible mergers with other small operators in the country. It says that the only way to bring sanity to the Ugandan telecoms market is through consolidation to at most two main operators.

Re-produced from the Informa Telecoms & Media Analyst Blog - authored by:

Danson Njue

MEA

Areas of expertise: Analysis of mobile markets in Sub-Saharan Africa

“During 2013, operators in Sub-Saharan Africa will focus more on expansion of their mobile data networks to improve capacity and coverage. They will also increase their data offerings and promote smartphone adoption as a way of promoting data usage on their networks to boost service revenues. Operators will also be looking to evolve mobile-money platforms into integrated mobile financial systems capable of delivering multiple services to their customers.”

Danson Njue is a Research Analyst with Informa Telecoms & Media. He works as part of the Middle East and Africa team and has a key focus on mobile operator and vendor strategies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Danson tracks the growth of mobile and fixed telecommunication sectors as well as regulatory issues in the region. His recent research interests include mobile-broadband and mobile money strategies to grow operator service revenues in emerging markets.

Danson joined Informa Telecoms & Media in March 2011 as a Research Analyst. Prior to that, he was a Wireless Training Engineer at Huawei Technologies Limited where he conducted training on wireless Radio Access Network (RAN) technologies and offered customer support on wireless equipments. Danson has also worked as a Base Station Subsystems Engineer at Safaricom Limited where he was involved in the installation, commissioning and maintenance of radio access and transmission networks.

Danson holds a Masters degree in Telecommunication Technology and honours degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering.

Join the App Gig Next week @ Digital Services Africa at the Hilton Sandton!

Join Africa’s most innovative and dedicated app specialists and find out how to develop successful apps for the African market

In partnership with Mobile Monday, the AppGig is a series of dedicated workshops and interactive sessions.  Newcomers can meet with industry veterans, successful start-ups and big brands to find out about innovative business models, exciting development ideas and new trends… all this in an informal and friendly environment.

Hear from experienced and engaging speakers from the whole apps ecosystem (developers, content producers, handset manufacturers and other players), network and share your ideas with your peers in an informal setting.

Share ideas and hear top tips from:

• Gavin Marshall, Head of Innovation, Mxit
• Toby Kurien,  Software Developer & Android Advocate
• Mark Strathmore, Head of Developer Ecosystem, South and East Africa, Nokia
• Sipho Ngwenya, CTO, Afroes
• Barry Gonin, CEO, Weather Intelligence Systems

Join the App Gig @ Digital Services Africa
25-26 June 2013 
Hilton Sandton, Johannesburg 
http://digitalafrica.comworldseries.com/

Connecting West Africa: See you next year | 10-11 June 2014

Share your thoughts on #ConnectingWestAfrica @allaboutcom 

The Connecting West Africa conference and exhibition closed today after two days of intense debate on connectivity developments in the region. 

The main theme was that the region needs better access to high speed communications in order to deliver the new services that consumers and enterprises demand. New technologies, partnerships and investment must be promoted. More cost-efficient solutions are being developed - whether over mobile, satellite or fibre - but there is still work to be done. The role of regulators and governments was often mentioned as crucial in promoting development in the market.

Attendees had an opportunity to hear from the region's leading operators, suppliers and governmental organisations who shared their perspectives on the market: Orange, Tigo, Expresso, ECOWAS, Intelsat, O3B Networks, WIOCC, Sierratel, Equateur Telecoms and more.  

"For our 10th year in the region, we decided to focus the event on issues of connectivity and network/infrastructure developments" says Julie Rey, Conference Director, Com World Series | Informa Telecoms & Media; "this proved to be a very important theme and it was fascinating to witness the very passionate discussions both in the conference and during the networking sessions".

Next events in the Com World Series will look at other areas of the market: Digital Services Africa in Johannesburg on 25-26 June, NigeriaCom in Lagos on 17-18 September and AfricaCom in Cape Town on 12-14 November.
 
We look forward to seeing you next year at Connecting West Africa 2014. 
  
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What our attendees said about this year's show:    
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“The Connecting West Africa Conference allows you to not only connect on the issues confronting the West African telecom sector, but also connect with the companies and individuals that can help you find solutions to your needs.” 
Kolubahzizi Howard, Director of Strategy, Liberia Telecommunications Authority

“Efficiency! Efficiency! Efficiency! This event has provided an insight into the challenge for all MNO in terms of exponential growth in bandwidth demand and how to balance network efficiency and profitability. Thank you for the great opportunity!”
Ismail Ibrahim, Satellite Services Manager, MTN Nigeria

“The idea of the Speed Networking was fantastic! It gave vendors the opportunity to have one to one interaction with the operators”
Chinedu Dike, Sales Director West and Central Africa, Tecnotree Finland  

“This conference was a great advantage for us. Well informed business insights, very focused presentations. The event is well monitored”
Komenan Celestin, Group Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Alink Telecom Cote D'Ivoire

“Very good and interesting presentations, showing good future prospects. Staff was very friendly and helpful, always ready to give a hand! I will come back!”
Francois Hernandez, Sales Director, Verimatrix Netherlands

“Great event!!! All topics were relevant and it is good to discuss the challenges facing mobile network operators! Keep up the good work!”
PJ Phike, CEO, MTN Guinea

“We really appreciate the opportunity of connecting operators to telco providers.
As a telecom operator, it will be very beneficial for us to get involved with the local vendors as we have done in Speed Networking. Presenting and working with the providers in the telecom field, will help us to continuously keep the connection between the companies. Thanks” Khadim Rassoul Diop, Field Operation Director, Expresso Senegal
 

“Today's event has been very interesting for us. There was a great amount of suppliers which we met in Speed Networking with a rich portfolio of products and solutions. The speakers and panellists were very experienced in the field” 
Ibrahima Toure, Head of Innovation Department, Orange Mali

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Thank you to all the Sponsors of Connecting West Africa 2013 
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Intelsat
O3B
Sonatel
TI Sparkle
Helios Towers
Ekinops
Mahindra Comviva

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See You Next Year!     
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To get involved early for the 2014 show,       
please visit our website: http://westafrica.comworldseries.com/
      
Connecting West Africa 2014 
10-11 June 2014 
Radisson Blu Hotel
Dakar, Senegal
    

Connecting West Africa opened today at the Radisson Blu in Dakar...

***Join us for day 2 ***  Share your thoughts on #ConnectingWestAfrica @allaboutcom
 
Connecting West Africa opened today at the Radisson Blu in Dakar, Senegal, with very engaging debates on the means to improve connectivity across the West Africa region.
  

The key theme of the event was how to meet the networks and infrastructure needs in the digital era in the region. The conference included presentations and interactive debates with inspiring speakers from the entire digital ecosystem such as Operators (Sonatel-Orange, MTN, Tigo, Expresso, and Sierratel), OTT players (Google, Viadeo) and Satellite companies (Intelsat, O3B Networks) and much more. 
 
The discussions touched on some of the key challenges that remain in order to provide better, more reliable and more affordable communications: regulation, bandwidth cost, quality of service and cost-efficiency among others.
  

Outside the conference, the exhibition and break areas were busy with meetings and continuing discussions. Some attendees joined a busy Speed Networking session to make new contacts. The day closed with a seaside networking drinks reception sponsored by Mahindra Comviva. 
 
The second day will continue the debates around investment, partnerships, cost-efficiency and rural telecoms, with speakers from ECOWAS, IFC/World Bank, WIOCC, Orange, Helios Towers Africa, Azur Telecom, the Liberian regulator and much more.
 
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Make sure to join us for Day 2 
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There is an outstanding speaker line-up for day 2 of the event as well -  
make sure to join us tomorrow! 
 
Venue Information: http://westafrica.comworldseries.com/venue/
 
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Timings:  
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Day 2: 
Registration: Opens 8:30 
Conference: 9.30am – 15.30pm 
Exhibition: 9.00am – 15:30pm 
   
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Hear from a Connecting West Africa Day 1 Attendee 
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Nirina Rambelo, Regional Sales Manager, France and Francophone Africa, Transition Networks
 
"For my first participation as visitor I am fully satisfied. The event's concept is suited to the target market ie the telcos. The quality of attendees is of very high level: I'd say 100pc are decision makers. For us as suppliers it is very important. On the first day of the event I achieved nearly all of my objectives. We'd recommend vendors in our field to attend" 

"Pour une 1re participation en tant que visiteur je suis entierement satisfait. Le concept est adapte par rapport au marche vise (les telcos). La qualite des personnes qui viennent rst de tres hautniveau; a 100pc ce sont des decideurs. Pour nous en tant que constructeur c'est tres important. Meme le 1er jour j'ai acheve presque tous mes objectifs. Nous recommandons aux constructeurs dans notre domaine d'etre presents".

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Sponsors of Connecting West Africa 
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Intelsat
O3B
Sonatel
TI Sparkle
Helios Towers 
Ekinops 
Mahindra Comviva