The flurry of deals involving Ethio Telecom, the main – and for the moment only – mobile service provider in Ethiopia, has continued, with the purchase of a QoE solution and the introduction of yet another mobile-money-related service.

Industry body the Federation of Companies of Congo (FEC) accused the Regulatory Authority of Post and Telecommunications (ARPTC) of falsely denying it is levying operators with expensive taxes.

Orange has partnered with Moroccan health start-up DabaDoc to launch Orange Santé (Orange Healthcare), a platform dedicated to the health ecosystem in Africa aimed at both patients and doctors.

London Internet Exchange (LINX), one of the world’s largest internet exchange points (IXPs), has announced that it is forming a strategic relationship with Nairobi-based hyperscale data centre provider, IXAfrica.

Airtel Africa acquired spectrum to expand its 4G network in the Democratic Republic of Congo to support growing data demand in the country.

The Posts and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) has announced plans to monitor telecommunications traffic for revenue assurance purposes, suggesting that the existing system, whereby operators declare their revenues, may no longer be adequate.

Africa Data Centres, which boasts Africa’s largest network of interconnected, carrier and cloud-neutral data centre facilities, has announced plans to building a 30MW data centre facility in Accra, adding Ghana to its existing Nigeria and Togo data centres.

There’s been positive news on the sustainability front from operator MTN in Cameroon, which has announced a renewable energy initiative.

Last week came news from The Federation of Businesses of the Congo (FEC)’s telecom commission that a hike in telecoms tariffs was on the way. But the telecoms regulator ARPTC has responded by saying it can’t happen.

Kenya’s Safaricom and financial services giant Visa have introduced the first M-Pesa GlobalPay Visa Virtual card, a mobile-phone-based system that they say opens up global shopping for Kenyan consumers.

Angolan operator Unitel has signed a three year partnership agreement with Chinese vendor Huawei.

IHS Towers has completed the acquisition of 5,701 towers from MTN South Africa for ZAR6.4 billion (US$412.5 million) as part of a leaseback agreement.

Hayo Telecom, a Senegalese mobile network operator, has chosen Telesmart.io, a provider of global number and messaging services, to provide it with a fully API-enabled number and messaging platform.

The Philippines regulator the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) late last week announced its approval of the registration of Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. as a value-added service (VAS) provider, according to local press reports.

MTN Group has formed a strategic alliance with BT Group that will see the UK-based firm offer business services to MTN’s African enterprise customers.

Malawian service provider Nyasa Mobile Limited (NML) is said, according to a number of reports, to be partnering the vast Vodafone Group in a deal that will lead to the rollout of the country’s third operator. However, Vodafone has clarified that its role is mainly a consulting one.

Madagascan operator Blueline has selected Ribbon’s Apollo Optical Networking solution to upgrade the bandwidth capacity of its communications network.

The government of Botswana is implementing new measures to help expand connectivity across the country.

With the Safaricom Ethiopia launch still some months off, the country’s state-owned incumbent Ethio Telecom has again taken advantage of its sole service provider position with the introduction of another mobile finance-related service in Africa’s second most populous country.

Avanti Communications has signed a five-year partnership agreement with Free which will see the latter firm build and host a new satellite gateway in Senegal for Avanti’s HYLAS 4 state-of-the-art Ka-band satellite.

The Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has outlined a five-year plan to spur the adoption of ICT services in rural and remote locations in the country.

Rwandan firms HUI and Annos have signed agreements with off-grid energy equipment vendor Vanu.

Lesotho has joined the rush to register SIM cards, threatening that mobile network users who fail to comply with the legal registration of SIM cards will be cut off until they do so.

IHS Towers reported profit and revenue growth for the first quarter of 2022 (ending March 31), stating confidence to aim toward the higher end of its 2022 earnings guidance.

African internet provider InterSAT has renewed its agreement with SES for capacity on the latter’s satellite.

In a move that seems to buck a recent trend for greater control by governments over online activity, Zambia has suggested it will review its controversial Cyber Security and Cyber Crime law.

More controversy seems imminent in the row about Safaricom’s alleged dominance of the Kenyan market. African press reports now suggest that the operator’s mobile termination rates (MTRs) are soon going to be controlled by the government in a bid to protect Safaricom’s smaller rivals.

Leading Kenyan operator Safaricom is reportedly planning to raise up to $2 billion from local banks and development finance institutions over the next five years to fund its new Safaricom Ethiopia operation. Part of the proposed funding will also be raised internally and through rental financing from equipment vendors.

MTN Ghana has selected Tecnotree’s digital transformation stack for B2B and B2C, allowing the operator to meet its enterprise market demand and deliver augmented customer experiences at a reduced cost.