All Tech News

Some very positive connectivity news comes from the Brazil-Colombia border where it is being reported that a fibre optics cable crossing Brazil's Amazonas state is finally ready to connect the Colombian city of Leticia two years after the project to link the two countries via fibre in the shared Amazon border area kicked off.

Nokia and telecom infrastructure organization Solis Tower Telecom do Brasil have partnered to provide connectivity to agribusinesses in rural parts of Brazil.

UAE-based Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat) says it has contracted SpaceX as the launch provider for its upcoming new geostationary satellites, Al Yah 4 (AY4) and Al Yah 5 (AY5).

Guinea’s Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy (MPTEN) says it has signed an agreement with Mali to interconnect the two countries’ fibre optic networks, partly in response to recent subsea cable outages affecting the continent.

The North Korean government has reportedly made plans to strengthen security of its mobile network by the end of this year by ditching Chinese telecoms equipment – just months after deploying it.

Indian full-stack space engineering solutions provider Dhruva Space and France-based satellite operator and global IoT connectivity provider Kinéis say they plan to introduce Kinéis IoT connectivity in India, and to launch a Kinéis IoT payload on the Dhruva Space P-30 satellite.

Operator MTN Nigeria is widely reported in the African press to be building a 1,500-rack Tier IV data centre in Lagos, which would make it West Africa’s largest data centre.

A previously little-known company with the interesting name of Natural Environment Solutions (NES) has announced that it has launched a 5 MW data centre in Pune, India, marking its entry into the country's fast-booming data centre industry.

Smart Africa, an alliance of African countries, international organisations, and global private sector players tasked with advancing Africa’s digital agenda, last week signed a potentially significant agreement with KaiOS Technologies, whose mobile platform is said to make the internet accessible to all.

African money transfer company Dahabshiil and Safaricom Ethiopia's M-Pesa have signed a partnership that will enable the Ethiopian diaspora to send money directly to M-Pesa mobile wallets.

India’s big three private operators, Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, have put up their tariffs. This is the first time in three years they have done so. It was, however, widely expected.

Amazon has again delayed the launch of its first production satellites for Project Kuiper, the company’s rival to the Starlink satellite internet constellation.

Congolese Fiber Optic Company (SOCOF SA) has reportedly signed a partnership with the Agency for the Coordination and Monitoring of Collaboration Agreements (APCSC) to deploy optical fibre networks along new roads to be built in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

In what is described as a significant move to accelerate the country’s digital transformation, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board of the Philippines has approved a flagship infrastructure project designed to boost broadband connectivity nationwide, particularly in remote areas, and strengthen cybersecurity.

Indian data centre provider Nxtra by Airtel has joined the RE100 initiative and said it has committed to sourcing 100% renewable energy.

Africa-focused cross-border money transfer operator Mama Money partnered with payment processor firm Paymentology and Access Bank to launch a new bank card service that integrates WhatsApp banking.

Indian telco Vodafone Idea revealed on Wednesday that it has been working with Samsung to trial new technologies, including virtualised RAN (vRAN) solutions, in Chennai for its 4G and 5G network.

Globe Telecom partnered with satellite phone company Lynk Global to launch a pilot programme to examine the use of satellite-direct-to-phone communication services to plug coverage gaps in the Philippines.

Digital infrastructure company Equinix has announced its expansion into Chennai with what it describes as its first International Business Exchange (IBX) data centre, called CN1.

Thai telecoms operator True Corp says that its 5G revenue is now growing at 15% per year, which it credits mainly to its strategy of targeting domestic and international tourists with 5G packages.

Globe Telecom announced on Wednesday that it has become the second Philippine telco to join the GSMA’s Open Gateway Initiative for standardised open network APIs, just after rival PLDT did the same.

Timor Leste is set to get its first-ever subsea cable connection later this year as work begins to install the Timor Leste South Submarine Cable System (TLSSC) at its landing station in Dili, according to country’s Ministry of Transport and Communication.

Nigerian Communications Satellite (NIGCOMSAT), which owns and operates the Nigerian communications satellite systems. has announced a strategic partnership with infrastructure and technology company Infratel Africa, to provide connectivity for a major rural infrastructure project in Nigeria.

In yet another example of the continuing importance to fintechs of emerging markets, Pyypl, a fintech company in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), has announced a principal licence membership and strategic framework agreement with payment giant Visa.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA) have announced a joint declaration aimed at strengthening collaboration on ICT infrastructure mapping across West Africa.

Recently, China Broadnet started the large-scale 400G deployment on its national backbone network.

Brazil’s National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) has approved financing worth R$41 million (US$7.5 million) for Um Telecom, a B2B operator focused on Brazil's Northeast region, to deploy the first Tier III data centre in the State of Pernambuco.

Revenues from fixed communication services in Malaysia is expected to hit a compound annual growth rate of 0.7% from US$1.87 billion in 2023 to US$1.94 billion in 2028.

Indonesian telco Telkomsel says that it has signed a MoU with Tencent Cloud and local digital infrastructure company M Cash Integrasi to explore the adoption of palm scanning technology as a biometric tool to improve customer service.

The Pacific island of Tonga is set to get a second subsea cable connection after the governments of Australia and New Zealand agreed to construct a new cable connecting it to the Hawaiki Cable.

A Vietnam News report, published late last week, has suggested that the country’s international fibre optic cable system could see the addition of at least ten new undersea cables by 2030, bringing the number of Vietnam's undersea routes to at least 15.

Plans to build a fibre-optic submarine cable connecting six members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have reportedly been moving forward this month after key meetings in Guinea-Bissau and Guinea.