(HornTrade) – Dakar-Djibouti trans-African highway to traverse 10 African countries – The 8,715 km trans-African highway linking Dakar (Senegal) to Djibouti (Djibouti) will traverse 10 West, Central and East African countries, according to a document made available to PANA on Wednesday in Addis Ababa.

The document said the highway, which would combine the Dakar- N’Djamena link with the Djibouti-N’Djamena link, will pass through Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Sudan and Ethiopia. Read the rest of this entry »

(Horntrade) – Verizon has expanded its global enterprise network platform, enabling multinational corporations to take advantage of Verizon’s Private IP service in six additional African countries, and Bahrain and Qatar in the Middle East.  The expansion will make it possible for Verizon customers with locations in these emerging markets to more effectively exchange data and global business applications and employ the company’s world-class managed network and security solutions.

Leveraging the strengths of Verizon’s global multiprotocol label switching network and the reach of the company’s network alliance provider Vodacom Business in Africa, Verizon enterprise customers can add Private IP services to their offices in: Gabon on Africa’s western coast; Djibouti and Ethiopia on the Horn of Africa; Malawi and Zimbabwe in Eastern Africa; and Swaziland in the southern region.  In addition, Verizon professional consulting services can help customers in the region design and implement a networking solution tailored to their business requirements. Read the rest of this entry »

(HornTrade) – Ethiopian telecommunications company Ethio Telecom has reduced calls from landlines across various zones. According to a statement on the company’s website, the rates were cut two-thirds to 83 cents per minute during peak hours and to 35 cents in off peak hours, a reduction of some 230 percent.

The move has left Ethiopian customers excited about the possibility of using their phone more often without extra costs. “I am very excited because I live in Addis [Ababa] and my son lives outside our zone, so to call him will be a great opportunity now,” Hallelujah Tharen, a mother of three, said. Read the rest of this entry »

(HornTrade) – Although Djibouti Telecom hails from one of the smallest nations in Africa, the company has big plans to increase their customer base, by rolling out plans to become the gateway to Europe. They are currently the only telecommunications provider in Djibouti, but have a lot more to offer their surrounding neighbours.

(HornTrade) – The first wind turbine of the first wind farm project in Ethiopia has been erected in Ashegoda, some thirty kilometer from Mekelle, the capital city of the Tigray Regional State.

The 120 megawatt of wind energy is scheduled to be completed in February 2013, and the first phase of the wind farm, which is 30 megawatt, is expected to be completed by June 2011.

The wind farm is contracted to Vergnet Groupe by the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) and financed by the French bank BNP Paribas through soft loan. The loan of approximately 210 million euro was facilitated by the Agence France de Development. Read the rest of this entry »

(HornTrade) – Will MTN finally set up as a mobile service operator in Kenya after several years of failed attempts?

That’s the million-dollar question after the data unit of South Africa’s biggest mobile operator took control of a local internet service provider, UUNET, by buying a majority stake. The firm has since rebranded to MTN Business Kenya, to reflect its principal shareholders.

The MTN management said the mobile business was not in its initial plan, but did not rule out the possibility. “I’m not aware of such plans,” said Ms Angela Gahagan, the managing executive of MTN Business Africa, when they official unveiled the company’s brand in Nairobi. “However, the group is always looking for opportunities for growth.” Read the rest of this entry »

(HornTrade) – In Africa, Air France is adding a new destination to its network. Bata, in Equatorial Guinea, will be served twice weekly via Malabo by A319 Dedicate (subject to infrastructure compatibility), and there will be daily flights to Malabo.

Air France is increasing the number of flights to Pointe Noire in the Republic of Congo (5 weekly flights) and to Libreville (5 weekly frequencies subject to authorization from the Gabonese authorities).  Read the rest of this entry »

(HornTrade) – Fixed line operator Djibouti Telecom and Telecom Italia Sparkle, the international wholesale arm of Telecom Italia, yesterday announced their top-tier IP Point of Presence (POP) is now available in the capital, Djibouti City. The new POP has been established for the development of IP services in East and South Africa. The pair hope to use the new link to provide cost effective, high quality and secure global IP connectivity to TLC operators, ISPs and service providers that are connected to Djibouti through existing and upcoming cable systems such as Read the rest of this entry »

Despite the violence, a serious humanitarian crisis and an over 20 year conflict devastating the country, Somalia remains a thriving market for some businesses, reveals the Wall Street Journal in an article entitled “Telecom Firms Thrive in Somalia despite War, Shattered Economy”. Read the rest of this entry »

Representatives from Dubai-based Conway Bond Telecommunications, Leadinspiration, Inc, headquartered in London, and members of the African Union have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, Legal Framework as well as a Proceedings contract to develop a Next Generation Network in several nations in Africa. Read the rest of this entry »