Somalia’s internet disrupted as undersea cable breaks in Red Sea

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A map of the PEACE Cable network, an undersea fibre-optic system connecting Europe, Africa, and Asia. A recent break in the cable in the Red Sea has disrupted internet services in Somalia and other East African nations, impacting connectivity and streaming quality.

Mogadishu (HOL) — Internet services across Somalia and parts of East Africa were disrupted after an undersea fibre-optic cable broke in the Red Sea, the National Communications Authority (NCA) said Sunday.

The outage, caused by a rupture in the Pakistan & East Africa Connecting Europe (PEACE) Cable, led to slower internet speeds and reduced streaming quality across the country. The PEACE Cable is a key internet infrastructure that connects East Africa to Europe and Asia.

In response, Somalia’s telecommunications providers rerouted traffic through backup networks, restoring services to near-normal levels, according to the NCA. However, complete repairs on the damaged cable could take until mid-April 2025.

The NCA assured the public that it is working closely with internet service providers (ISPs) to monitor service quality and resolve any technical issues during the repair period.

Internet disruptions caused by undersea cable damage have become a recurring issue in the region, with previous incidents in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean impacting connectivity. Industry experts say such disruptions highlight the vulnerability of Africa’s internet infrastructure and the need for additional redundancy measures.

The NCA has urged telecom operators to maintain open communication with regulators and swiftly implement mitigation plans to prevent further service degradation.

Source: www.hiiraan.com

Bangladesh among countries facing widest gender gap in mobile money use: Report

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With a 56% gap, Bangladesh trails behind Pakistan (71%) – which has the highest gap – and is on equal footing with India (51%), said a report titled The State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2024 released by GSMA,  a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem.

The mobile money gender gap shows the difference in the use of mobile money between men and women who own the devices.

The report also says that awareness of mobile money improved for both women and men in 2023 in Bangladesh, India and Nigeria, albeit at variable levels. 

In Bangladesh, women’s awareness of mobile money grew from 61% in 2022 to 72% in 2023; for men, awareness grew from 74% to 81% for men over the same period.  

It notes, however, that women’s account ownership stagnated at 21% in Bangladesh, showing that the growth observed in women’s mobile money awareness did not translate into increased adoption.

The considerable gender gaps in mobile money account ownership was found in all countries surveyed except Kenya. 

“Once women own a mobile money account, they are nearly as likely as men to have used it in the past 30 days, except in Bangladesh and Pakistan where women’s use is substantially lower,” the report said. 

It also said only 1% of women who use mobile money in Bangladesh are likely to have paid for an insurance product, vs 8% of men

In Bangladesh, India and Nigeria, they are most likely to have been first taught by friends or family to use mobile money.

The report summarises the results of an econometric analysis carried out by GSMA Intelligence, commissioned by the GSMA Mobile Money Programme.

Source: www.tbsnews.net

Telecom Operators Account for 85 Percent of Mobile Internet Infrastructure Investment: GSMA Report

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Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) account for 85 percent of total global investment in mobile internet infrastructure—approximately USD 109 billion annually—playing a ‘keystone’ role in funding the networks that underpin modern digital economies worldwide, according to a new report released on March 3, 2025, by the GSMA and global management consulting firm Kearney.

MNOs Lead Mobile Infrastructure Investment

“The total investment in mobile internet connectivity infrastructure, averaged over the past 5 years, is USD 244 billion annually, including spend on end-user devices (117 USD billion). Of this, mobile network operators (MNOs) are the largest single group of investors, investing USD 109 billion, which is 85 percent of total investment excluding end-user devices (45 percent of the total when end-user devices are included), followed by consumer spending of USD 95 billion on end-user devices,” the global telecom body stated in its report, Mobile Infrastructure Investment Landscape, published just ahead of MWC 2025 in Barcelona.

Contributions by Other Digital Players

Of the USD 127.3 billion invested in mobile infrastructure excluding end-user devices, major internet service providers (ISPs) contribute just 7 percent, followed by tower companies (4 percent), large cloud application providers (CAPs), content delivery networks (CDNs), and cloud infrastructure providers (3 percent), and satellite providers (1 percent), according to GSMA.

The recipients of this USD 127.3 billion investment primarily include end-user device manufacturers (USD 112 billion), various equipment suppliers for transport, IP switching, mobile core and radio networks, installation service companies, and governments that provide licensed spectrum, the GSMA report said.

The Mobile Industry body noted, “Mobile operators make these investments despite deriving less economic benefit than other ‘digital ecosystem players’ from this critical infrastructure.” The report cited an example, stating that the amount contributed by MNOs far exceeds the connectivity investments made by other groups of investors, such as cloud service providers and content and application providers (CAPs).

“Mobile network operators are the keystone of the internet economy, funding the vast majority of the infrastructure that enables modern digital life. Whilst others invest in select parts of the world’s connectivity infrastructure, their contributions are a fraction of what MNOs spend to build and maintain the networks that power everything from online banking to remote work and digital entertainment,” said John Giusti, Chief Regulatory Officer of the GSMA.

“This study demonstrates clearly that if governments wish to unlock the full potential of their digital economies, they must prioritise policies that create a positive investment environment for MNOs,” Giusti added.

Investment by Cloud Providers

“Although MNOs are the largest group of investors in mobile internet connectivity infrastructure, large CAPs and cloud infrastructure providers have been increasing their direct investments into the backbone infrastructure to directly interconnect their data centres and build CDN infrastructure to deliver traffic directly to MNO core networks. However, this is only a fraction of what MNOs invest,” the GSMA report said.

Investments by MNOs

The report highlights that despite limited investment by other players in the connectivity ecosystem—such as cloud and content providers—in backbone and content delivery networks (CDNs), these investments do not replace the need for substantial mobile infrastructure investment by mobile network operators. The core and access networks, which are fully funded by MNOs, remain fundamental to a functioning, capable internet which serves the needs of consumers and businesses worldwide, fuelling growth across the broader digital ecosystem.

Role of Governments

The report further emphasised that “governments should prioritise pro-investment policies to accelerate network expansion and strengthen digital economies.” To support continued network expansion and innovation, the GSMA urges governments to adopt forward-looking regulatory frameworks that encourage investment in mobile infrastructure, streamline spectrum policies, and create a fair and sustainable financial environment for operators, it said.

Source: www.telecomtalk.info

Reported By

Srikapardhi (Telecom Analyst)

Telecel Ghana Holds ‘Accelerate HER Future’ Mentorship Session at Kanda Cluster of Schools

As part of a series of activities to celebrate International Women’s Month this March, Telecel Ghana and Telecel Ghana Foundation have organised the ‘Accelerate HER Future’ mentorship initiative, where female employees shared career experiences to guide and motivate over 200 young girls from the Kanda Cluster of Schools in Accra.

The initiative, aimed at exposing girls in junior high schools to diverse career choices, saw female professionals from technology, legal and external affairs, marketing, commercial operations, human resources, digital transformation, finance and consumer business units share invaluable insights and personal experiences into their careers and the opportunities that exist within these fields.

Hosted at the Rev. Dr. Nantoma Presbyterian Church in Kanda, the sessions focused on personal career journeys, daily responsibilities in their respective roles, breaking down gender barriers and equipping the young girls with the confidence and knowledge to pursue their dreams in these fields.

The junior high school pupils were drawn from three schools in the Kanda Cluster, namely Kanda Estate 2 & 3 Basic School, Ring Road East 1 Basic School and Kanda A.M.A Basic School.

In her opening remarks, Director of Legal and External Affairs at Telecel Ghana, Augusta Akushika Andrews, said the overarching goal was to create a future where women, especially young girls, realise their full potential and excel in every career they pursue.

“Be brave, be bold, be assertive and be yourself. Never give up on your dreams. If you learn consistently and believe in your strength and potential, you can achieve everything you put your mind to,” Mrs. Andrews said.

The ‘Accelerate HER Future’ mentorship initiative is an essential part of Telecel Ghana’s broader International Women’s Month campaign on the tailored theme, Accelerate HER. The campaign seeks to amplify the voices of women, tackle gender biases and stereotypes, and support young girls in realising their potential.

One of the mentors, Veronica Da-Silva, an enterprise service operations manager in the technology department, in her session with the young girls, advised them to take their information technology studies seriously and embrace learning opportunities in the field.

“When I was your age, I didn’t have any role models in technology or women to inspire me to pursue a career in this field. Being here with you today is fulfilling for me because I want you to be inspired and motivated by my journey and learn some lessons to help shape your careers positively,” Mrs. Da-Silva said.

The initiative also received strong support from local authorities. Municipal Director of Education for Ayawaso East, Dr. William Tsekpo said the mentorship sessions for young girls were crucial in improving their academic seriousness and molding them into responsible professionals in future.

“The mentorship sessions from Telecel Ghana’s corporate professionals have given the young girls the needed boost to visualise their futures and learn harder to be responsible citizens like these mentors. I believe this mentorship push, when done consistently, will motivate them to learn more and rise to the top of their dream careers.”

Buy A Math-Set for HER

In addition to the mentorship sessions, the pupils were gifted stationery kits including a mathematical set, pack of writing books and Telecel branded souvenirs. This is a result of the “Buy A Math-Set for HER” crowdfunding efforts by Telecel Ghana’s employees to raise money and purchase math-sets and other stationery for girls in schools.

Firdaus Mohammed, a 16-year-old student at the Kanda Cluster of Schools, expressed her gratitude to the mentors and said she is considering combining marketing and her dream career, journalism based on the exciting session she had

“Before today, I wanted to be a journalist but after the sessions, I want to add digital technology and marketing to enrich it,” Firdaus said, holding up her new mathematical set and other stationery. “It was a very helpful and interesting discussion that has inspired me to learn and stay focused.”

Source: Telecel Ghana (Business Ghana)

Huawei ready to work with carriers, partners to promote digital enablement

Huawei Technologies says it is willing and ready to work with carriers and industry partners around the world to promote digital enablement, reinforce network foundations, and bring Al to all.

Mr Li Peng, Huawei’s Corporate Senior Vice President and President of ICT Sales & Service, said together they could shape the D.N.A. for an intelligent world.

Mr Li was speaking during the Mobile World Conference (MWC) Barcelona 2025 on how carriers could make the most of Al to fully unleash the value of their networks.

The MWC Barcelona 2025 opened on March 3 and is expected to end on March 6, 2025 on the theme: “Converge. Connect. Create.”

Mr Li predicted that symbiosis between 5G-A and Al technologies would stimulate double-digit growth in both DOU (data of usage) and ARPU (average revenue per user) from mobile subscribers.
“We are rapidly entering a fully intelligent world. Intelligent applications are spreading everywhere, placing new demands on networks,” he said.
He said by embracing and evolving 5G, they could unlock the infinite potential of mobile networks.

Mr Li said with advancements in AI, HMI (human-machine interaction) was evolving from simple text-based communications to voice, gestures, and more multi-modal interactions.

“As a result, HMI is more real-time and convenient than ever, giving rise to a new wave of innovative applications,” he added.

For instance, people can interact more naturally with their devices using Al-powered voice assistants.
On cloud phones, Al-powered avatars can provide visual feedback as well, creating a more personal experience for services like health monitoring, making the mobile experience far more accessible and productive for different groups of users.

Mr Li said to support applications like these, however, networks needed to be able to provide guaranteed latency, which would require ongoing evolution from 5G NSA, to 5G SA, and eventually 5G-A.

He said carriers could also adopt innovative technologies like CUPS (Control and User Plane Separation) and GBR (Guaranteed Bit Rate) to reduce basic latency and ensure differentiated, deterministic latency for specific scenarios.

Mr Li said Al would transform how content was produced and distributed, meanwhile, Al recommendations were more targeted than ever, allowing the distribution of more personalized content to broader audiences across the Internet. He said these trends would cause network traffic to surge over the next five years, placing unprecedented demands on networks.

He said to keep up, carriers would need more spectrum, greater network capacity, and much larger uplink and downlink bandwidth.

Source: Morkporkpor Anku (Huawei Technologies Ghana)

MTN pledges to empower entrepreneurial women for national development.

MTN Ghana has pledged to promote and support women in the entrepreneurial sector as part of its efforts toward national development.

Speaking at the National Women’s Summit and Expo on Friday, March 7, in Accra, Mrs Angela Mensah-Poku, Chief Enterprise Business Officer at MTN Ghana, emphasized the company’s dedication to empowering women entrepreneurs, particularly those in the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sector.

She stated that economic parity cannot be achieved without empowering women, especially in Ghana’s informal sector, where a significant number of businesses are female-led.

To bridge this gap, she announced that MTN Ghana would soon launch a new digital product specifically designed for women entrepreneurs.

“We’ll be launching a new product in the next few weeks that seeks to support women on their digital journey, give them access to markets, mentorship, and capability training, as well as exciting products and services from MTN Business.

“We thought, what better place to introduce this than at the summit today? With International Women’s Day being tomorrow, we said that now is the time. We believe that ‘Accelerate for Action’ is a call to duty, and we’re excited to be part of this summit,” Mrs Mensah-Poku added.

She noted that limited access to funding remains a major challenge for women in business and called on the government, private companies, and institutions to provide support for women with strong entrepreneurial potential.

Many women-led SMEs, she explained, struggle to secure funding due to the informal nature of their businesses and the lack of required financial documentation.

She reiterated that MTN Ghana is working closely with banks, SME Ghana, and Nova to provide training in key areas such as bookkeeping, marketing, and tax compliance.

Additionally, the company is exploring innovative financial solutions that leverage mobile money transactions as an alternative credit assessment tool.

Mrs Mensah-Poku also highlighted that MTN Ghana’s strategy includes collaborations with banks, insurance companies, and the MTN Foundation to offer comprehensive support to women-led SMEs.

She emphasized that by equipping women with the right resources, the positive impact will extend to entire communities, ultimately fostering national economic growth.

Source: Patricia Boakye (CitiNewsroom)

MTN Mobile Money, Sanlam Allianz sign MoU to deepen insurance coverage

MTN Mo­bile Money Limited, in partnership with San­lam Allianz and AYo Intermediaries Ghana, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance insurance coverage for its agents across the country.

The Chief Commercial and Mobile Money Officer of MTN Mobile Money Limited, Abdul Razak Ali, speaking at the signing ceremony in Accra on Tuesday, said his outfit was committed to the welfare of its agents, hence the insurance scheme.

He said the company already had insurance scheme for its agents and the current one was to enhance it.

“This partnership with San­lam Allianz provides enhanced insurance coverage for our agents. Since 2020, we have had an insurance policy in place, but after engaging with our agents, we re­ceived valuable feedback on how to improve it,” Mr Ali explained.
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He stated that the policy, among others, covered critical illness, permanent disability, death and the agents or their benefi­ciaries and could claim between GH¢5, 000.00 to GH¢250, 000.00 depending on the risk.

The CEO of AYo Ghana, Francis Gota, said the policy was a game-changer in securing the financial future of mobile money agents.

“Mobile money agents are the backbone of Ghana’s financial ecosystem. They work long hours, often under risky conditions. This policy ensures that if illness, disability, or even death occurs, financial relief is available to ease the burden on them and their families,” he underlined.

The policy offers a safety net for families in the event of an agent’s passing, financial support for permanent or temporary disability, assistance for critical ill­nesses such as stroke, cancer, and coma, and daily hospitalisation benefits to reduce financial strain during medical treatment.

“This is more than just a pol­icy. It is a demonstration of care, a commitment to agent security, and a recognition of the crucial role they play in financial inclu­sion. We want every agent to feel valued and protected,” stated Mr Gota.

He urged agents to take the policy seriously, as it directly im­pacted their financial security and that of their families.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and country lead of San­lam Allianz Life Insurance Ghana Limited, Tawiah Ben-Ahmed, in­dicated that his outfit was excited about the partnership to provide Momo Agents with insurance.

“It’s a lot of excitement and seeing an organisation that really cares about the very people that it works with,” he mentioned.

The insurance scheme, he said, aligned with Sanlam Allianz Life Insurance to honour Ghana’s objective to empower generations to be financially confident, secure and prosperous.

Mr Ben-Ahmed explained that the product was meant to em­power the merchants to go about their work with confidence.

Moreover, he noted that Sanlam Allianz Life Insurance Ghana was ready to pay all claims promptly, adding that, “Measures have been put in place to ensure that the system is not abused.”

“And the beautiful part is that our commitment as an under­writer is to pay the resulting from valid claims submitted promptly. And that is the commitment we bring to the party as far as this insurance scheme is concerned,” Mr Ben-Ahmed stated.

Source: Kingsley Asare (Ghanaian Times)

MTN strengthens its mobile money position with a virtual payment card

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Ugandan telecommunications company MTN last week launched a virtual payment card for subscribers of its mobile money platform, Mobile Money (MoMo). The move is expected to facilitate online transactions and boost payments beyond local merchants.

The initiative was launched in partnership with US payments giant Mastercard, with whom MTN signed an agreement in February 2024. In February 2025, Emirati payment solutions provider Network International joined the alliance. Local bank Diamond Trust Bank is also involved in the project for the Ugandan market.

“With the Virtual Card by MoMo, users can now make online payments on any e-commerce platform, website or social media that accepts card payments, ensuring a seamless and secure experience,” Mastercard said in a statement released on February 28.

Until now, payments via MoMo in Uganda were limited to the operator’s merchant network, which had 316,400 members as of September 30, 2024. The number of transactions increased by 25.1% in the first nine months of 2024 to reach 3 billion. The value of these transactions reached Sh114.5 trillion ($31.25 billion), up 13.3%.

A potential increase in transactions could lead to an increase in mobile money revenues. This could translate into a positive impact on MTN Uganda’s revenues, given that this growing segment is its second largest revenue source after voice services. In the first nine months of 2024, MoMo services generated Sh669.19 billion, up 25.6% from 2023. Fintech services, including MoMo, accounted for 29.7% of the operator’s service revenues, which amounted to approximately Sh2.308 billion.

Furthermore, the new service should enable MTN to attract new subscribers in a market where it is notably in competition with Airtel. As of September 30, 2024, it claimed leadership in terms of market share with 21.6 million mobile subscribers while official statistics indicate 40 million subscribers in the country. The company had also declared 9.3 million Internet subscribers and 13.2 million mobile money subscribers.

Source: Extensia

Tanzania: Vodacom strengthens its network in Zanzibar with public submarine cables

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Telecom operator Vodacom Tanzania will gain access to an additional 10GB of capacity to improve the quality of its voice and internet services across the islands of the Zanzibar archipelago. The company will be able to leverage government-owned fibre optic infrastructure and submarine cables to achieve this.

The company signed an agreement with the Zanzibar Communication Corporation (ZICTIA) last week. “This development is not just about ensuring faster internet speeds, it is aimed at driving digital transformation in Zanzibar. It is designed to empower local businesses, improve e-government services, support e-learning initiatives and much more,” the telecom operator said.

The additional capacity is expected to enable Vodacom Group’s Tanzanian subsidiary to better meet the needs of its existing subscribers in Zanzibar while expanding its customer base, strengthening its position in the domestic market. According to official data, the archipelago had about 1 million mobile phone subscriptions as of December 31, 2024, for an estimated population of 1.89 million.

Zanzibar represents a growth opportunity for Vodacom, especially as the number of unique subscribers is likely to be lower, with some people having multiple SIM cards, each counted as a separate subscription.

As of December 31, 2023, Vodacom had 26.32 million P2P (person-to-person) subscriptions according to data from the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA). This represents a market share of 31%. The company is closely followed by Yas with a market share of 30%. This is followed by Airtel (23%), Halotel (14%) and incumbent TTCL (2%). Vodacom also controls 54% of M2M (machine-to-machine) subscriptions.

Source: Extensia

MTN and Huawei signed an MoU to collaborate on the digital future for Africa

Barcelona, Spain, March 6, 2025] During the MWC Barcelona 2025, MTN Group and Huawei reaffirmed their long-term collaboration through a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The agreement outlines a framework to explore opportunities in advanced connectivity solutions, cloud based technologies and digital infrastructure to drive sustainable digital development across Africa.

MTN Group and Huawei Strategic Partnership MoU Signing Ceremony

Mazen Mroué, Group Chief Technology and Information Officer of MTN, said: “At MTN, our focus is on delivering seamless, intelligent, and inclusive digital experiences for our customers across Africa. Through this collaboration with Huawei, we are exploring innovative solutions to enhance network reliability, improve service quality, and expand digital access for underserved communities. By leveraging advanced connectivity and cloud technologies, we aim to empower businesses, enrich customer experiences, and accelerate Africa’s digital future.”

Huawei’s Corporate Senior Vice President, President of ICT Sales & Service Li Peng emphasized the collaboration’s transformative potential, “Our joint initiatives in 5G-Advanced networks and AI-powered cloud platforms will create a robust foundation for Africa’s digital economy. This partnership exemplifies our commitment to developing localized solutions that bridge both technological and skills gaps across the continent.”

This MoU marks a new phase in MTN and Huawei’s strategic collaboration going forward. Both companies will explore innovative solutions to accelerate Africa’s digital transformation and drive long-term digital economic growth.

MWC Barcelona 2025 is held from March 3 to March 6 in Barcelona, Spain. During the event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at stand 1H50 in Fira Gran Via Hall 1.

In 2025, commercial 5G-Advanced deployment will accelerate, and AI will help carriers reshape business, infrastructure, and O&M. Huawei is actively working with carriers and partners around the world to accelerate the transition towards an intelligent world.

Source: Huawei.com