Page 1 of 2Sameh Atalla, chief executive officer of Mobiserve Holding, speaks to Communications Africa about the latest technology in telecommunication and connectivity
CAF: How is Mobiserve helping African operators benefit from the latest telecom technologies?
SA: As a pioneer in the industry, Mobiserve Holding has tremendous expertise in a range of next-generation telecom and connectivity technologies, including 4G and WiMAX, having installed more than 12,000 sites throughout the continents of Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. We can leverage our expertise and apply it to the needs of any particular project.
Mobiserve serves African operators best by maintaining a strategy of being close to them on the ground. In Africa alone, we have offices in Egypt, Kenya, Mali, Uganda, Tanzania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and South Sudan.
Other regions are covered by our offices in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and all of our offices are staffed with local telecom experts. This gives us a strong understanding of the particular needs of a local operator and market as well as the ability to rapidly deploy field staff to projects.
CAF: Egypt has been a leader in Internet deployment and utilisation over the past decade. To what extent could Egypt – and other markets in North Africa and the Middle East – serve as a model for sub-Saharan Africa's evolution towards a truly mobile Internet?
SA: Operators in Egypt were instrumental in helping the rapid deployment of mobile Internet with flat rate data plans, customised content and value-added services. This is something that sub-Sahara’s operators can emulate, especially in terms of offering mobile-specific value-added services that are attractive to consumers. Already, we are seeing this trend in this region.
