Africa & Middle East Telecom weekly news

19th of July to 26th of July 2007

AFRICA:
World Bank to finance MTC’s expansion plan 

BAHRAIN:
Batelco to upgrade its network 

EGYPT:
Egyptian Communications Ministry grants 3G licence to Mobinil
Orascom Telecom bids for Raya 

GHANA:
Ghana Telecom launches Internet facility in New Juaben
Ghana Telecom plans to roll-out mobile TV service 

IRAQ:
Kalimat inks infrastructure contract with Huawei Technologies 

KENYA:
Econet gains regulatory approval to deploy network in Kenya
Postbank to use Safaricom’s M-Pesa service
Telkom Kenya to improve mobile capabilities 

MOROCCO:
Maroc Telecom releases 1H 2007 results 

NAMIBIA:
Telecom Namibia launches post-paid service for Switch subscribers 

NIGERIA:
GSM service improvement requires USD 15 billion investment
NITEL’s massive job cuts affect workers 

OMAN:
Omantel signs deal to connect NBO locations 

QATAR:
Qtel to deploy nationwide Wi-Fi hotspots 

SAUDI ARABIA:
Mobily reports 1.8 million subscriber base for 3.5G service
Mobily to introduce unlimited mobile TV package
STC releases 2Q 2007 results 

SIERRA LEONE:
Celtel launches a substitute for top-up scratch cards 

SOUTH AFRICA:
Cell C increases minimum recharge amount for its Woza Weekend offering
ECN Telecoms poised to give tough competition to Telkom
Telkom asks its suppliers to implement BEE plan
Vodacom’s subscriber base shows constant growth 

UGANDA:
UTL signs deal with Safaricom to provide borderless communication 

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES:
Etisalat launches Weyak community portal