The European bandwidth infrastructure company euNetworks officially got a bit bigger at the end of last week. Their previously announced purchase of the “Business Branch” of a Belgian utility company has closed, and the integration has begun. … [visit site to read more]

It has now been more than a year since Arelion began its new life, leaving behind the Telia Carrier brand and facing the market as an independent entity. Over that year we have seen the company start to make more aggressive network investments, moving into new parts of the world, such as Mexico. With us today to give his perspective on Arelion’s network infrastructure, its future, and the state of the broader network infrastructure marketplace is Mattias Fridström, Arelion’s Chief Evangelist. … [visit site to read more]

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Tomorrow will see a potentially significant development for the Sierra Leonean economy as the Bank of Sierra Leone officially launches the National Payment Switch, a system that, it is hoped, will move the country closer to achieving the objective of building a cashless economy.

The switch is a platform that facilitates interconnection and interoperability between the payment channels of various players including commercial banks, microfinance institutions, mobile money operators and fintechs.

The announcement of the switch was made on 19April, at the Sam Bangura Building in Freetown. However, the official launch will be on 29 April at the Bank of Sierra Leone recreation complex in Freetown.

According to the Acting Bank Governor at the Bank of Sierra Leone, Dr Ibrahim L Stevens, quoted in the Concord Times, “All debit and credit cards currently being used would be used on the National Switch and, once it goes live, it will ensure direct transactions between accounts of different banks, direct transactions between wallets of different mobile money operators and bank accounts and settlement of funds for transactions across schemes and between schemes and banks.”

The National Payment Switch, which will be owned and managed by the Bank of Sierra Leone, will roll out in three phases, the first involving ATMs and POS. The second will interoperate mobile money operators, other fintechs and bank accounts, allowing customers to make instant payments using any of these facilities from any location. Phase three focuses on international payments.

The switch will also make provision for buyers and sellers of financial products and services to make transactions across various channels.

If all goes well, it is hoped that, as well as users, the National Revenue Authority will benefit from the switch through more automated revenue collection, while banks and other payment systems will reduce costs and improve security.

Keep up-to-date with all the latest news, articles, event and product updates posted on Developing Telecoms.
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Keep up-to-date with all the latest news, articles, event and product updates posted on Developing Telecoms.
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This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Mandeep S Kwatra of Prodapt

As fiber operators fiercely compete for the top spot, they must constantly improve their operations while maintaining costs and ensuring seamless customer service. However, 60% of all corporate six sigma initiatives fail to deliver lasting results. We observed that many fiber operators still rely on traditional operations improvement activities performed on a one-time or on-demand basis translating to … [visit site to read more]

The African Development Fund and the Smart Africa Alliance have jointly launched a US$1.5 million project to streamline digital trade and e-commerce policies across 10 African countries.

The Institutional Support for Digital Payments and e-Commerce Policies for Cross-Border Trade (IDECT) Project, as it is known, will evaluate policy gaps in the digital trade and e-commerce ecosystems of Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Ghana, Liberia, Uganda, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, the Republic of Congo, São Tomé and Príncipe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The project will aim to drive the implementation of regional training and capacity-building programmes focusing on cross-border e-payment and e-commerce for governments, the private sector, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). These programmes are expected to reach 600 participants, with 60% being women and youth.

Additionally, a certified gender-sensitive e-learning training programme addressing the unique challenges faced by women in digital trade and e-commerce will be developed and disseminated to 2,500 participants, of whom 60% will be women.

Smart Africa is a commitment from African heads of state and government to accelerate sustainable socio-economic development on the continent, ushering Africa into a knowledge economy through affordable access to broadband and usage of information and communications technologies. Since its founding in 2014, the Smart Africa Alliance has grown to include 36 African countries.

Meanwhile, the African Development Bank has signed a US$525,000 grant agreement with Africa Fintech Network (AFN), a continent-wide institution that unites African fintech leaders, organisations and stakeholders, for the setting-up of the Africa Fintech Hub, an online portal that will serve as a one-stop shop for all fintech activities in Africa.

This hub is a digital platform that will enable fintech associations across Africa to pool resources and knowledge, and strengthen relationships and partnerships, as well as showcase the work of fintech on the continent, including groups that are female-led or owned.

The Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI), a pan-African initiative designed to catalyse digital financial inclusion throughout Africa, will provide funding and technical assistance to the Africa Fintech Network to host and manage the African Fintech Hub.

The ADFI is also supporting projects to enhance the deployment of digital micro-insurance to smallholder farmers in Nigeria, Zambia and Kenya, as well as to build capacity for cyber resilience and help to remove barriers to access to fintech services across the continent.