Tripled its customer base
Orange Money has tripled its customer base in the past year and continues to grow with the recent launch of services in two new countries: in Botswana in partnership with the Standard Chartered Bank, and in Cameroon in partnership with the BICEC (BPCE group).

In countries where it is available, mobile phone customers may open an Orange Money account whether or not they have a bank account. Orange Money allows customers to carry out simple banking operations and transactions in total security.

25 million transfers every year
According to the World Bank, countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia (AMEA) in which the Group operates receive more than 25 million transfers every year.

Africa is the fastest growing mobile market in the world
According to the report, Asia remains the largest global mobile market however, growth rates in Africa are far exceeding those of any other markets. There has been a 20% increase in the number of mobile subscribers on the continent each year for the last five years. In 2010, mobile penetration exceeded 50% on the continent, and there are currently around 650 million mobile connections in Africa. By the end of 2012, it is expected that there will be over 735 million mobile subscribers in Africa and this number is only set to increase.

Mobile industry continues to provide
The report notes that the mobile ecosystem in Africa currently generates around $56 billion, or 3.5% of total GDP, with mobile operators alone contributing $49 billion. The industry also contributes significantly to government revenues on the continent, $15 billion according to the report. Furthermore, it is a huge source of employment on the continent, with over 5.4 million people employed either directly or indirectly in the mobile ecosystem.

Still room for growth
Despite the highest growth rates in the world, the report notes that there is still room for growth in the number of mobile subscribers in Africa. 36% of Africans in the 25 largest African markets currently have no access to mobile services showing a huge potential for further growth. The report calls on governments to introduce tax cuts within the industry, as well as allocating more spectrums for the provision of Mobile Broadband services. The potential benefits of reaching 100% mobile penetration could add over $35 billion in aggregate GDP, an increase of 2%, but more is needed from both governments and operators before such a target can be reached.

As a result of many operators in the region now offering data services, SEACOM plans to meet the extra demand within the next 12-15 months, although the amount and type of finance used for the upgrade still needs to be decided. The upgrade will involve the installation of nine land based Internet access points, and the firm expects internet costs in the region to start decreasing quickly as telecommunication companies start to recoup their inital operating costs.

Broadband prices in 19 emerging markets were studied including South Africa and Nigeria and figures showed a cost far exceeding those in more developed markets. In South Africa, prices ranged from $1,443 a year for entry level broadband services, increasing to $6,000 a year for higher end services. Lower end costs were similar in Nigeria at $1,211 per year. This is despite the presence of multiple submarine communication cables off the coast of West Africa which were aimed at improving connectivity in the region.

However, there were expectations that prices would fall in the coming years in efforts to attract more users and drive revenue growth. Such a move would also help to unlock the potential for growth in these emerging markets.

According to the government’s Regulation of Interception of Communication Act (RICA), all mobile phone users in the country must be registered in order to continue using the mobile network. The main reason for the RICA implementation is to reduce mobile phone related crime.

Vodacom Executive Head of Media Relations, Richard Boorman, says his network provider has spent millions of Rands on the registration drive through advertisements in newspapers, television and radio.

In their statement published on Monday, the journalists’ rights group highlights the need for governments to take a hands off approach to the Internet and freedom of speech.

According to the Uganda commission, the shutting down of sites was in an effort to “reduce the threat of violence.” It came after activists announced plans for protests in anger of higher prices and corruption in the country.

Despite the government’s calls for a blackout, some operators refused to abide by the ruling and online activity went on as usual.

Protests in Uganda are gaining steam.

The Royal Geographical Society have assembled an international panel of experts who will answer questions on this very issue at Digital Technology in Africa, which takes place on the 18th of May 2011, at the Royal Geographical Society, London.

Chaired by Sir Bob Geldof
The Discussion will be chaired by Humanitarian and Campaigner, SIR Bob Geldof and also include:

NICHOLAS NEGROPONTE Founder and Chairman, One Laptop Per Child
ERIK HERSMAN Co-Founder, Ushahidi, Afrigadget and iHub
HERMAN CHINERY-HESSE Founder and Chairman, theSOFTtribe, Ghana

Tickets can be booked online or by calling the events team on 0207 591 3100

With this acquisition, Bharti Airtel will expand its African footprint to 16 countries and its overall presence to 19 countries. Bharti Airtel had recently acquired the mobile operations of Zain group in 15 countries across Africa.

Mr. Manoj Kohli, CEO (International) & Jt. MD, Bharti Airtel, said, “We are delighted at the addition of Seychelles to our Africa portfolio. Telecom Seychelles has world-class operations that include state-of-the-art 3G services. These operations will benefit further by leveraging the efficiencies of scale of our African operations.”

Unconfirmed reports from Moneycontrol.com revealed that Anil Ambani from Reliance will be visiting Johannesburg to meet the top brass of MTN on Monday.

Economic Times also reports that the South African government on Wednesday said any merger deal between MTN and any other global telecom company would have to clear its regulatory processes. “We have business people keen on MTN and as long as they comply with regulatory approval it is fine,” South African Minister for Trade and Industry Rob Davis said when asked about the reports of Reliance Communications’ renewed interest in MTN.

Meanwhile, R-Comm is still in talks with Abu Dhabi’s Etisalat for selling a 26% stake.