Forbes Africa - Africa ICT Outlook 2016

AFRICA
OUR NETWORK, YOUR SUCCESS
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CONTENTS
FORBES AFRICA
2 | WELCOME TO THE FORBES
AFRICA ICT OUTLOOK
4 | ICT INTEGRATION ESSENTIAL
TO AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT
Visions of a better-connected African continent
are in ample supply, but so are the challenges.
These must be overcome for Africa to harness
the benefits of a digital world.
BY TEBOGO MOGAPI
Executive Chairman at Uniq Axxess
10 | THE NEED FOR A NEUTRAL
REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
With the rapid development of new sensors, faster
Internet connectivity and lower data costs, the
Internet of Things will continue to evolve rapidly.
BY RICH MKHONDO
Marketing Director at Uniq Axxess
12 | MOBILE PAYMENTS:
TRANSFORMING THE WAY
AFRICA BANKS
Mobile money is literally transforming Africa, taking
the risk out of cash payments and delivering financial
inclusion for many. Kenya is leading the way, with
M-PESA transforming the way Kenyan’s bank.
BY BOB COLLYMORE
CEO of Safaricom
16 | AFRICA’S DIGITAL MIGRATION
IS HERE TO STAY
Digital migration is an idea whose time has
come, and no amount of primordial protectionist
tendencies will circumvent it.
BY DR GEORGE ODERA OUTA
Academic in Legal Studies
18 | A MOBILE MONEY
REVOLUTION?
Although Africa is leading the way when it
comes to mobile money, for it to be truly
revolutionary it needs to move beyond
remittances and air-time top-ups and, at last,
more companies are doing just that.
BY BRYAN CHURCH
Senior Analyst at Mondato
22 | PREPARING FOR BROADBAND
EXPANSION ACROSS AFRICA
A more collaborative and disciplined approach needs
to be adopted to enable broadband expansion.
BY JUDAH J. LEVINE
CEO of Hip Consult
25|DIGITALMIGRATIONCANSOLVE
AFRICA’SUNEMPLOYMENTCRISIS
There can be no broadcast development in
Africa without digital transition and African
governments need to take action fast or risk
an ever-widening digital divide between the
continent and the rest of the world.
BY GODFREY OHUABUNWA
Managing Director of Gospel Nigeria and
CEO of Multimesh
26 | DIGITAL MIGRATION:
DESTINED TO GIVE AUDIENCES A
NEW AND NOBLE EXPERIENCE
The future of television viewing is digital,
but in some African countries, the present is
still analogue. Migration to digital is, and will
continue to be, evolutionary, not revolutionary.
BY AKOREDE SHAKIR
Founder and CEO of Naija Leadership Builder
30 | USING INNOVATION TO SOLVE
AFRICA’S PROBLEMS
ICT has a way of adding value by delivering
financial inclusion for those previously
unbanked, especially those living in poverty.
BY CALIXTHUS OKORUWA
XLR8
32 | CONNECTED CITIES:
ARE BREEDING GROUNDS
FOR SMART CITIES
Free Wi-Fi for all provides Africa with the
opportunity to develop ‘smart cities’ and
compete on an equal footing.
BY THAMI MTSHALI
CEO of Galela Holdings and the founder and
former CEO of iBurst
38 | THE ‘INTERNET OF THINGS’ IS
FAST BECOMING THE NORM
With the rapid development of new sensors,
faster Internet connectivity and lower data
costs, the Internet of Things will continue to
evolve rapidly.
BY WAYNE DE NOBREGA
CEO of Tracker
40 | JUST AS THE INTERNET HAS
EVOLVED, SO TOO HAVE CYBER
CRIMINALS
The digital revolution is storming ahead, along-
side the incredible benefits that the Internet
brings, comes ever-increasing risk of cyber
attacks.
BY BONTLE HEADBUSH
Independendt commentator
42 | DATA CENTRES: CRITICAL TO
THE GROWTH OF ICT IN AFRICA
A more collaborative and disciplined
approach needs to be adopted to enable
broadband expansion.
BY CHIEKEZI DOZIE
Sales Director at IS solutions, Nigeria
44 | FACING THE REALITY
OF ‘OTT’ PLAYERS
‘Over-the-top’ players are here to stay and
telcos have to develop the right strategies to
co-exist with them.
BY MICHAEL IKPOKI,
CEO of Africa Context Consulting
4
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DECEMBER 2016 / JANAURY 2017 FORBES AFRICA | 1

2 | FORBES AFRICA DECEMBER 2016 / JANAURY 2017
W
elcome to Forbes Africa
ICT Outlook, a magazine
which looks at the infor-
mation, communications
and technology (ICT) industry’s activi-
ties and operations across the continent
and its contribution to the economic
development of the continent.
Access to ICT, particularly broadband,
has the potential to serve as a major ac-
celerator for Africa’s economic growth.
Africans have embraced mobile
communication technologies faster
than any other part of the world and
continent is being recognised as the
next potential enabler of sustainable
economic growth, driving innovation
for the developing world.
Global interconnectedness is rapidly
expanding, however more needs to be
done to bridge the digital divide and
bring the more than half of the global
population, the majority of them not
using the Internet in Africa, into the
digital economy.
The digital revolution of Africa has
great potential for the continent, but
is also a source of risk and uncertainty.
Stakeholders across the continent need
to ensure a greater degree of focus on
empowering the next generation with
the right skills and digital infrastruc-
ture to usher the African continent into
a world of ICT opportunities.
Statistics from various ICT relat-
ed organisations reveal that a huge
untapped potential remain services.
Projections indicate that reaching
100% mobile penetration could add
over $35 billion in aggregate GDP – an
increase of 2% – but only if govern-
ments and operators work together to
bring mobile communication to the
entire African population.
The ICT industry encompasses a
lot of technology-related businesses.
Besides modern network providers,
the legacy local and long-distance wire
line phone services and telecommuni-
cations also include wireless commu-
nications, Internet services, fibre op-
tics networks, cable TV networks and
commercial satellite communications.
In this magazine, we will annually
profile telecommunications compa-
nies, technology-driven and related
businesses, network providers, hand-
set manufacturers, wireless communi-
cations, Internet services, fibre optics
networks, cable TV networks and
commercial satellite communications,
the enablers of sustainable economic
growth.
Happy reading!
Regards,
The Forbes Africa ICT Outlook Team
Welcome To
The Forbes Africa
ICT Outlook
FOREWORD
FORBES AFRICA

4 | FORBES AFRICA DECEMBER 2016 / JANUARY 2017
A
s effective regulations and
policies become crucial to
economic growth across all
sectors, two broad themes
emerge: the ubiquity of Information
Communication Technology (ICT), and
the critical role telecommucations and
ICT regulators play in creating an en-
abling digital environment.
From job creation, economic growth
and health, to education and personal
security, no discussion of major societal
issues is complete without close exam-
ination of the role of ICTs in creating,
managing, and resolving these issues.
The annual GMSA Mobile World
Congress, held in Barcelona every Febru-
ary, has recognised Africa as the world’s
second largest mobile market by connec-
tions after Asia, and the fastest growing
mobile market in the world.
The mobile ecosystem in Africa
currently generates approximately $56
billion or 3.5% of total GDP, with mobile
operators alone contributing $49 billion.
In recent studies by the World Bank
and others, it has been shown that there
is a direct relationship between mobile
penetration and GDP. In develop-
ing countries, for every 10% increase
in mobile penetration, there is a 0.81
percentage point increase in a country’s
GDP. The mobile industry contributes
$15 billion in government revenues and is
a significant contributor to employment
in Africa.
Because ICTs touch all aspects of society,
when setting sound policies and regula-
tions, the link between ICTs and all major
social, political and economic issues have
to be taken into account.
More than ever, it is vital to consider
the appropriate scope of an African ICT
regulator’s mandate in creating an enabling
digital world, a world where no citizen is
left out of the digital society.
While the benefits of an information
society are manifest, the broadband revolu-
tion has raised new issues and challenges.
Consumers of all ages are very much
pioneers in the information age, reaping
the benefits of their new world but also ex-
posing themselves to the risks if the right
measures are not taken.
ICT Integration Essential
To Africa’s Development
Visions of a better-connected African continent are in ample
supply, but so are the challenges. These must be overcome for
Africa to harness the benefits of a digital world.
BY TEBOGO MOGAPI, FORMER CEO OF MTN SWAZILAND AND MTN LIBERIA
ICT IN AFRICA
FORBES AFRICA
The mobile ecosystem in Africa currently generates approximately $56 billion or 3.5% of
total GDP, with mobile operators alone contributing $49 billion
From job creation,
economic growth and
health, to education
and personal security
and others, no
discussion of major
societal issues is
complete without
close examination
of the role of ICTs in
creating, managing,
and resolving these
issues.

DECEMBER 2016 / JANUARY 2017 FORBES AFRICA | 5
African
Continent
Profile
• Unique Mobile Subscriptions: 557 Million, 2015
• Total Mobile Connections: 965 Million, 2015
• Mobile Penetration Rate
West Coast
East Coast
North Coast
Population
1.2 Billion
Individual Internet
Users: 193 Million, 2015
Fixed-Line Telephone
Subscriptions: 11 Million, 2015
Active Submarine Cables >>> >>> >>>
7
6
5
While we must all embrace the infor-
mation age, we must not forget that the
interconnectedness of ICTs facilitates the
distribution of viruses and malware on a
global basis making it easier to perpetrate
various forms of cybercrime, while at the
same time making it difficult to track, in-
vestigate, and prosecute cybercriminals.
Despite the dangers of cybercrime, the
ICT infrastructure that Africa needs is
steadily falling into place. Governments
across African emerging markets are mod-
ernising ICT infrastructure. Submarine
cables such as Main One, Seacom, WACS,
Glo-1 and ACE have improved internet
penetration and adoption dramatically.
Africa’s ICT infrastructure has trans-
formed dramatically over the last few
years. Improved connectivity and connec-
tivity infrastructure investments continue
to enhance hardware, software and IT
services adoption.
Indeed, a Seacom undersea cable
has linked South Africa, Mozambique,
Tanzania and Kenya to international
European and Asian routes. The Eastern
Africa Submarine Cable System delivers
better connection to East Africa. The West
African Cable System, has done the same
on the West end of the continent.
According to Terabit Consulting,
sub-Saharan Africa has witnessed the
biggest growth in undersea capacity in the
world and average growth over the last five
years has been 71%. In contrast, the figure
is just 27% for the transatlantic route.
According to Analysys Mason, in-
vestment in submarine cables in Africa
has reached $3.8 billion, generating new
capacity of 24 Gbit/s while capital pumped
into terrestrial networks has reached $8
billion. Moreover countries which were
without submarine cable leading stations,
now have one at the very least.
Further improvements are on the
horizon for Africa. Much of the interest
focuses on connecting the Lusophone Afri-
can country Angola to Portuguese-speak-
ing Brazil. Telebras, Brazil’s state-run
telecommunications firm, and Angola
Cables have built the 6,000 km connection
between Fortaleza in Brazil and Luanda in
Angola.
This has meant improved connection
for data and phone calls between South
America and Africa, which in the past
had to first travel via Europe and North
The extent to which the promise of mobile connectivity’s positive impact on socioeconomic development is realised and converted into sustainable gains
is contingent on all stakeholders

ICT IN AFRICA
FORBES AFRICA
America first. Data traffic costs were slashed by as much as 80%
as a result of the connection.
Indeed, many African countries are taking a number of mea-
sures to improve their ICT infrastructure. Their aim is that by
2030, all sectors of the economy will be 100% connected. The
countries are also developing national cloud computing platforms
and rolling out LTE projects.
Telecoms firms are pumping billions into infrastructure over
the next few years. Smaller countries are keen to work together to
improve their mobile broadband.
For example, Botswana, Lesotho, Tanzania, Mozambique, Mala-
wi and Zambia have pledged their common commitment to speed-
ing up the roll-out of mobile broadband in their countries. The raft
of measures they agreed on included the establishment of a Joint
Task Force. It is hoped that the latter will spell tighter regional
cooperation, which will, in turn, stimulate greater investment.
Interest in integrating cloud computing into African ICT infra-
structures is also building. Improved fibre-optic cable access is en-
hancing connectivity services across Africa and is a definite factor
in reducing the cost of doing business across various sectors. Easier
and less costly access to the fibre infrastructure will drive adoption
of connectivity services as well as investments in IT services.
Cloud adoption in the African market is unquestionably gathering
pace, with many service providers and enterprises currently consid-
ering deploying cloud-based networks, in one form or another.
While some companies are ahead in their cloud plans
compared to others, there is in general a strong understanding
There is a growing concern whether the Internet can help African countries to realise development potential or whether Internet technologies are
widening the gap between the haves and have-nots
among enterprises in the region of the power, benefits and
advantages of moving towards the cloud.
Harnessing the benefits
It is a well-known fact that ICT enables inclusive so-
cio-economic development, whether access to the Internet
is derived from broadband in homes and offices, or via the
mobile telephone, which is growing in popularity as the
number one method to getting online.
Connectivity has demonstrated its ability to ignite
socio-economic development time and again. African
governments know they need to expand existing infrastruc-
ture and introduce new technologies to connect Africans,
especially those in rural areas, with Africans and with the
world.
African governments know and recognise that connected
regions produce increased economic growth that a thriving
information society drives. ICT is a development tool to
reduce poverty, build capacities, enrich skills, and inspire
new approaches to governance and conflict resolution.
Heeding the challenges
Although many countries are investing heavily in ICT in-
frastructure necessary to pave and widen economic growth,
there are discrepancies among nations and regions. Some
African countries are struggling to get on the information
highway bandwagon.

There is a growing concern whether the
Internet can help African countries to
realise development potential or whether
Internet technologies are widening the gap
between the haves and have-nots.
New data released today by ITU, shows
that 3.9 billion people remain cut-off from
the vast resources available on the Inter-
net, despite falling prices for ICT services.
ICT Facts and Figures 2016 shows that
developing countries now account for the
vast majority of Internet users, with 2.5
billion users compared with one billion in
developed countries.
But Internet penetration rates tell a
different story, with 81% in developed coun-
tries, compared with 40% in developing
countries and 15% in the least developed
countries.
The new edition of ITU’s ICT Facts and
Figures reveals that mobile phone coverage
is now near-ubiquitous, with an estimated
95% of the global population – or some
seven billion people – living in an area cov-
ered by a basic 2G mobile-cellular network.
Advanced mobile-broadband networks
Long Term Evolution (LTE) have spread
quickly over the last three years and reach
almost four billion people today - corre-
sponding to 53% of the global population.
But while the number of mobile-broad-
band subscriptions continues to grow at
double digit rates in developing countries
to reach a penetration rate of close to 41%,
mobile-broadband penetration growth has
slowed overall. Globally, the total number
of mobile-broadband subscriptions is
expected to reach 3.6 billion by end 2016,
compared with 3.2 billion at end 2015.
Global fixed-broadband subscriptions
are expected to reach around 12 per 100 in-
habitants in 2016, with Europe, the Amer-
icas and the Commonwealth of Indepen-
dent States regions having the highest rates
of penetration. Strong growth in China is
driving fixed-broadband in Asia and the
Pacific, where penetration is expected to
surpass 10% by end of 2016.
Mobile-broadband services have now
become more affordable than fixed-broad-
band services, with the average price for
a basic fixed-broadband plan more than
twice as high as the average price of a com-
parable mobile-broadband plan.
By the end of 2016, more than half of the
world’s population - 3.9 billion people - will
not yet be using the Internet. While almost
one billion households in the world now
have Internet access (of which 230 million
are in China, 60 million in India and 20
million in the world’s 48 Least Developed
Countries), figures for household access
reveal the extent of the digital divide, with
84% of households connected in Europe,
compared with 15.4% in the African region.
Internet penetration rates are higher for
men than for women in all regions of the
world. The global Internet user gender gap
grew from 11% in 2013 to 12% in 2016. The
regional gender gap is largest in Africa, at
23%, and smallest in the Americas, at 2%.
Most researchers agree that unless
African countries become full actors in
the global information revolution, the
gap between the haves and have-nots will
Finding a skilled workforce, which is key to any ICT sector’s infrastructure, has been an area which many African countries are struggling with

ICT IN AFRICA
FORBES AFRICA
widen, opening the possibility to increased
marginalization of the continent.
Finding a skilled workforce, which is
key to any ICT sector’s infrastructure, has
been an area which many African countries
are struggling with. Even in South Africa,
complaints that there is a shortage of skilled
ICT labour are common. Last year, a survey
by the South African ICT news site IT Web
found that two thirds of firms felt there was
a lack of labour skilled in ICT.
Furthermore, a report by Nigeria’s
BusinessDay newspaper found that
the ICT sector ranked third in terms of
labour shortage in the country. It also
found that ICT qualifications will be the
second-most-sought-after qualifications
in Nigeria after engineering.
A study by the University of Nairobi
School of Computing and Informatics has
found that the country’s ICT sector is suf-
fering from a skills mismatch – whereby
ICT degree students are not learning the
right skills for the job market and firms
are hiring ICT graduates with the wrong
skill sets for their companies’ needs.
Despite the fact that Africa is embrac-
ing the information age, ICT commenta-
tors have warned that Africa must open
up to competition and investment or wait
decades to fully benefit from the Internet
age. The continent must shed its weight
of state-run enterprises and initiate
more liberal regulatory policies and tax
regimes.
The ICT commentators, further point out
that the global statistics on the conti-
nent’s readiness for the e-economy paint a
distinctly negative picture. Africa has the
lowest Internet penetration and the most
inadequate communications and technolo-
gy infrastructure in the world.
Regrettably, many countries in Africa
continue to lag behind, with some having
teledensities still less than 0.1%.
African countries must work to close
the digital divide now. Governments in
Africa are under obligation to articulate
clear-cut policies that would stimulate
growth of the ICT sector.
But despite some positive attempts at
stimulating telecommunication compe-
tition, such as the establishment of legal
frameworks and independent regulatory
bodies including the Independent Commu-
nication of South Africa (ICASA), Nigeria
Communication Commission, and the
Uganda Communication Commission,
these regulators often lack willpower and
teeth and are constantly mired in red-tape
and political interference.
African countries have currently
allocated considerably less resources to
mobile services than Europe, the Americas
and Asia, which is inhibiting connectivity
to large swathes of rural Africa. Sufficient
spectrum should be provided for mobile
broadband services to enable the mobile
industry to ‘connect the unconnected’ and
continue to act as a catalyst for growth.
The courage
to grow is business.
mtnbusiness.com/za
MetropolitanRepublic/19728
Furthermore, taxes imposed on the
mobile industry in many African states
should be reduced to drive an increase in
mobile penetration, supported by shared
vision by all key stakeholders.
Indeed, harmonised ICT policies will
not only promote collaboration between
operators, telecommunication companies
and other stakeholders, but also support
the proliferation of digital ecosystems,
promote widespread broadband deploy-
ment and adoption and build new revenue
streams for operators.
However, some experts and telecom-
munication officials are more confident
that Africa can catch up to the benefits of
ICT, which has improved quality of life
worldwide and acted as a key driver of
economic growth for both developed and
developing economies.
All in all, every African agrees that inte-
grating ICT into the economy and society is
essential for development and growth.
We are at a critical juncture in history
where technology is changing every aspect of
life. Caught in the cradle of information and
communication technology the world has
lost its traditional boundaries, and the very
way people converse and interact is changing.
Thankfully there are leaders in Africa
aware of the role of telecommunications
and many are initiating measures to develop
policy frameworks and implement ICT re-
lated projects at regional and national levels,
making ICT a catalyst for growth.

Technology Turns Challenges
Into Opportunities
I
n a recent Robert Half Manage-
ment Resources survey, only 4%
of executives said their challenges
have eased. Sixty-six per cent
indicated that it is more challenging to be
a company leader today than it was five
years ago. With the increasingly fast pace
and globalised nature of business, who
can blame them?
Technology, which used to be a sup-
port only function of running a business is
now the key differentiator that is not only
separating the leaders from the laggards,
but is creating the very opportunities that
companies continually look for in order
to grow. Whether a start-up turned global
giant like Uber or a more traditional com-
pany, every business in the world hoping
to achieve some measure of success must
leverage the technology solutions avail-
able to them.
“Every business is unique, but they all
have similar needs and desires,” says Al-
pheus Mangale, Chief Enterprise Officer
at MTN Business South Africa. “They all
want to be the best at what they do; they
all want to grow; they all want to increase
profits and reduce costs; and they all want
to stay ahead of competitors. Each of
these things offers opportunities, but each
brings with it its own challenges.”
Having the right technology in place
is therefore essential to sustainable
business. And staying ahead of technolo-
gy trends is equally important, Mangale
adds.
“Many business leaders have heard
terms like cloud computing and the In-
ternet of Things (IoT) bandied about, but
fewer understand the value these types
of solutions can bring. Cloud computing,
for example, offers unparalleled cost-ef-
ficiencies and scalability. By allowing
companies to securely access all of the
applications they need, when they need
them, and providing a safe repository for
all their data, the cloud opens up opera-
tional flexibility at a fraction of the cost of
on premise solutions.”
Cloud services such as web-based col-
laboration platforms, virtualised desktops,
storage and backup, as well as on-demand
applications, are being used the world
over as a means of gaining operational and
cost efficiencies. For African executives,
the cloud offers an added bonus: The
ability to centrally manage all of these
elements across multiple regions.
“The MTN Business Cloud Services
platform is being used for expansion across
the continent. A pan-African solution
designed to meet the needs of African cus-
tomers, our platform is being used for ev-
erything from flexible, optimised payment
options and secure, in-house data centres
to security, storage and backup, email
marketing, contacts management and ac-
counting applications,” says Mangale.
“By virtue of the fact that MTN Busi-
ness Cloud is available across the conti-
nent, and the fact that it is backed by a
pan-African network designed to support
growth, African companies are gaining
the benefits of agility and efficiency.”
The network, MTN’s Global Multi-
protocol Label Switching Virtual Private
Network (Global MPLS VPN), connects
key network points across Africa and the
United Kingdom. Optimised to deliver
global scale, high-quality connectivity
and world-class support, the MPLS VPN
allows companies to completely outsource
their Wide Area Network (WAN), Local
Area Network (LAN) and Custom-
er Premises Equipment management
requirements.
A single, global managed network solu-
tion, the MPLS VPN offers an easy way
for businesses to connect their different
local and international operations using
one world-class, seamless, managed
network. With the ability to prioritise
customer traffic on an application by ap-
plication basis, companies are able to rank
their connectivity needs between voice
and data, as and when required, and can
also combine different types of data onto a
single network.
“The quality of our network ensures
that cloud services are accessible – fast
– at any time, and anywhere. We have
focused on ensuring that our infrastruc-
ture meets the needs of today’s – and
tomorrow’s – businesses, and the increas-
ing uptake of our managed services such
as the Global MPLS VPN and our cloud
offerings point to our success in this,”
Mangale says.
He adds that this focus is also evident
in the company’s IoT offering. Connecting
an otherwise fragmented population of
devices and systems through an open plat-
form, MTN Business has opened Africa
up to the value offered by Machine2Ma-
chine (M2M) solutions.
Responding intelligently to their en-
vironments without human intervention,
these smart machines empower business-
es to monitor and improve their opera-
tional performance, enhance productivity,
and impact management activities.
“With these types of technologies,
challenges fast become opportunities.
Thanks to cutting-edge technologies,
African businesses are not only holding
their own against their international
counterparts, they are growing faster.
Africa’s future has never looked brighter,”
Mangale concludes.
Presented by:
By Alpheus Mangale, Chief Enterprise Officer at MTN Business South Africa

M
obile connectivity continues to
play a pivotal role in the trans-
formation of societies and in
contributing to socioeconomic
development in developing countries.
Its impact is widely acknowledged in the
effect mobile communications has had on
many African countries.
A recent GSMA Mobile World Con-
gress report confirms that sub-Saharan
Africa now has more than half a billion
people subscribed to mobile services.
More are poised to be connected through
the next wave spurred by the growth of
mobile broadband networks, data services
and uptake of low-cost smartphones.
According to the GSMA 2015 sub-Sa-
haran Africa Mobile Economy research
findings, the mobile industry remains
a key driver of economic growth and
employment across the region, making
an important contribution given the pop-
ulation growth and high unemployment
levels. In 2014, the broader mobile ecosys-
tem generated 5.7% of GDP in sub-Sa-
haran Africa, a contribution of just over
$100 billion in economic value. Migration
to mobile broadband and the growth of
new services will see this figure increase
to 8.2% of GDP by 2020, reflecting how
increased access to mobile services gener-
ates regional growth and development.
However, the extent to which the
promise of mobile connectivity’s positive
impact on socioeconomic development
is realised and converted into sustainable
gains is contingent on all stakeholders,
especially continental regulators, playing
their part in loosening legacy regulation
drafted in a by-gone era, to accommodate
today’s dynamic and converged digital
ecosystem.
Today’s operating landscape
and regulation
The landscape is evolving rapidly. Opera-
tors now face competitors and disruption
from innovative use of technologies, that
linear regulatory frameworks developed
decades ago never envisaged.
For instance, the dynamic and competitive
telecommunications landscape we find
ourselves in features new players – media
companies, software vendors, and Internet
companies. The old separation of sectors
has disappeared and there are no clearcut
turfs that the old regulation provisioned for.
New players operate seemingly unregu-
lated while the ability of network operators
to respond to the challenges is hamstrung
by outdated regulations. All this happens
while there is still an expectation for
network operators to rollout infrastructure
to cater for data demands by consumers,
whilst managing the challenge of dwindling
revenues as cannibalisation by unregulated
players continues unabated.
These changes have created two
challenges; discriminatory regulation of
similar services and competing companies,
and ineffective legacy ex ante (before the
event) regulatory regimes traditionally
governing communications markets, that
are no longer effective in the face of rapid
innovation.
The GSMA report points out that reg-
ulation has failed to adapt to the evolving
telecommunications ecosystem – new
entry of suppliers of applications, content
and devices thus discriminating against
fixed and mobile network operators.
It further notes that services provided
by companies like Amazon, Facebook, Goo-
gle, Microsoft, and Netflix are directly com-
peting successfully with services provided
by fixed and mobile network operators.
The first group of companies and the ser-
vices they provide typically are regulated
only under general antitrust and consum-
The Need For A Neutral
Regulatory Framework
Evolving the current regulatory framework, from a top-down
to a bottom-up approach.
BY RICH MKHONDO, MARKETING DIRECTOR AT UNIQ AXXESS
TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
Mobile Telephone Subscriptions per 100 Inhabitants. Source: ITU
45.4
76.6
52.3
83.8
58.9
88.1
73.5
96.8
71.2
96.1
65.6
93.1
2010 2011 20142012 2013 2015
Africa World

er protection regimes, while the second
group of companies and their offerings are
generally subject to industry-specific rules
and institutions. Thus, telecommunica-
tions carriers (but not other voice and data
communications providers) are still subject
to rules designed for telephone companies.
Traditional audio and video distributors
(but not OTT providers) are still subject to
rules designed for ‘broadcasters’. Mobile
carriers and their services face many
of the same rules as wireline telephone
companies (and often even more that come
attached to their spectrum licences), while
other wireless ecosystem participants
face much lower burdens. (Source: 2016
GMSA report ‘Designing a new regulatory
framework’).
Legacy regulation has, unintendedly,
hamstrung operators and limited their
ability to effectively respond to dynamic
changes and their ability to play a role in
enabling digital societies. Operators are
well placed to act as catalysts of transfor-
mation in a fast-changing digital society
through capital investments. This role,
while limited by legacy regulation that has
not kept up, is distorting markets and con-
sequently putting increased investments
infrastructure at risk.
The real opportunity of new regulatory
frameworks
What we need is a marked departure from
old top-down regulatory frameworks to
a bottom-up approach. This calls for re-
viewing regulatory objectives and pursuing
them through new regulations that suit
current market dynamics and pending
trends. This will mean disregarding legacy
regulatory regimes and approaches that
are incompatible with the times, and
evolving technologies that have blurred
the lines.
In the face of inflexible regulatory
frameworks, others may adopt anarchical
tendencies choosing to ignore existing
rules and institutions. However, a new
wholesome regulatory framework based
on the principles of functionality is need-
ed. The current and ever-evolving digital
ecosystem demands that regulation be
similarly dynamic and flexible.
The emerging regulatory framework
will need to be market and technology neu-
tral, in that it applies to all elements of the
internet ecosystem; cost-effective, in that it
will achieve regulatory goals and objectives
at the lowest possible cost; and flexible, in
that it will allow markets and technologies
to evolve while preserving and enhancing
regulators’ ability to achieve their func-
tional regulatory objectives.
What is being proposed is that policy
makers ensure that the right and relevant
conditions are in place for the full trans-
formational potential of mobile services to
be realised.
As the digital ecosystem gets entrenched
in sub-Saharan Africa, policy and regula-
tory changes are required to ensure that
adequate investment and innovation comes
from all ecosystem players.
Operators need a conducive regulatory
environment that encourages sustained in-
vestment and growth that extends coverage
to more remote areas and meets the grow-
ing demand for higher speed connectivity.
The benefits of the new regulatory
framework will accrue to customers who
will not only have a variety of competi-
tive products, they will also access these
at competitive price points. Moreover,
countries will benefit from increased mobile
broadband penetration resulting from
increased capital investment. Such mobile
broadband penetration will have a positive
domino effect on entrenching and growing
digital societies and further contribute to
socioeconomic development that creates a
win-win for all stakeholders.
The extent to which the promise of mobile connectivity’s positive impact on socioeconomic development is
realised and converted into sustainable gains is contingent on all stakeholders
What we need
is a marked
departure from
old top-down
regulatory
frameworks to
a ‘bottom-up’
approach.

W
hile these days we take the
mobile phone for granted, it was
only two decades ago that mak-
ing a telephone call was costly
and time-consuming. For the vast majority this
involved finding the right coins and then queu-
ing at a public payphone booth.
Sending money home for migrant labourers
and urban dwellers was just as challenging, and
it took days to arrive, whether sent via the post
office or dispatched as cash payments delivered
by the bus crew that travelled the country.
How times have changed. Today the mobile
phone is ubiquitous. While initially developed
for voice calls, it has also enabled the delivery
of mobile payments. For Africa this has been
revolutionary, enabling the speedy and secure
delivery of money across the continent without
the hassle of standing in queues or filling out
forms.
Africa is mobile-only
The mobile industry in sub-Saharan Africa con-
tinues to scale rapidly, with mobile connections
expected to reach 518 million by 2020 delivering
a 49% mobile penetration rate says research
from the GSMA. With this growth rate it is ex-
pected that the mobile industry will contribute
$166 billion by 2020 and make up 8% of GDP
in sub-Saharan Africa. The mobile ecosystem,
whose combined value in Africa is expected to
cross the $100 billion mark by 2020, currently
contributes an estimated 5.4% of the continent’s
GDP. What is clear is that Africa is not just a
mobile-first continent; it is mobile-only.
The mobile phone has proven to be transfor-
mative technology – breaking down intra-Africa
trade barriers by removing obstacles, increasing
efficiency, and encouraging transparency. The
adoption of cellular and Internet technologies
has enabled Africa to leapfrog some of the in-
frastructural challenges that it previously faced.
Mobile phones have become the connective
tissue helping to drive economic growth.
Kenya leads the world in mobile payments
Nowhere has this transformative power of the
mobile been felt as much as it has in Kenya.
Today, the country has more mobile phones
than toilets or water taps. Mobile penetration
has increased Internet access, with nine out of
ten new Internet connections being made via
mobile devices. Kenya’s mobile penetration rate
is 88%, with 37.8 million active subscribers. The
number of Internet users continues to grow,
recent stats from the Communications Author-
ity of Kenya (CA) record just over 31 million
registered Internet users.
Through mobile, citizens can connect to the
world, to government services, to businesses,
and to each other in ways that were previously
unimaginable. This has enabled new ways of
doing business.
One of the important threads in this transfor-
mative Kenyan story has been the rise of mobile
money, creating a new economic model that
has helped elevate Kenya in rankings as the top
country in Africa for ease in accessing financial
services. This has been driven by the exponen-
tial uptake of mobile money. On any given day,
an estimated KSh7.7 billion is transferred via the
six mobile money platforms in Kenya.
Kenya has also been catapulted into global
prominence as the cradle of mobile money inno-
TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
Mobile Payments:
Transforming The Way Africa Banks
Mobile money is literally transforming Africa, taking the risk out of cash
payments and delivering financial inclusion for many. Kenya is leading
the way, with M-PESA transforming the way Kenyan’s bank.
BY BOB COLLYMORE, CEO OF SAFARICOM
One of the
important
threads in this
transformative
Kenyan story
has been mobile
money. This has
literally created
a new economic
model, pushing
the country to
the top of the
pile in Africa
in rankings for
ease in accessing
financialservices,
driven by the
exponential
uptake of
mobile money.

vation as a result of its M-PESA solution.
M-PESA was launched by mobile opera-
tor Safaricom and has become the world’s
best known and successful mobile money
platform.
M-PESA is at the centre of Kenyan life.
It has crafted a fresh economic model,
making it easier, cheaper, faster and con-
venient to send money across distances,
pay for bills, buy goods and even contrib-
ute to fundraising causes. In fact, M-PESA
keeps evolving and has now facilitated
saving and borrowing on mobile phone.
Kenya runs on M-PESA, literally.
The innovation that would eventually
become M-PESA, started as a trial mobile
phone loan service for female farmers
in the outskirts of Nairobi. The premise
was simple - using SMS technology, users
could exchange cash for electronic money,
which could then be sent to other mobile
phone users to redeem for cash. This was
before the possibility of a more commer-
cial application was discovered.
M-PESA delivers more than money
Since its launch in March 2007, M-PESA
has grown its subscriber base rapidly.
Within the first month, 20,000 customers
had signed up, rising to two million by the
end of the year and 10 million by its third
birthday. Today, there are 22.1 million
M-PESA users out of the 28.7 million
mobile money subscribers in Kenya, ac-
cording to statistics from CA, the industry
regulator. Four out of five adults in Kenya
are M-PESA subscribers.
This has translated into huge economic
benefits – not only for Safaricom, which
generates the second largest revenues
from M-PESA (after voice), but also the
Kenyan society. By 2012, the Central Bank
of Kenya estimated that the equivalent
of 43.5% of Kenya’s GDP was transferred
via M-PESA. On any given day, over eight
million transactions are conducted daily
on M-PESA, accounting for about 80% of
the world’s mobile money transactions.
The value of transactions on the platform
has also been substantial – cumulatively,
this is estimated at over KSh4 trillion
since its launch.
The ‘True Value’ analysis conducted
by KPMG for the 2014/15 financial year
shows for every M-PESA transaction that
takes place, KSh79 worth of value is creat-
ed for the Kenyan society.
M-PESA has moved beyond being a
person-to-person transfer product to a
platform that enables financial inclusion.
Now, it is inspiring new ways to provide
access to essential services. Its retinue of
services include: P2P, ATM withdrawal,
Lipa Na M-PESA (Pay Bill and Buy Goods
and Services), Bulk Payments, Bank to
M-PESA and vice versa, M-Ticketing,
Mobile
Financial
Services
Globally, there are 271 mobile
services of which 141 are in
sub-Saharan Africa.
Countries in Africa with Live
Interoperable Mobile Money Services:
• Madagascar
• Tanzania
• Rwanda

Lipa Karo, M-PESA Prepay Visa card,
International Money Transfer, Lipa Na
M-PESA Online and M-Shwari. Indeed, it
is actively transforming lives.
The success and growth of M-PESA
has been partly driven by its agents, who
facilitate the transfer – converting cash
into electronic money and vice versa.
Presently, there are 91,246 M-PESA
agents across Kenya serving as the back-
bone on which the service operates. In
addition to transacting locally, M-PESA
subscribers can also receive funds inter-
nationally from over 100 countries.
Strategic partnership have helped
M-PESA drive the growth of mobile
payments. So far, over 42,000 merchant
outlets have signed up to accept M-PESA
as a mode of payment. In addition to this,
over 35 banks have integrated to offer
M-PESA services.
All this has contributed to M-PESA’s
provision of greater convenience, safety,
speed and lower costs of transferring
cash. Over time, it has innovatively
evolved to suit customer needs. For
instance, lower bands and tariffs to meet
the needs of our customers has led to
increased transactions.
M-PESA has found myriad applica-
tions – from facilitating delivery of aid to
refugees to accessing solar power, paying
tea farmers for their crop, disbursing
fertilizer subsidies and ensuring that pa-
tients take their medicines as prescribed.
In Dadaab camp, home to one of the
world’s biggest refugee populations, mo-
bile connectivity has made it easier to de-
liver aid directly to beneficiaries’ phones.
This has solved the challenge of providing
financial services through the traditional
concept of brick-and-mortar.
Donor organisations no longer have
to conduct air-drops to get aid and other
essential services to residents of the camp.
Apart from the ease in getting aid to where
it is needed most, sending it via M-PESA
also enables the funding organization to
place restrictions on where the money can
be spent, introducing transparency and
accountability for a less than a $1 a day.
M-PESA has also facilitated access to
clean energy for many Kenyan commu-
nities. With a deposit of around $35, a
company called M-KOPA gives M-PESA
customers access to a solar system to
install at their homes. They then top it up
every day to the tune of around 45 cents
in order to get energy – creating a Pay-as-
you-Go power model.
The M-PESA platform offers a cashless
payment service for tea farmers – who no
longer have to travel to the nearest urban
tea centre, queue for hours and receive a
hand-written piece of paper with instruc-
tions on how much they would be paid.
This has also boosted efficiency in opera-
tions of the 66 factories across the country
and addressed long-standing concerns
regarding security of factory employees
who handle cash.
M-PESA is the backbone of a govern-
ment fertilizer subsidy. The e-Input sub-
sidy management system has improved
the disbursement of subsidies. This has
enabled millions of smallholder farmers
who grow food crops and cash crops
such as tea, coffee and sugarcane to easily
access quality assured input supplies. This
M-PESA has found myriad applications – from facilitating delivery of aid to refugees to accessing solar power,
paying tea farmers for their crop, disbursing fertilizer subsidies and ensuring that patients take their medicines
as prescribed
TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
has translated into an increase in yield
and productivity.
Applications have also been found in
health, for instance M-Tiba, an an-
droid-based mobile application that
has automated the Ministry of Health
Tuberculosis patient management system.
The application manages accounts of all
patients suffering from TB by verifying
whether the patients are taking their
drugs as they should as well as checking
in at all facilities that treat TB across the
country. M-PESA allows facilities and
patients to access shared wallets through
which payments for medicines and other
supplies that can be processed, creating a
closed loop and secure system.
These are just a few examples of the
ways that M-PESA has been applied so
far. Opportunities for further expansion
abound, considering that up to 90% of
transaction use a cash mode of payment.
As the revolution continues unfolding, it
will keep transforming lives, which is its
core mission.

W
ere one to offer an opin-
ion on the state of play
around the migration
from analogue to digital
broadcasting in Africa, the position, with-
out much hesitation would be this; yet
another major and transformative agenda
is unfolding without much thought
given to the challenge of knowledge and
understanding.
For it to be successful, a dedicated
public Information, Education and Com-
munication (IEC) programme remains
the necessary evil, without which far too
many initiatives get completely under-
mined in Africa.
When the International Communica-
tions Union (ITU) reached consensus in
2006 for the necessity of digital migration
(DM), and set timelines for delivery some
progress has been made, however more so
in developed countries. For instance, the
Netherlands switched off all its analogue
systems by the December 2006 deadline.
However, for Africa, it has been a
rather mixed bag and the few gains are
those that are propelled by independent
motions and inevitabilities, rather than
the conscious planning by men.
A Kenyan case study
What happened in Kenya between 2007
and 2012 partly illustrates the bane of
Africa when it comes to the imperative
of ‘domesticating’ critical internation-
al obligations that are also quite often
conceptualised and then pushed by the
industrialised nations. Thus, what may
have been a fairly straight forward pro-
cess of technological growth resulted in a
plethora of court injunctions and cases.
In retrospect, most of the cases were
inspired by a poverty of knowledge cou-
pled with the fear of the unknown future.
One claim was that Kenya’s regulatory
authority had favoured a company named
the ‘Pan Africa Network Group’ for the
initial Broadcast Signal Distribution
(BSD) licence; which the complainants
roughly generalised as a Chinese backed
company.
Immediately lost here is not just the
important questions relating to the finan-
cial and technical competence that were
deemed the urgent pre-requisites for the
layout of the switch-over infrastructure,
but the complainants who also swiftly
mutated into a ‘consortium’ bringing
TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
Africa’s Digital Migration
Is Here To Stay
Digital migration is an idea whose time has come, and no amount
of primordial protectionist tendencies will circumvent it.
BY DR GEORGE ODERA OUTA, ACADEMIC IN LEGAL STUDIES
The views expressed herein are entirely personal and do not represent the thinking of any institution or
organisation that Dr Outa has been associated with over the last two decades
It’s clear the digital migration is definitely an
idea whose time has come
Therearesome
undeniable
benefits of a
fullDMregime,
notably the
conferment of
a real ‘freedom
of choice’ for
consumers.

eningly to the exclusion of other issues.
It is against such a background, that the
fate of ITU’s DM vision has to be under-
stood, with the considered view being
that what is required is to scale up the
communication around the full benefits
of DM.
The second issue is that it is time to
review the role of the communication
regulatory agencies. As we have seen in
the case of Kenya, one legal question con-
cerned the validity of a ‘bid security fee’
of 120 days as opposed to 53 days, with
the complainants averring that this was
largely immaterial and insignificant.
Other questions concerned allegations
of contradictions within the tendering
documents suggesting inadequate tech-
nical capacities. Closely related is the
question around costs.
In Kenya, the Kshs2.1 billion licencing
fees was vigorously challenged by a mo-
bile telephony service provider. The Ken-
yan regulator routinely places levies and
an application fee that is separate from li-
cencing fees, not to mention the spectrum
fees and tax on all accrued profits.
The long and short is that there ap-
pears to be an arbitrary and capricious
exercise of regulatory authority in envi-
ronments where even major stakeholders
do not seem to appreciate their basis.
together some of Kenya’s traditional
private sector players (ordinarily business
competitors), were now cleverly invoking
nationalist sentiment and other hallowed
provisions of the national constitution to
reject the early transition.
Whereas in outright legal terms it was
the tendering process being questioned,
the subtle sub-text was clearly that even
these private media houses were not
ready for digital migration.
Yet, even with the legal merits aside, it
would be clear that digital migration was
definitely an idea whose time had come,
and no amount of primordial protectionist
tendencies would circumvent it. The cases
that ended up in Kenya’s courts as well as
interventions by the Public Procurement
Review Board partly explains the stymied
progress in realising the original dream
the ITU may have had in mind. The fact
would be that the short-lived “marriage of
convenience” between the ‘Nation Group’
and ‘Royal Media’ was clearly a mistaken
attempt at perpetuating a fast-receding
era of monopoly and control over broad-
cast content. If truth were extrapolated,
the DM clearly implied disruptive shifts
with as much potential to dislodge other
wider economic and political hegemonies
which some were not ready to let go.
What benefits does digital migration
offer Africa?
There are some undeniable benefits of a
full DM regime, notably the conferment
of a real freedom of choice for consumers.
Additionally, content production is gen-
erally more cost-effective and inclusive,
enabling the industry to open up to small-
time players and enterprising individuals.
Broadcast programmes are made available
in a format that is accessible on simple
handsets, and no longer just from tradi-
tional television and radio stations. As is
already happening, a plethora of ‘free to
air content’ has evolved circulating from
all manner of sources, including from
personal websites.
Ultimately though, beneficiaries are
the more innovative producers whose
mass appeal may perhaps, alter the
viewing and listening landscape in ways
yet to be contemplated. In short, the era
of just riding on
the appeal of a
single broadcast
commodity such
as a news bulletin
would never suf-
fice and I suspect
the full blossom-
ing of Kenya’s
own version of
‘Afro-cinema’ is
best predicated
on an undeterred
DM.
In the language
of famed New
York columnist
and writer, Thom-
as Friedman, the
world (Africa)
would be truly
‘flat’ and that it
is only in such an environment that the
‘mumbo-jumbo’ usually called ‘freeing of
airwaves’ would make sense to the less
‘technorate’ communities.
The big picture issues
Even from this cursory interrogation,
one sees at least three ‘big picture’ issues
worthy of serious reflection. The first is
that there is a major challenge relating to
the lack of knowledge and understanding
about DM.
As already alluded to, without a robust
IEC strategy, for many in Africa; includ-
ing its much-talked about emerging mid-
dle class, DM remains a foreign language
best left for the ICT geeks. Like many
other United Nations (UN) declarations,
localisation has not been clearly thought
through. Experience shows that there
has to be investment in fairly long-drawn
processes before change is accepted.
In similar breath the United Nations
Framework Convention for Climate
Change (UNFCCC) has quietly slipped by
in spite of the effort that made ‘informa-
tion and communication’ a key clause in
the 1992 agreement. One may even say
that the most successful UN campaigns
have rather, ironically, related to topics
on Human Rights, women and children’s
emancipation, sometimes almost fright-

TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
A Mobile Money
Revolution?
Although Africa is leading the way when it comes to mobile money, for
it to be truly revolutionary it needs to move beyond remittances and
air-time top-ups and, at last, more companies are doing just that.
BY BRYAN CHURCH, SENIOR ANALYST AT MONDATO
M
obile money in Africa is big news. The mobile oper-
ator association GSMA estimates that there were al-
most three times as many active accounts across the
continent than there are in South Asia, the region
with the next largest group of users, as of at the end of 2015.
There is good reason for all of the excitement. Mobile
money has great promise to be a transformative force. The digi-
tisation of financial services brings cost-efficiencies that make
previously marginal customer segments much more attractive.
This promises to advance financial inclusion amongst the hun-
dreds of millions that are currently under-banked.
Yet this is becoming a tired story in some respects. Mobile
money has now been around for 15 years since its original
introduction in the Philippines, and nearly 10 years in Africa
since its launch in Kenya. Governments and development
organisations have both watched hopefully for cash-based
economies and their associated inefficiencies to benefit from
digitisation. But progress has been slow other than for remit-
tances and airtime top-ups.
The most recent World Bank Findex shows that only 34% of
adults in sub-Saharan Africa have any type of account, includ-
ing mobile money.
The need for new use cases
But these high-level statistics hide much of the innovation that
is swelling up. The development of new use cases and value
propositions are what is going to drive future adoption. There
is an inherent cap to the volume of transactions when there
are few widely offered use cases. Beginning to emerge now are
more advanced financial products and services such as inter-
est-bearing savings accounts, micro-insurance and payment
service provider APIs for developers to integrate mobile money
into an endless range of new services.
Consumer credit is one such use case. For a US$35 deposit, a
company called M-KOPA Solar provides kits containing a solar
panel, a charger for multiple devices, a radio, lights and a SIM
card to clients in East Africa. These kits can be used to generate
solar electricity in the home, and in many cases, are also used
to begin small entrepreneurial ventures charging phones.
The users pay for the kits via mobile payments each month.
Thousands of customers are signing up across Kenya, Uganda
and Tanzania, and there are a number of other companies of-
fering similar propositions elsewhere. Longer term, as provid-
ers establish financial identities for their customers, this model
could potentially be extended to other household consumer
durables as credit is extended beyond home power generation.
An example of establishing credit histories, albeit for
smaller sums, is the recent launch of Tigo Nivushe in Tanzania.
Subscribers are able to take out loans without putting up any
collateral, with available credit increasing through time upon
establishing a solid repayment track record. New borrowers
can access credit of up to around $9 initially, depending on
their eWallet and airtime usage, with the funds then deposited
directly into their mobile money account for immediate use.
Translating success across borders has not always proven
to be an easy exercise, however. Many multi-national mobile
network operators (MNOs) have a mixed track record across
their OpCos in the various markets. Implementation needs to
be much more than just a copy-and-paste exercise.
The GSMA estimates that only a small fraction of mobile
money services have achieved monthly revenues of greater
than $1 million. In some cases they face strong competition
from existing over-the-counter services that already have an
established presence at merchant locations. Others come up
against unfavorable regulatory regimes. While challenges may
abound, those who are most diligent about distribution and
product innovation can see beyond such constraints.
Yet the biggest success stories show the extent to which
these services can open the door to a number of more sophis-
ticated financial services beyond sending money, which can
lead to greater economic opportunity and development. The
challenge now is scaling these services across a wider array of
use cases to provide an incentive for users to maintain account
balances.

from its dominant position in Zimbabwe.
Less clear is how well similar initiatives
might succeed elsewhere. But it does
show how the development of value-add-
ed services can become a major revenue
opportunity.
Bottom-up innovation
While centralised planning and a top-
down approach may have its place, mobile
money is potentially at its most powerful
in facilitating the disaggregation and
disintermediation of value chains across
sectors. While this may threaten tradi-
tional business models to some extent, it
also brings companies the ability to evolve
quickly and become disruptive forces that
both take market share and increase the
overall addressable market.
The fintech vision, after all, is modu-
larity and integration. It promises more
personalised service for transforming latent
demand into new revenue streams and to
bring efficiencies to existing operations.
Building out an ecosystem
It does not always make the headlines like
other markets, but Zimbabwe has one of
the most developed and thriving mobile
money ecosystems in the world. Econet, the
country’s incumbent mobile operator, rec-
ognised from the get go that by offering its
customers a range of value-added products
and services built upon a mobile money
platform (or at least which can be paid for
using EcoCash) it could take a proactive
approach to mobile money ecosystem
building, while simultaneously meeting
the objective of diversifying and expanding
Econet’s business interests.
Since 2012, EcoCash customers have
been able to use mobile money to hire and
purchase home electricity kits directly from
Econet Solar. Indicative of the company’s
vision, it also bought a majority stake in
the US-based water technology company
Seldon Water and jointly launched Seldon
Water Africa offering DIY kits for home
installation of activated carbon filtration
systems. The latter, however, eventually
had to close up shop showing the risks in-
volved in trying to pick winners, especially
for services that fall outside one’s core
competencies.
Econet even purchased its own bank,
Steward Bank (“the Bank for people who
hate Banks”), for the provision of a range
of digital finance products. Steward Bank
itself has been pursuing an aggressive
branchless banking strategy to establish
a presence for itself in rural areas using
Econet’s agent network, as well as partner-
ing with the Zimbabwean Post Office.
Econet has also partnered with big
names in the international remittance
business to ensure that ‘Econet Diaspora’
users can send money to and from Eco-
Cash wallets via Chitoro, Western Union,
WorldRemit and MoneyGram.
Having invested heavily in building out
a portfolio of use cases, the provider has
taken a centralised approach to the overall
value proposition, and it certainly benefits
Mobile money is potentially at its most powerful in facilitating the disaggregation and disintermediation of value chains across sectors

TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
This can be seen globally with the emergence of
pure-play entrants targeting specific product cat-
egories in trying to do one thing very well rather
than being all things to all people and take a step
back from the well-capitalised universal banks.
CommonBond provides an interesting exam-
ple from the United States and the vast student
loan market there. The lender tries to foster on-
going engagement with the borrower, essentially
taking an active interest in their career devel-
opment, providing a member community for net-
working, employment assistance for those that
lose their jobs and even consulting opportunities.
The tailored value proposition brings together a
portfolio of services with compelling synergies,
and encourages engagement for customers
experiencing financial distress. Many competing
student loan companies seem to offer little more
than a payment gateway and a debt schedule.
Africa has shown similar innovation in
specialised financial products and ancillary ser-
vices. National Microfinance Bank of Tanzania
provides one such example bringing together
small plot farmers, licensed warehouses across
the country and larger agribusiness exporters.
The initiative offers post-harvest digital credit to
farmers using inventories of certified commodi-
ties held at the approved warehouses.
The programme is structured to minimize
risks across the ecosystem from performance
bonds to address operational risks and insurance
against fire and burglary for storage to utilising
put and call options to mitigate price volatili-
ty. Also in Tanzania, AccessBank sees similar
potential for more advanced financial services
and has even stopped charging fees for farmers
making person-to-person transfers in the hope
of upselling additional services to them down the
road.
But there have been challenges in scaling
targeted services to date. In the case of mAgri,
small-plot farmers have very limited financial
capability and mobile networks tend to have
poorer quality of service in rural areas. Illiteracy,
financial education, limited agent networks and
liquidity, and cumbersome end-user interfaces
have all been obstacles. Changing entrenched
behaviours to adopt and trust the underlying
digital financial platform is also a consideration
for many services.
These experiences perhaps partially explain
the success of large mobile network opera-
tors and their familiar brands in bringing new
services to market, such as the Econet example.
Both the top-down and bottom-up approach-
es have their benefits and challenges, so a fine
balance may be required in opening platforms
for wider innovation, while ensuring that those
investing in agent networks or regulatory com-
pliance can earn a sufficient return.
Africa has shown innovation in specialised financial products and ancillary services
It does not
always make
the headlines
like other
markets, but
Zimbabwe has
one of the most
developed
and thriving
mobile money
ecosystems in
the world.

TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
I
t may be that you’re reading these words on
your mobile phone, or perhaps on a tablet
or laptop connected to the Internet via a
wireless connection. If so, you’re like many
others across the world, who have come to con-
sume much of their business and general interest
content via their wireless devices.
The access to zippy data which so many of us
take for granted and download without a second
thought is a relatively recent phenomenon in
Africa, only a few years ago connectivity was
highly variable even in its largest cities. Emails
with modest sized attachments could take min-
utes to send and receive, and the cost of data was
prohibitive to most.
Variability exists everywhere, of course, but
the situation these days is much improved. Time
navigating between meetings in Lagos or Dar es
Salaam can be as productive as in the office, with
nothing more than a laptop connected via a data
dongle or smart device needed for conference
calls, to exchange files, and surf the Web. Con-
nectivity-dependent services, such as Uber’s ride
sharing, are mushrooming across Africa.
A better-connected continent
As it were, cellular coverage now extends to most
pockets of population in Africa. This coupled
with a steady decline in service tariffs helped
the number of unique subscriptions to reach 557
million by the end of 2015, equivalent to 46% of
the continent’s population, according to a recent
GSMA study, while the number of mobile sub-
scribers that access the mobile internet hit 300
million. The study predicts that the number of
unique mobile subscribers will reach 725 million
by 2020, accounting for 54% of the expected
population by then, while an additional 250 mil-
lion subscribers are expected to become mobile
internet users over that period, bringing the total
to 550 million.
Still, it would be a gross exaggeration to
declare broadband in Africa as being ubiquitous
and accessible to all. HIP Consult estimates
that the percentage of Africans living within
five kilometers of fiber optic cables, which can
be thought of as the prime traffic arteries of the
Internet, at 35% today. While this represents an
impressive increase from the estimated 5% it was
in 2005, it is still a far cry from the fiber pene-
tration required to support 4G/LTE, Wi-Fi and
other forms of robust connectivity throughout
the continent.
The simple fact is that a majority of Africans
do not yet have access to broadband, and this
situation is unlikely to improve dramatically
without the promulgation of new investment and
operating models.
Prevailing challenges
The “build it and they will come” days of ex-
plosive subscriber driven growth in Africa are
mostly over. Average revenue per user (ARPU)
has been declining as lower-income users ac-
count for an increasing share of subscriber base
growth. At the same time, traditional voice and
SMS services are increasingly being commodi-
tised, leading to price compression.
Regulatory policy is also limiting revenue
from mobile termination rates and unregistered
SIM cards. These and other broader head-
winds have muted the bottom-line boost from
increasing data revenues. Yet even data poses
an operational and business challenge, as traffic
accelerates faster than the associated revenue.
This creates a situation where the requirement
and cost for network expansion may outpace
associated data revenue growth.
Regulators need
to also take
another look at
radio spectrum
licensing. Delays
in licensing
sometimes
mean that new
technologies are
not deployed
until well
through their
lifecycles. This
can constrain
investment as
providers have
shorter time
horizons over
which to earn a
return on their
investment.
Preparing For Broadband
Expansion Across Africa
A more collaborative and disciplined approach needs to be
adopted to enable broadband expansion.
BY JUDAH J. LEVINE, CEO OF HIP CONSULT

At the same time, over-the-top (OTT)
services such as WhatsApp or Skype that
leverage this infrastructure also threaten
to fundamentally disrupt the foundations
of the telecom sector. There is already
some jostling between telecommunica-
tion companies and some OTT providers,
including attempts in some countries
to regulate such services. And there
is not always a clear-cut answer as to
how the various players should position
themselves in the increasingly complex
ecosystem of data services. While innova-
tive applications drive data usage, others
fear losing out and becoming low-margin
“dumb pipes.”
In the early days, things were much
simpler. Fixed line networks in Africa
were limited and had poor quality of ser-
vice (QoS) in many areas. Mobile network
operators (MNOs) filled this gap, and
focused on building proprietary networks
as strategic differentiators to compete.
Duplication of infrastructure was less of
a concern at that time given the relatively
low Capex requirements for transmission
links and switching centers, and moreover
the well-defined and margin-rich revenue
models in place.
Broadband, however, is proving to be a
very different story. Finding new models
for infrastructure investment is becoming
increasingly urgent. As old habits have
died hard, large sums have been invested
in fiber deployments by competing pro-
viders resulting in potential overinvest-
ment on key routes, while other areas and
requirements remain ignored. Network
duplication and a lack of integrated plan-
ning adversely impacts cost structures
and QoS.
We estimate that less than a third of
Africa’s population are regular internet
users, with the majority of these being
limited to 2G mobile service. If the
sector were to continue with the current
business as usual approach, HIP Consult
projects that almost US$20 billion would
be required to double the percentage of
Africans within 5km of fiber infrastruc-
ture. This is substantially more than what
might be needed under a more optimal
approach.
Foundations for more ubiquitous
broadband
It is doubtful that overall sector revenues
can support the levels of network dupli-
cation seen previously. A combination of
value chain disaggregation and horizontal
consolidation may be required to create a
more sustainable economic foundation for
broadband expansion.
Co-builds and the increasing role of
wholesale providers point in this direc-
tion. For example, operators in South
Africa banded together in deploying a na-
tional backbone that benefitted from cost
sharing, while Liquid and FibreCo are just
two of a growing number of wholesale
capacity providers. Government can
also play a role through public-private
partnerships. These can be beneficial
even in the absence of significant financial
contributions such as where rights-of-way
are provided in kind.
Regulators need to also take another
look at radio spectrum licensing. Delays
in licensing sometimes mean that new
technologies are not deployed until
well through their lifecycles. This can
constrain investment as providers have
shorter time horizons over which to earn
a return on their investment. In fact,
some markets in Africa have only begun
rolling out 3G services over the past few
years, while LTE has already become the
expected standard elsewhere. Allocations
of scarce spectrum can also be reviewed
to make sure it is held by those who value
it the most, and are thus more willing to
invest in network expansion.
Non-traditional players could also
have an increasing role to play. OTT
service providers, which are dependent
on network prevalence and affordabil-
ity in order to grow their user base,
have a real interest in seeing improved
broadband connectivity. However, they
have traditionally been reliant on others
to provide broadband access. Generating
new revenue streams from value-added
Active Submarine Cable Capacity in Terabits: Africa (ManyPossibilities, June 2016, Version 45)
0
71,74
10,56
15,46
45,72
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
WEST AFRICA COAST
TOTAL
NORTH AFRICA COAST
EAST AFRICA COAST
2010
0,2
7,6
2011
8,4
0,2
2012
21,7
8,5
2013
9,9
0,3
2015
10,8
0,5
2014
10,3
0,4
Africa World
Active Fixed Broadband Subscribers per 100 Inhabitants (Source: ITU)

TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
services such as data analytics and advertising, these companies
can help catalyze sector revenue growth that extends beyond
simple access fees for connectivity.
Recent metro fiber deployments by Google in Accra and
Kampala and the Facebook drone initiative are examples of how
an increasing pool of available funds for investment could con-
tribute to and spur broadband coverage. Importantly, given their
wide reach, deep pockets, and technical expertise, these OTT
providers are investing across a range of sectors to drive industry
efficiencies and promote innovation.
Evolving perceptions of value
Given a choice between competing providers, customers are no
longer willing to pay a premium for simple access. Margins will
need to progressively be driven through segmented value propo-
sitions that generate a greater willingness to pay for services. Ex-
panding product portfolios will often require more collaboration
among players to leverage complimentary assets and expertise.
Examples of such collaboration abound at the top and bottom
of the market, ranging from vertical-specific enterprise services
such as digital oil fields to targeted consumer offerings such as
financing of solar power kits for homes.
Africa is already a thriving market for such innovation with
digital finance & commerce (DFC) taking off across the conti-
nent. Some of the highest levels of mobile money usage in the
world can be found in select African markets. As the masses
become ever more comfortable transacting in mobile money for
person-to-person remittances, utility bill payments, and airtime
Africa has shown innovation in specialised financial products and ancillary services
top-ups, this shapes demand for more advanced mobile financial
services to continue to grow. The expanding DFC ecosystems
now include savings vehicles, insurance, and working capital
credit for SMEs.
But despite the great progress, and with many of the puzzle
pieces in place, including world-class data centers, key bottle-
necks remain. Fiber in metro areas is only a fraction of what it
could be, and often lacks a robust ring structure that ensures
reliable broadband service. This is one of several factors why en-
terprises may hesitate in shifting to more efficient cloud-hosted
services. And lacking this key driver of traffic, internet services
providers do not reach the scale that could make them great
anchor tenants for infrastructure business cases. A virtuous cycle
awaits those able to bridge this supply-demand gap.
While yesterday’s story was about international and long dis-
tance connectivity, the focus today is on achieving scaled metro
and access deployments, with a view towards enabling many of
the exciting technologies coming down the pike, such as 5G and
augmented reality.
Past turf wars need to be forgotten and a more collaborative
approach adopted. As the sector matures, those able to spread
fixed costs over multiple investors and a large number of cus-
tomers may gain an advantage in taking a greater share of the
growing broadband market
A disciplined approach is needed, and providers must selec-
tively target those blockages having the greatest incremental
impact on broadband market development to get ahead of the
revenue-cost equation.

A
frica has failed to meet the
2015 deadline for digital
television transition (migra-
tion from analogue to digital
television broadcast) as declared by the
International Telecommunications Union
(ITU). According to Digital Television
Action Group (DIGITAG), only 19 African
countries have launched national digital
television transition (DTT) from which
only four (Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda and
Tanzania) have completed the process.
This report, unfortunately, reaffirms Afri-
ca’s laggardness in the ICT world.
With the obsolete analogue broadcast-
ing still in use, the digital divide between
Africa and the rest of the world grows.
How can broadcasting development
happen on a continent where signal space
(on analogue) is virtually full to the brim?
No new TV station can be set up without
taking over an existing one.
The switchover enables more chan-
nels; gives better wireless broadband
services and brings about expansion of
signal coverage area within a country. Per-
haps most importantly, digital also offers
a high definition (HD) view, dramatically
improving the viewer’s experience.
Despite the backlogs, assertive decisions
are being taken by governments and pri-
vate investors (particularly foreign-owned
satellite firms) to make digital a reality.
The challenges facing countries are
substantial given the sums of money re-
quired to secure the necessary technolog-
ical apparatuses and license fees. Further-
more, most free-to-air broadcasters do
not have the finances needed to operate
multiple channels with the same quality
of content on all channels. The cost of
set-top boxes for the receipt of digital TV
signals is also a hurdle.
According to the ITU, There are 90%
more free-to-air analogue television view-
ers than pay-television subscribers on the
continent making bridging this gap an ar-
duous task. Producing quality content that
will spark consumers’ interest is another
bridge that must be crossed in the journey
towards the digital migration.
Furthermore, not all media houses can
be sure of landing a licensed signal carrier.
This is one of the main reasons why many
have challenged the move to digital tele-
vision in court. Government policies and
regulations have to be well tailored and
never inimical to any party in the industry.
Most significantly, the greatest bottle-
neck hampering the switch is the insuffi-
cient political will to drive the revolution.
So what’s the bottom line?
For the desired results, going forward, all
regulatory frameworks must be tailored in
result-driven leaps that will match-make
both customers’ needs and business inter-
ests without any downside. Meanwhile,
communicating the potential benefits
of digital broadcasting is crucial (for the
purpose of mobilizing public interests and
investors’). It must be re-emphasized that
a level playing ground for broadcast oper-
ators, who have been fearful of uncer-
Digital Migration Can Solve
Africa’sUnemploymentCrisis
There can be no broadcast development in Africa without digital transition
and African governments need to take action fast or risk an ever-widening
digital divide between the continent and the rest of the world.
BY AKOREDE SHAKIR, FOUNDER AND CEO OF NAIJA LEADERSHIP BUILDER
How can broadcasting
development happen
on a continent where
signal space (on
analogue) is virtually
full to the brim?
tainties and discrepancies in government
policies, is vital.
The above, arguably, are the most crit-
ical points for the accomplishment of the
digital switch in Africa.
By and large, it is noteworthy that pay
television providers such as Multichoice
– owner and operator of the Digital
Satellite Television (DStv)– are already
championing the digital revolution in
parts of Africa. Another example is Star-
Times –a Chinese firm jointly owned by
the state-controlled Nigerian Television
Authority (NTA)– which also broadcasts
digitally.
No doubt, the advantages of digital
migration outweigh the negatives. Added
spinoffs are the jobs that the migration
will create for the myriads of broadcast-
ers, technicians and engineers searching
for jobs, every moment. In Africa, a suc-
cessful digital migration has an impactful
role to play in increasing human capacity
building.

E
ven though by agreement with the In-
ternational Telecommunications Union
(ITU), most countries were supposed to
have switched off their analogue signals
and replaced them with digital signals by June
2015, the international migration from analogue
broadcasting to digital terrestrial television (DTT)
slowly marches on.
It’s no secret that far too much dithering has
taken place across the African continent since the
ITU, the organisation with jurisdiction over the
information and communication technologies
worldwide, set the date and called it “a major land-
mark towards establishing a more equitable, just
and people-centred information society.”
However, 10 years on, Africa lags to the rest of
the world in its migration from analogue to digital.
The most controversial issues revolve around
regulatory measures and the decision on the
functionality of the set-top box (STB) – the device
required to transfer analogue signals to reception
in digital. This has had a debilitating effect, with
implementation varying from country to country.
Some cash-strapped African governments do
not have the money to build new transmission in-
frastructure or infrastructure upgrades. Others are
simply mired in red tape and governance delays.
Many countries have asked for extensions on
the deadlines. In other countries, government
departments and bodies are haggling over who has
ultimate responsibility for overseeing the process.
For example, Kenya’s digital migration saga has
been in and out of court.
Other countries are way ahead. Tanzania
completed its digital migration last year. Inter-
nationally, a number of countries including the
US, Japan and other European nations were the
first to implement digital broadcasting. They
terminated analogue TV services and are now
broadcasting in full digital TV.
Benefits of digital terrestrial television
Despite the dithering and delays, the benefits are
obvious. Advances in communications technolo-
gy, including digital television, wireless phones,
satellite-fed services and unlicensed devices,
offer the opportunity to improve the quality of
life and to promote economic development in
rural African communities.
Digital migration will eventually bridge the
digital divide, bridge the content divide, promote
local content development, enhance the televi-
sion production industry, promote local manu-
facturing, diversify the television landscape and
strengthen free-to-air television in the interest of
the public.
Moving onto digital TV brings better-qual-
ity viewing, allows more channels on the same
networks, and frees up radio spectrum, which
can be used to roll out broadband services to
underserved areas.
The introduction of digital television presents
an opportunity to protect and strengthen free-to-
air broadcasters by giving them a multi-channel
platform to meet the content needs of the public
and diversity needs.
Digital migration connotes an advance in
quantity and quality. Citizens will be spoilt for
choice with the increase in the number of sta-
tions, thereby enabling all citizens to have access
to diversity of premium content.
Lastly digital broadcasting is roughly six times
more efficient than analogue, allowing more
channels to be carried across fewer airwaves. The
TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
Digital Migration:
Destined To Give Audiences A New And
Noble Experience
The future of television viewing is digital, but in some African countries,
the present is still analogue. Migration to digital is, and will continue to
be, evolutionary, not revolutionary.
BY GODFREY OHUABUNWA, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF GOSPEL NIGERIA AND CEO OF MULTIMESH
Advances in
communications
technology,
including digital
television,
wireless phones,
satellite-fed
services and
unlicensed
devices, offer
the opportunity
to improve the
quality of life
and to promote
economic
development
in rural African
communities.

will rise by 20 million over the next six
years, fast approaching Western Europe
totals. Sub-Saharan Africa will have 50
million TV households by 2017 - or 30% of
total homes.
According to the Digital TV Sub-Saha-
ran Africa report, Nigeria will account for
about a quarter of the region’s TV house-
holds (for the 42 countries covered in the
report) in 2017, with South Africa con-
tributing a further 15%. Three-quarters of
the region’s TV households still received
analogue terrestrial signals by the end of
2015, though this proportion will drop to
46% (23 million TV households) in 2017.
Analysts doubts that South Africa will
meet the deadline of mid-2017. They say
even if things go well, it is likely to take a
minimum of four years before that hap-
pens, despite South Africa’s commitment
to an internationally agreed deadline.
South Africa’s process has been de-
layed by, among other things, a squabble
between the government, broadcasters
and black electronic manufacturers over
technology to be included in set-top boxes,
funded by taxpayers, dividing the industry.
There has also been a disagreement
over the inclusion of an encryption mech-
anism in government-subsidised set-top
boxes which will be distributed to house-
holds who cannot afford to buy a digital
television set. The set-top boxes convert
the digital signal so that older television
sets can receive digital signals.
Some experts say there is also a risk that
the analogue signal that currently allows
most South Africans to receive free television
services will be switched off before every-
one who qualifies has received a govern-
ment-sponsored set-top box that will enable
them to receive the new digital signal.
Proportions in the other countries will
be much lower, though Nigeria will have 7
million digital homes by 2017.
Pay TV penetration of TV households
will grow from 19% to 28% in 2017. The
pay TV total will double to 14.1 million by
2017, with DTH contributing 8.2 million
and pay DTT chiming in with 5.2 million.
South Africa pay television will grow to 5.1
million in 2017. Nigeria will climb from 1.2
million in 2011 to 3.1 million in 2017.
Digital terrestrial television broadcast-
ing represents a significant step in the
future development of information and
communication technologies. This will go
a long way in connecting remote commu-
nities, close the digital divide and improve
communications worldwide.
Digital migration is destined to give
audiences a new and noble experience.
digital switchover will therefore allow for
an increase in the efficiency with which
the spectrum is used, a digital dividend,
which will open the way for wireless inno-
vation and the potential for new services.
Economic benefits
African governments are working hard to
ensure that all economic opportunities of
the migration are explored and exploited
to the benefit of Africans.
The migration would also benefit sec-
tors such as electronic manufacturers and
producers. The plan is for each country to
produce set-top boxes which have simple
security mechanisms that would prevent
the sale and use of it outside the borders of
the country. Furthermore, the possibility
of illegal imports of boxes are being care-
fully monitored.
Despite the slow and evolutionary and
not revolutionary process, the electronic
media sector is on the brink of a massive
shift, not only in Africa but across the world.
Critics
Some critics say while the days of pure
analogue video systems are numbered and
the advantages of DTT are obvious, the
analogue systems still have some advantages
over digital technology. For example, there
can be slight delays in real-time video run
over a network. Depending on network de-
sign, number of cameras, camera resolution
and images per second, those delays could
be 700 milliseconds or more – possibly a
critical amount of time for an application
that requires operator interaction.
The critics say the analogue control
mechanisms for pan-tilt units are probably
still better than what is available in the digital
environment and analogue cameras are still
generally superior in low-light situations,
although some of the more expensive IP
cameras can now match that performance.
Despite the delays, analogue receivers and
equipment will be eventually phased out.
Exciting times ahead
According to Digital TV Research, these
are exciting times for television in Africa.
The research notes that aub-Saharan Af-
rica’s household totals 148 million, which
Advances in communications technology, including digital television, wireless phones, satellite-fed
services and unlicensed devices, offer the opportunity to improve the quality of life and to promote
economic development in rural African communities

TELECOMS
FORBES AFRICA
PromotingSpectrumSharing
InTheWirelessBroadbandEra
It is now evident that broadband connectivity is closely linked to Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) growth of a country, therefore network
operators across the globe are clamouring for more radio frequency
spectrum allocations to handle the exponentially increasing data traffic
and broadband connectivity demands in underserved regions.
BY DR FISSEHA MEKURIA, CHIEF RESEARCHER AT THE COUNCIL FOR SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH
W
ith only few usable spectrum bands left to free up, tele-
com regulators are pushing network operators to find
new ways and techniques, to make the best use of cur-
rently allocated spectrum bands to achieve maximum
wireless network capacity and address the broadband gap.
Governments in emerging economy countries, which generally
lack landline communications infrastructure, are putting pressure
on network providers to provide affordable wireless broadband
internet connectivity covering all regions. These countries, in-
cluding South Africa, are experimenting with new and emerging
wireless network technologies and innovative techniques to uti-
lise network and spectrum resources. This is expected to provide
affordable information & communication technology (ICT) based
societal services to rural as well as urban communities.
The Council for Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) in
South Africa has been a pioneering research and innovation
institution for affordable broadband networks, starting from the
wireless mesh deployments in rural communities, to the recent
dynamic spectrum network test-beds in several places in South
Africa and regionally.
Recently, a CSIR technology for smart spectrum sharing, known
as a geo-location based dynamic spectrum allocation system
(GL-DSA), has been promoted and tested in a global qualification
process, led by the Office of Communications (OFCOM) in the UK.
The CSIR research group has developed an innovative smart
spectrum sharing geo-location spectrum database (GL-DSA),
which is now hosted at the national centre for high performance
computing (CHPC). The GL-DSA technology models existing
transmitter radio parameters and identifies spectrum holes (so-
called white space spectrum channels). With recent research and
development, the technology will integrate spectrum sensing and
new regulatory tools to make the technology adapt to the chang-
ing radio frequency environment.
The GL-DSA system is the first African spectrum channel
allocation system that can identify unused spectrum regions, or
white spaces, of the radio frequency spectrum and assign, through
a standard communications protocol, the necessary white space
spectrum channels to secondary broadband network operators. It
also sets the network parameter rules to guarantee that no inter-
fering signals are generated on legacy networks.
For this reason the GL-DSA system is also termed as white
space spectrum database (WSDB) by other organisations. The
CSIR has developed a coverage map of all South African regions
according to television white space channel availability.
Emerging dynamic spectrum network operators (DSNOs) can
utilise these new spectrum sharing based network technologies,
in such a way that radio frequency spectrum resources are shared
without causing interference and loss of connectivity to existing
licenced networks.
DSNOs using smart spectrum sharing are expected to lower
the cost of network rollout and broadband services in underserved
rural areas in Africa and emerging markets.
The GL-DSA system then takes over and allocates white space
channels to DSNO network devices through a standard protocol
called PAWS to minimise signal interference (PAWS termed:
protocol for accessing white spaces by Internet Engineering Task
Force – IETF standard).
The GL-DSA system can also be used as a tool for national
telecom regulators to manage national spectrum resources in a
controlled and co-existent manner. Thereby enabling national
telecom regulators meet their universal access mandate by accel-
erating broadband Internet connectivity and service development.
Spectrum scarcity is also one of the drivers for adapting smart
spectrum sharing for emerging wireless services such as LTE-Ad-
vanced and fifth generation mobile standards (so-called 5G).
Therefore the technology of smart spectrum sharing and white
space spectrum communications networks are relevant solutions
for future wireless networks. Investment in white space spec-
trum networks and co-existence tools such as the GL-DSA are
necessary to enable new techniques of spectrum sharing between
licensed legacy networks and secondary broadband networks.
Regulators including the Federal Communications Commis-
sion (FCC) in the US and OFCOM in the UK have opened up
portions of spectrum for use by white space network applications.
White space communication networks based on the television
band of frequencies (so called TVWS) are being tested globally

of high importance if broadband ICT net-
works and affordable broadband Internet
services are promoted by investing in new
technologies, standards and policies such
as spectrum sharing to create tomorrow’s
spectrum highways for wireless broadband
Internet services.
Such actions will in the end allow us
to attain the UN sustainable development
goals with the three pillars being economic
development, social inclusion and environ-
mental protection in Africa and the world.
Finally, the CSIR as an emerging econo-
my science & technology research institu-
tion and the mandate it has to support the
national development plan NDP and South
Africa Connect, is considering a number
of technology innovation based industrial-
ization and job creation opportunities with
the GL-DSA technology. New technologies
and intellectual properties such as the
patented GL-DSA system developed at the
CSIR can attract investment opportunities
for South African industry to utilize this
innovative and patented technology to
create a new knowledge based industry.
These knowledge based industrialisation
opportunities can be listed as follows:
1. “Network device manufacturing for the
DSNO operators”. Since the GL-DSA
system and WSDB technology are new,
the standards for it are on develop-
ment. CSIR is involved in these global
technology standards forums and hence
have knowledge of the technology
research and development process. As
the technology is relevant for emerging
economies and developing countries,
it is believed that it opens up an oppor-
tunity to establish dynamic spectrum
network device (DSND) industry in
South Africa, which could be able to
address the next billion broadband
Internet subscribers in markets such as
emerging economies of Africa, Asia and
Latin America.
2. Industry creation in commercial
geo-location based spectrum databases,
serving local municipalities and service
providers, to accelerate low cost broad-
band network deployments.
3. Geo-location based dynamic spectrum
network operators (DSNOs), rural
network operator industry and Internet
service industry for job creation in rural
communities.
and other countries are expected to follow
suit.
The key challenge in using white space
spectrum for wireless communication
is the need to avoid interference with
existing services like TV broadcasting.
The GLSD is the technology that comes to
the rescue to enable early stage cognitive
radio techniques use distributed decision
making and intelligent channel allocation
to allow dynamic spectrum access for com-
munications devices.
The use of the GL-DSA system will
enable intelligent geo-location based
decisions to be made on network routing
and spectrum resource usage. These
technologies have allowed the CSIR and its
partners to pilot TV white space networks
in the Tygerberg area in the Western Cape
province of South Africa. The Tygerberg
white space network provided broadband
Internet connectivity to 10 under-priv-
ileged schools, at an average of 8MB/s
rate. It also proved that dynamic spectrum
white space networks can co-exist with
legacy licensed network services without
interfering and service disturbance for the
past three years.
The technology is thus proven enough
for a commercial launch, however, what is
lacking is the boldness from industry and
legacy network and service providers to in-
vest in this new technology and standards
allowing increased industrial production
of white space network devices. Finally, an
innovative spectrum regulatory policy is
needed to allow such networks to operate
commercially and complement existing
networks to meet the ever increasing de-
mand for broadband connectivity and ICT
based services
The CSIR is taking this seriously and
working with the Independent Communi-
cations Authority of South Africa (ICASA)
and other regional regulators to develop
an enabling spectrum sharing regulation
to allow development of affordable broad-
band network services in underserved
rural areas, in the first place and also in
the new 5G mobile standard to cater for
the exponential data traffic increase due to
new services such as the Internet of Things
(IoT).
ICT infrastructure sharing is another
area that has been promoted to reduce the
cost of broadband connectivity and asso-
ciated ICT based services. These include
both active and passive infrastructure shar-
ing including base-stations, network power
systems, base station towers and others.
This is an area that requires much
debate. As can be seen in many African
communities, operators are not obliged
to share broadband infrastructure, which
could have otherwise reduced the cost
of network rollout, thereby reducing the
service costs to end-customers.
In Europe these rules are strictly fol-
lowed, and therefore operators are apply-
ing both active and passive ICT infrastruc-
ture sharing, thereby reducing the cost of
services and fulfilling the environmental
impact requirements.
The UN’s 2030 Agenda, involving the
17 sustainable development goals (SDGs)
and the International Telecom Union
(ITU) Broadband Commission (composed
of the telco industry, public organisations
and NGO leaders) regard broadband
Internet as a vehicle to leapfrog develop-
mental roadblocks. Broadband Internet is
expected to leverage access to new ways of
providing societal services in sectors such
as education, healthcare, energy systems,
transportation, and agriculture and help
accelerate the creation of new startups and
job opportunities for young entrepreneurs.
Furthermore, such ICT interventions
enable countries and regions to attract in-
vestment for business and industrialisation
of emerging economies of Africa. It is thus
DSNOs using
smart spectrum
sharing are
expected to
lower the cost of
network rollout
and broadband
services in under-
served rural areas
in Africa and
emerging markets.

Forbes Africa - Africa ICT Outlook 2016

Forbes Africa - Africa ICT Outlook 2016

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