Nokia and Orange Middle East & Africa are rolling out a Nokia single radio access network and network management technology across seven African countries in a three-year modernization project to prepare for the launch of 4G services. To facilitate the deployment Nokia has set up a dedicated West and Central Africa Support Center for Orange.
Yasser Shaker, CTIO, Orange MEA said, “We needed to ensure a smooth evolution of our network while launching 4G in all countries where it was possible and Nokia was the best partner to pave that way.”
Amr El-Leithy, Head of the MEA Market for Nokia, said, “We have a longstanding relationship with Orange in Africa and are thrilled to take this relationship to the next level with this agreement. Our proven technology and services will enable Orange to proactively manage the data explosion and develop new revenue streams. Orange will also be able to offer new services that take advantage of enhanced broadband speeds to enrich the subscriber experience.”
With deployment underway, Orange has already lowered operational costs and launched new 4G services in Egypt, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Mali, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau. The company is also enhancing 3G service with an average 85-percent increase in throughput, and is experiencing a 90-percent increase in traffic across the seven countries.
As part of the deal, Nokia Care Services ensure that service level agreements are met, thus ensuring flawless communications. In addition, the Nokia NetAct network management system will allow Orange to maintain network efficiency, stability and performance. The support center will also serve as a gateway for the future introduction of advanced solutions and technologies serving IoT, smart cities and other use cases in Africa.