Zimbabwe cellco, Telecel has received a cash injection of US$70 million from its parent shareholder, Orascom Telecom Holdings to help expand the network’s coverage.

Citing a company executive, the Financial Gazette reported that the network coverage is currently at 80 per cent of the population and the funds will go – in part – towards boosting that to 90 per cent.

Telecel’s CEO, Francis Mawindi said that the company was now well capitalised and currently has a subscriber base of 2.62 million, up from 2.58 million at the end of last year. Telecel comes a distant second to the market leader, Econet Wireless which has around eight million customers.

Zain Iraq plans to invest around 15 per cent of its revenues this year on network upgrades and expansion and has confirmed that it will deploy a 3G service as soon as the regulator grants approval.

Last year the company invested US$200 million in its network, and this year that figure should top US$260 million, based on revenue estimates.

Zain Iraq’s CFO, Wael Ghanayem told The National newspaper in the UAE that the operator is already working with Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Networks and Huawei on 3G infrastructure plans.

He added that the regulator is in the final stages of preparing the 3G spectrum allocation.

Alcatel-Lucent and Regional Telecom, a communications service provider in Northern Iraq, are to launch the nation’s first 4G LTE network, providing the region with lightning-fast wireless broadband services including high-definition video streaming, high-speed Internet access and a range of business services.

The new network will be the first in Iraq to offer large-scale wireless broadband services, helping in the restoration of the nation’s communication infrastructure impacted by the tough times of political unrest.

The network will provide significant support to on-going efforts to revive the Iraqi economy, bringing levels of connectivity needed for business, public sector and consumer applications.

For the project, Alcatel-Lucent is providing its industry-leading end-to-end 4G LTE solution, including base stations, IP mobile backhaul for 4G LTE and existing 3G CDMA traffic, Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and elements of its platforms, which will allow Regional Telecom to introduce a rich portfolio of advanced IP-based services.

Qtel Group has announced that it will change its brand to Ooredoo, and that each of its operating companies in emerging markets across the Middle East, North Africa and South-East Asia will adopt the new brand during the course of 2013 and 2014. The companies in which Ooredoo already has a controlling interest, include brands such as Qtel in Qatar, Indosat in Indonesia, Wataniya in Kuwait, Nawras in Oman, Tunisiana in Tunisia, and Nedjma in Algeria.

Ooredoo announced football star Lionel “Leo” Messi as its global brand ambassador, and agreed to support the Leo Messi Foundation as part of the company’s continued commitment to making a difference in communities across the world.

“With Ooredoo we have chosen an Arabic word that means “I want”, to reflect the aspirations of our customers and our core belief that we can enrich people’s lives and stimulate human growth in the communities where we operate,” said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, chairman, Ooredoo.”

Ooredoo has experienced significant growth over the last six years, transforming from a single market operator in Qatar to an international communications company with a global customer base of more than 89.2 million people (as of 30 September 2012) and consolidated revenues of US$6.8 billion for the first nine months of fiscal year 2012.

Alcatel-Lucent has today approved the appointment of Michel Combes as the company’s new CEO, effective April 1, 2013. Michel Combes will also join the company’s board of directors, subject to the approval of shareholders at the Alcatel-Lucent annual general meeting on May 7, 2013.

Combes, 51 has more than 20 years of experience in the telecommunications industry on a worldwide basis. He was CEO of Vodafone Europe and a board member of Vodafone PLC. During his career, he has held the positions of chairman and CEO of TDF as well as chief financial officer and senior executive VP of France Telecom.

Combes replaces Ben Verwaayen, who announced his intention to resign as CEO on February 7.