Vodacom has said that a quarter of its network Lesotho is now powered by ‘green’ base stations using energy saving technologies such as wind and solar power. The base stations are powered independently of diesel generators or the national grid and are among the first of their kind worldwide.

Currently 40 out of a total 165 base station sites in Lesotho are powered through a combination of solar and wind. Vodacom Lesotho’s other technologies include power system optimisation that ensures that in the event of power failure, a traditional site continues to operate for up to three hours on stored battery power before a diesel generator kicks in.

In addition, smart meters are used to monitor power consumption and remote control systems are used to operate base station sites remotely both reducing the need for physical site visits.

Vodacom Lesotho said that it plans to build 80 new sites that use only renewable energy sources over the next four years. It will also refurbish existing operational sites to reduce its reliance on diesel generators. Smart meters have already been installed in two sites, one green site and the other running off the electricity grid, in a test to more accurately measure power consumed.

Mobile subscriptions in the Middle East grew at a rate of 69,230 new connections per day in the first quarter of 2012, according to Ericsson’s) second Traffic and Market Report – On the Pulse of the Networked Society. The report revealed that a total of 6.3 million new connections were added across the region from January to March 2012, taking the total number of subscriptions to 266.3 million.

According to the study, mobile subscription penetration in the Middle East stood at 96 per cent, compared to 69 per cent in China and 97 per cent in North America. It was also revealed that total mobile subscriptions around the world are expected to reach nine billion by 2017, compared to six billion at the end of 2011. The report forecasts that 85 per cent of the world’s population will have Internet coverage via 3G by 2017 and that mobile broadband connections will reach the five billion mark that year.

In the report, Ericsson also predicts that by 2017 half of the world’s population will be covered by LTE/4G networks. Smartphone subscriptions will number around three billion in 2017 – compared to 700 million in 2011. Mobile data traffic (voice and data) is expected to increase by 10-15 times between 2011 and 2017, mainly driven by video. Web traffic by mobile PCs and smartphones is foreseen to be dominant in the period, driven by the attractiveness of mobile broadband. Traffic generated by advanced smartphones is growing rapidly and is forecast to approach similar levels as mobile PC based traffic (in total) in 2017.

Etisalat Group announced the promotion of Obaid Bokisha from senior VP – Mobile Networks, Etisalat Group, to his new position as chief procurement officer for the Group with immediate effect.

The appointment will support Etisalat Group’s strategic business directions for the UAE and across its 16 other markets. Bokisha will be in charge of all major contracts and agreements for the Group across all of its regional and global markets.

Bokisha has been in his previous role for the last three years, and brings with him over thirteen years of experience in the field of technology.

Meanwhile, former Group chief procurement officer, Abdulrahim Al Nooryani, has been appointed chairman and CEO of Etisalat International Pakistan.

Zimbabwe’s latest broadband Internet offering, uMAX, was launched in Harare under the umbrella of Dandemutande Investments, the holding company for Utande Internet Services, a well-known communications provider in Zimbabwe’s telecommunications industry.

Dandemutande Investments is majority owned by Masawara plc, a Jersey registered investment company that is primarily focused on acquiring interests in companies and projects based in Zimbabwe and the southern African region. Dandemutande Investments has made an initial capital investment of over US$17 million as part of its uMAX roll-out.

uMAX promises super-fast 1 Mbps connections for all customers; 24-hour customer support; an expertly managed network for maximum up time and superior and consistent quality; and multiple “MAX mini-stores” within some of Harare’s leading retail stores and brands.

uMAX claims to be the only broadband Internet service provider to offer a loyalty programme – MAX Rewards – for all customers.

The company offers three bundles for customers, all based on speeds of 1Mbps, with 60 days validity. These are: megaMAX with 2GB at US$70; mightyMAX with 6GB at US$140 and monsterMAX with 12GB at US$240.

uMAX indoor access devices are sold for US$200 including VAT, with the outdoor access device retailing at US$475, including installation, with the Wi-Fi router and VAT.

Dandemutande holds an Internet Access Provider ("IAP") Class A telecommunications licence that it was awarded by the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) in 2009. The licence allows the company to construct, operate, develop, extend, and maintain a public data and Internet access network, and to offer Voice over Internet Protocol ("VoIP") services.

Orange Money has passed the milestone of having four million customers or 14 per cent of its customer base in the 10 markets in Africa and the Middle East where the mobile payment service is offered. Orange Money counted one million users at the end of 2010 and nearly three million a year later. The operator added its latest two countries – Mauritius and Jordan – only recently, the latter being the first Orange Money service in the Middle East.

Orange Money is also available in Cote d’Ivoire, Botswana, Cameroon, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Niger and Senegal. In Madagascar over a third of all of Orange customers have opened an Orange Money account, while in Cote d’Ivoire daily transactions now exceed XOF 1 billion (US$1.9 million) a day. Two categories of services are growing quickly, the mobile payment of utility and other bills and bank account services. Orange intends to launch Orange Money in all of the 22 countries in which it operates across of Africa and the Middle East.