Cameroon is set to gain its third mobile network on January 21, when Set’Mobile launches its services.

The network, founded by local footballer, Samuel Eto’o started selling SIM cards last week and is reported to have already sold out with 50,000 cards distributed.

The country currently has two mobile networks, MTN and Orange, which between them count approximately 10 million subscribers

Uganda is to start requiring mobile phone users to register their SIM cards with the mobile networks from March, the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has announced.

Customers will be given a year to prove their identity to the mobile networks. From March 2013, any unregistered SIM cards will be cut-off.

The government cited cutting down on crime, harassment and terrorism as the reason for the decision. Nigeria implemented a similar programme in April 2011, which was scheduled to last for six months until the end of September. There have been calls to extend the process for at least another few months in the country.

Nigerian mobile operators have described having suffered a hiatus of mobile activations for much of 2011 as a result of the SIM registration requirement, and operators in Uganda are likely to experience the same.

The Ericsson Media Summit held in Beirut at the end of November brought together telecom professionals and students from around the Middle East region for a discussion of the ICT drivers at play. Ericsson emphasised the need for private and public sectors to become fully aware of the significant gains the digital dividend offers and to take steps towards developing the necessary enabling environment

Anders Lindblad, Ericsson’s president of Region Middle East, offers insights on the drivers of the telecom sector in the Middle East

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Kuwait cellco, Viva says it launched its LTE network last week, making it the first network in the country to offer the service.

Viva CEO Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Badran said the LTE technology will cover selected central areas in Kuwait at the beginning, with coverage to expand in the near future to cover all areas.

He also stated that the cellco will continue investing in LTE going forward.

Turkish cellco, Turkcell is reported to have signed loan agreements with China Development Bank for the potential purchase of Huawei products and services worth up to US$250 million.

The loan is for capital investments during 2012 and 2013.

The financing, which is composed of two equal loans with respective tenors of five and seven years, has an all-in cost of approximately libor + 3% per annum.