Johannesburg, 13 Nov 2014
The Wi-Fi Forum of South Africa, a voluntary industry body comprising operators, service providers, technology providers and associated parties, hosted a session for stakeholders in Cape Town yesterday.
The session was attended by various interested parties including WiFi operators, mobile and fixed line operators, infrastructure providers and local government representatives. A number of other industry bodies attended, namely the Wireless Access Providers' Association (WAPA), Internet Service Providers' Association (ISPA) and the FTTH Council Africa.
Andile Ngcaba, Chairperson of Convergence Partners, reiterated the objectives of the Forum, namely the acceleration of the adoption of high-speed, reliable and cost-effective broadband services in South Africa. Its mission is to promote the effective utilisation of WiFi technologies in the delivery of ubiquitous, interoperable and seamless connectivity in South Africa.
"The effective delivery of the broadband future is dependent on two critical components ? fibre backhaul and WiFi access networks. This future is, however, dependent on the industry working together to ensure quality, standards and affordability are delivered in order to provide confidence to end-users in the delivery of services," according to Andile Ngcaba.
A year after its launch at AfricaCom 2013, the Forum has engaged with a number of related industry bodies to ensure effective co-ordination and co-operation on matters of common interest. The Forum published its draft constitution and announced the hosting of an inaugural conference and AGM to take place on 12 March 2015, in Johannesburg. In anticipation of this event, the update session encouraged the WiFi industry to sign-up, irrespective of their size, to ensure the industry has its needs catered for in the fast-evolving ICT landscape.
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