Gateway Communications claims to have completed the continent`s first long-distance next-generation network (NGN).
It allows for direct routing between nations on the continent, lowering telecoms costs and improving call quality, it says.
Network infrastructure companies Gateway Communications and Veraz Networks completed the final stages of Gateway`s NGN deployment in the last few weeks, says COO Mike van den Bergh.
"The NGN allows calls to be routed over the shortest possible distance between two points," he says. Van den Bergh explains that calls between countries from within the continent no longer need to be routed via European networks, which he says has traditionally been the case.
Last year, Chinese telecoms manufacturer ZTE established an NGN based on an IP platform with CDMA2000 1x and EV-DO technology. However, this NGN was limited to eight states across Angola.
Year-long project
"We believe it must be the first NGN in Africa - we`re unaware of any others," Van den Bergh claims.
The upgraded network, which enables Gateway to link mobile networks across 30 African countries, took around one year to develop.
A statement from Gateway`s London office states $1.4 million was spent on upgrading the network, but Van den Bergh says this is a conservative estimate - though he was unable to put a reliable figure to the venture.
The benefits
The network should benefit subscribers of all major pan-African mobile carriers and some of the fixed-line carriers in two ways: improved call quality (due to the reduced degradation from shorter distances) and lower tariffs, notes Van den Bergh.
Gateway says it transports 150 million voice minutes into and out of sub-Saharan Africa each month.
"Gateway`s network required a reliable NGN platform that could meet their challenges, while increasing their competitive-edge for the delivery of new services," says Doug Sabella, CEO of Veraz, which provided much of the packet switched solution.
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