Siemens Information and Communications Group has gone live with the first subscriber connection for a wireless local loop network in Lesotho. This follows the company's recent selection as the preferred supplier for Lesotho's largest telecommunications contract.
In terms of the R211 million contract with privatised telecoms operator Telecom Lesotho, Siemens will roll-out a turnkey wireless local loop solution.
A month after the deal was finalised, Siemens has the first of its subscriber connections up and running. Three of the 16 base stations have been installed, covering up to a third of the projected 24 000 subscriber capacity.
Areas covered include the Maseru region such as Berea Plateau, Abia and Thaba Bosiu. An additional 13 central base stations will be rolled out by December.
Siemens says it is on target to meet its deadline of connecting all 24 000 voice subscribers before the end of the year. Based on a demand survey undertaken by Telecom Lesotho, the estimated number of customers in Lesotho who require new telephones stands at 150 000.
"Through the deployment of a wireless local loop, the extension of basic telephone services to many areas of Lesotho has been made possible. The roll-out thus far has been enormously successful," says Fernando Goncalves, divisional director of business development at Siemens Telecommunications.
He adds that the wireless local loop solution has the added benefits of making rapid roll-out possible and it reduces the risk of copper theft, often a major problem with the roll-out of telecoms networks, particularly in rural areas.
Adri van der Veer, CEO of Telecom Lesotho, says plans to connect areas of Lesotho to the telecommunications backbone of the rest of the country are on track, with new phones already being connected at a rate of between 200 and 300 residential customers per day.
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