Siemens Telecommunications has secured a second contract, valued at $52 million, to roll-out phase two of Tanzania's largest GSM network, the Vodacom Tanzania Ltd network. This follows Siemens' successful roll-out of phase one, in the record time of eight months since the award of the turnkey supply contract last year. Phase two of the contract forms part of a three year supplier agreement between Siemens and Vodacom.
The implementation of phase two commenced in April and is expected to be completed in September this year.
The Vodacom Tanzania cellular network has, since going live in August last year, notched up over 90 000 subscribers. To accommodate the network's growth, phase two will involve the implementation of a second Mobile Switching Centre in Dar es Salaam. An Intelligent Network (IN) upgrade will also provide greater subscriber capacity for prepaid and other subscribers. This is expected to meet future capacity demands, as subscriber numbers reach an estimated 200 000 by the end of the networks second year of operation.
In addition, 120 new base stations will be implemented and a transmission network installed. Building on the basic network of phase one, the transmission network is comprised of a Synchronised Digital Hierarchy (SDH) network as well as the access network. The SDH network serves as the main carrier or backbone of the network while the access networks branch out from this as distributors, providing the necessary infrastructure to carry voice traffic further afield in Tanzania.
Says Managing Director of Carrier Solutions, Siemens Information and Communication Group, Paul McKibbin: "Providing an end-to-end solution for Vodacom Tanzania - which includes operation on the dual band GSM 1800MHz and 900MHz - the Siemens model has proven an enormous success and can be extended to other African countries rolling out GSM networks. Siemens provides the entire solution, from planning and design to roll-out, support and ongoing maintenance.
"The Siemens team of dedicated skilled workers bring new technologies and skills to the countries in which they are involved, with significant implications for the growth of the information technology sector in Tanzania and throughout Africa. Since the onset of phase one, the Vodacom Tanzania network roll-out has created more than 130 employment opportunities, and this number is expected to increase to 200 over the next 12 months."
The Siemens Tanzania local branch also contributes by sourcing local skills, providing training and facilitating skills transfer to the Vodacom organisation. The Siemens team of specialist workers, says McKibbin, are dedicated to the task of providing support for the Vodacom network and are actively involved in a knowledge transfer of GSM technology skills to local Tanzania staff members of Vodacom.
As the largest supplier of cellular infrastructure in Africa, enabling mobile communications for over 31 networks in Africa, Siemens remains committed to the country's economic development and its communication needs.
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