The latest nation looking to abandon 3G seems to be Tunisia, with an announcement that the state-owned incumbent Tunisie Telecom wants to get rid of 3G to focus on 4G.

Ericsson was chosen by Orange Egypt to supply antenna products for the building of the operator’s 2,600MHz network, a move for the operator to proceed with its extensive rollout plan.

There’s been some good news for telecoms giant Ericsson after four of its former executives were acquitted in Sweden early this week on charges of bribing high-ranking Djibouti officials.

Etisalat UAE, the telecoms pillar of e& (formerly known as Etisalat Group), has announced the successful deployment and testing of mobile network slicing through 5G in collaboration with Huawei.

Zain Group’s digital and ICT solutions unit ZainTech has partnered with LigaData to deliver cutting-edge, data-driven digital services to enterprise and government customers across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

The government of Oman has formed a large capacity agreement with Australian submarine cable development firm Subco that will leverage Omantel’s subsea network to provide connectivity between the Sultanate and Europe.

Telecom Egypt and Aqua Comms have signed a crossing and landing agreement for the Europe Middle-East India Connect 1 (EMIC-1) subsea cable in Egypt.

London Internet Exchange (LINX), one of the world’s largest internet exchange points (IXPs), has announced that it is forming a strategic relationship with Nairobi-based hyperscale data centre provider, IXAfrica.

A remarkable concept that could support power-hungry data centres and reduce power-wasting and environmentally dangerous gas flaring looks like gaining some traction in the Middle East after two recently announced investment deals.

Israel’s Minister of Communications, Yoaz Hendel, has announced plans for the gradual abolition over a three-year period of connectivity rates for the networks of cellular companies and landline telephone companies.

Rakuten Symphony chief revenue officer Rabih Dabboussi urged African operators to build their networks with new services in mind and pivot away from margin shrinking traditional telecoms products.

Mobily Pay, a mobile wallet powered by leading Saudi Arabia-based telecommunications and digital service provider Mobily, and MoneyGram International, a major name in digital P2P payments, have announced a partnership to launch MoneyGram's international money transfer capabilities on Mobily

Saudi Arabian operator Mobily has signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) with North African service provider Telecom Egypt to build the first submarine cable system to directly connect Saudi Arabia to Egypt.

Described as a key milestone in the company's regional expansion, the recent launch of Virgin Mobile Kuwait isn’t just a first for Virgin Mobile Middle East And Africa (VMMEA); this is, we are told, the first mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in Kuwait.

Egyptian bank ADCB-Egypt has extended its collaboration with Temenos to deliver next-generation digital payments on the latter’s open platform for composable banking.

NEC Corporation and Juniper Networks have partnered with Algeria Telecom to deploy the operator’s nationwide IP metro commercial network.

stc Bahrain has launched a 5G Standalone network which it claims marks a first for the Kingdom.

The government of Iran has begun forcibly restricting internet access amidst an outburst of public protests against the escalating cost of living.

Two Israeli technology firms, Telrad and Cellwize, are in the headlines after news of acquisitions – agreed or planned – by African technology company Liquid Intelligent Technologies and wireless tech innovator Qualcomm.

Arabsat, a leading regional satellite operator in the Middle East and Africa, and satcoms solutions provider Thales Alenia Space have signed a contract to build Arabsat-7A, a fully flexible software-defined satellite (SDS) based on the Space Inspire (INstant SPace In-orbit REconfiguration)

Zain Jordan has announced the launch of Western Union digital money transfer services through the Zain Cash mobile wallet.

Bahrain-headquartered technology solution provider Kalaam Telecom has announced the completion of its acquisition of Kuwaiti ISP and ICT services company Zajil International Telecom Co (KSCC).

Batelco and Ericsson have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on next-generation 5G technologies.

The rapid growth of mobile money-based services continues. Ooredoo Money Services, part of Qatar-headquartered operator Ooredoo, has announced a partnership with Thunes, a global payment services platform based in Singapore, to provide instant money transfers to multiple mobile wallets

Global communications company Viasat and Batelco, the leading digital solutions provider in Bahrain, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to engage in several regional business-to-business (B2B) service opportunities.

Two of the world’s biggest names in digital payments have announced major agreements in significant African markets: Visa in Egypt with operator Orange Egypt and Mastercard in Kenya with digital payment solution provider PesaLink.

Telecom Egypt, Egypt’s first integrated telecom operator and one of the largest subsea cable operators in the region, has announced that EG-IX, the first open access internet exchange in Egypt, is live and available for customers.

Digital infrastructure company Equinix has announced plans to build a brand-new data centre in the city of Salalah on the south coast of Oman.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), among the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world with total estimated assets of at least $500 billion, and Saudi telecommunications company STC Group have signed a joint venture agreement to establish a new company specializing in the Internet

Israel’s Ministry of Communications (MoC) has overhauled fixed broadband laws separating infrastructure and internet service provision.

Israel’s Ministry of Communications has approved Amphissa Holdings’ acquisition of a 27% stake in Partner Communications for US$300 million.

Cloud networking provider GTT Communications has partnered with Arc Solutions to consolidate and expand its service reach across the Middle East.

London Internet Exchange (LINX), one of the world’s largest internet exchange points (IXPs) and Saudi Arabian operator STC have announced the expansion of interconnection services to new internet exchange points in Riyadh and Dammam.

Vodafone Oman and Ericsson have announced the deployment of a 5G indoor system at the Vodafone Experience Hub in Muscat’s Mall of Oman as well as the Vodafone Oman headquarter offices.

MTN Group has announced plans to shake up its c-suite team in three African units to support a growth strategy through developing its fintech and fibre businesses.

Algeria is in the process of clearing and optimising radio frequencies to be used for 5G as it prepares for a widespread launch of the technology “soon”, according to Telecoms Minister Karim Bibi Triki.

Helios Towers is looking to make more acquisitions in Africa and the Middle East, despite reporting widening losses in its 2021 financial results.

At Mobile World Congress 2022, we spoke to Ramin Attari, Parallel Wireless’ Regional VP for Middle East & Africa, about the surging popularity of Open RAN and the benefits that the technology can deliver in emerging markets.

Egypt’slarge telecom market is supported by a population of about 103 million and benefits from effective competition in most sectors. A

Egyptian operator Etisalat Misr is modernising its Business Support Systems (BSS) using solutions from Ericsson.

Zain KSA and Huawei announced the launch of the Middle East and Norther Africa's first 5G LAN network in the country, as the operator aims to tap into the growing B2B demand for 5G services. 

Hard on the heels of last week’s trial announcement with Nokia, Saudi Arabian operator STC has announced another major

Hard on the heels of a busy MWC for both companies, Ooredoo Qatar and Ericsson have highlighted the successful implementation of what is described as the world’s first 5G indoor shareable solution in Qatar, achieving speeds of 1.5 gigabits per second (Gbps).

Saudi Arabian operator Zain KSA has announced its launch of a 5G local area network (5G LAN). This, it says, makes it the first operator in the Middle East and North Africa to adopt the technology. It made the announcement during MWC 2022.

O-RAN activity continues to ramp up. Now a group of Middle East operators has established the region’s first open RAN centralised test lab in collaboration with the industry group the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) and technology company Intel.

High-altitude platform systems (HAPS) are again in the news after UK company Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL), a partner of German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom, successfully trialled pioneering technology that provides 5G network coverage from the stratosphere in Saudi

MWC 2022 saw the signing of an agreement between Telecom Egypt (TE) and AFR-IX Telecom regarding the construction of a landing station in Egypt for the Medusa submarine cable system.

Türk Telekom has announced a partnership with fellow Turkish firm Odine with to shape the future with 5G and new generation technologies.

The UAE’s biggest telecom services provider, Etisalat Group, has launched a new brand identity. It’s called e&.

At MWC 2022 international communications company Ooredoo says it plans to update the industry on the many developments it has been working on since the last edition of the event, and will share news of its latest partnerships, products and solutions.