Wrap-Up: Our pick of main stories, Thursday February 26, 2015

Konza City

John Tanui to take over as Konza Authority boss from April…Orange Kenya to move CDMA customers to GSM network…Airtel Kenya’s 3G network in Kshs 2.5 billion upgrade…and more.

John Tanui to take over as Konza Authority boss from April

Huawei Kenya’s deputy CEO Eng John Tanui is set to take over as the CEO of Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA) from this April, replacing Catherine Adeya-Weya who served in the position for 2 years and declined to reapply when it was advertised. Eng John Tanui is currently the Deputy CEO at Huawei Technologies’ Kenya unit and was also the VP for Delivery and Service divisions in the same firm which include project management, procurement, supply chain management, contract management, service sales, and network integration and managed services.

Orange Kenya to move CDMA customers to GSM network

Orange will no longer operate its CDMA network in Kenya. This decision was arrived at after a thorough review of the business’s product and solution offering as well as the infrastructure that supports the company’s network, with the long term view of ensuring viability and further improving the quality of service to its customers. The company’s CEO, Vincent Lobry, says that the switch over to GSM from CDMA should be complete by the end of Q1, 2015.

Airtel Kenya’s 3G network in Kshs 2.5 billion upgrade

Airtel Kenya has announced that it has invested Ksh. 2.5 billion to upgrade its network to enhance indoor coverage and 3G quality in Kenya. The upgrade of all sites in Mombasa and Kitale townships has been completed, with Nairobi’s already in progress. With the growing demand for data services, alongside the increasing proliferation of smartphones, the UMTS 900 Mhz spectrum upgrade project significantly enhances indoor coverage penetration and improves data quality for Airtel 3G network users. Upgrade of all the sites in Mombasa and Kitale townships have been completed, with Nairobi’s in progress and due to complete soon. Nokia Networks, one of the world’s leading specialists in mobile broadband is partnering with Airtel for this upgrade project.

Government set to open an ICT Hub in Eldoret

The Government through the Ministry of ICT is set to launch an ICT Hub in Eldoret in the coming months. This was said by Kenya ICT Authority (ICTA) CEO, Victor Kyalo, during a press briefing called as a pre-event briefing for the Innovation Forum set for March 2 -3 with an eye on start-ups.

Kyalo said that the project was in its early stages, adding that the ICTA is working with the private sector to open up hubs outside Nairobi so as to tap the skills and innovations across the counties.