Malawi joins West and East Africa’s One Network Service

Malawi has joined 12 countries in West and East Africa to extend its network of having a borderless mobile network called « One Network, » a service that eliminates the need for roaming facilities.

The One Network countries include Nigeria, Chad, Burkina Faso, Niger, Congo Brazzaville, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan.

Celtel Malawi’s Marketing Director, Charles Maye, told journalists during the official launch of the One Network in Lilongwe that the service is a convenient and cost-effective service for its customers.

Maye added that the Celtel Group had to put weighty consideration at the needs of developing African economies.

« The fledgling economies of our continent need a robust, borderless and timeless mobile communication service to achieve sustainable growth and beat the poverty trap through trade, » he said.

For a trade to flow smoothly between countries and regions, he said, a reliable telecommunications service is needed.

He said he believes that One Network will act as a solution to Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB) for trade and make it easier and cheaper for the Southern African Development Community, the Common Market for East and Southern Africa and the Economic for West African States do their business as one.

In the past, Africa had very limited telecommunication options like telephone, fax and postal mail, he noted.

Maye added that the advent of globalisation has given rise to the proliferation of modern Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools such as internet and mobile telephones.

During the launch, Deputy Minister of Information John Bande said the introduction of One Network Service is another milestone in the ICT development in the country.