Over 1.5 billion women used mobile internet in 2023 in developing nations, as women are adopting connectivity faster than men, according to the GSMA.

Evolution DC Thailand, a joint venture between real estate developer Central Pattana and Evolution Data Centres, have announced a partnership with International Gateway Company (IGC) to provide fibre infrastructure for its domestic data centre project.

The government of Tonga is reportedly deliberating whether or not to grant an operator licence to SpaceX’s LEO satellite operator Starlink, which a number of people in the country are already using, albeit not legally.

For the second time in just over a year, the Nigerian government has thought better of a plan that would, effectively, tax users of mobile communications: this time it’s a levy intended to raise money to enhance cybersecurity.

Saudi firm DataVolt, which says it leads the way in sustainable digital infrastructure and renewable energy, has recently announced the launch, which took place earlier this month, of a data centre in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and signed an agreement for more to come.

Operator Ooredoo Oman part of the multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Qatar, has signed an agreement for the landing of the 2Africa cable system in Muscat and Salalah.

UAE telecommunications company du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), has announced a strategic partnership with STL, a leading optical and digital solutions company, for advanced optical fibre cables.

Malaysian telco CelcomDigi says it’s close to the halfway mark in integrating and modernising its mobile network across the country, which puts it ahead of schedule in its post-merger transformation plan.

UAE-based satellite operator Yahsat announced that it has successfully restored services to Thuraya’s satellite customers in southeast Asia and most of China after its Thuraya 3 satellite went offline in mid-April.

Internet services across East Africa were reportedly disrupted on Sunday due to yet more subsea cable faults, this time on the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) and the Seacom cable.

GlobalNet, a Dutch backbone provider, says it has confirmed its expansion into Central Europe with one new point of presence (PoP) in Warsaw. The new PoP is based at the Equinix WA1 data centre.

A potentially significant announcement – made last week but only now being widely reported – is MTN Rwanda’s claim that it is pioneering the introduction of paper-based biodegradable SIM cards in that country.

Technology giant Huawei, alongside Chinese electrical appliance manufacturer, Midea, Thai operator AIS, and Chinese operator China Unicom say they have jointly implemented the first 5G fully connected factory in Southeast Asia, setting what they describe as a new standard for smart manufacturing in the region.

General insurance provider Tata AIG has launched what it calls its Satellite In-Orbit Third-Party Liability Insurance policy for satellite manufacturers and operators in the Indian space industry – a first, it seems, for Indian insurance provision.

­Bharti Airtel signed a long-term agreement with Google Cloud to deliver cloud and gen AI solutions in the Indian B2B market.

Vodacom reported a dip in profits due to higher energy costs and forex rates which have also affected other operators on the African continent.

Avanti has partnered with Q-KON to provide LEO satellite connectivity to customers across South Africa.

Cambodia’s telecoms regulator has reportedly warned SIM card vendors and mobile operators to stop activating unregistered SIM cards or face prosecution.

The Sri Lanka government is reportedly making moves to amend the country’s telecoms laws to allow independent companies to build telecoms towers.

Australian prefabricated modular data centre specialist company DXN announced that it has signed contracts worth a total of A$5.7 million (US$3.8 million) to build four cable landing stations for the East Micronesia Cable System (EMCS).

Dubai-headquartered telecommunication company du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), and global edge-to-cloud company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) have announced a major deal with the Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), one of the most prominent national banks in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Nokia has announced that it has been chosen by Sigma Lithium, a leading global lithium producer, to deploy the first private LTE wireless campus network in the Americas that supports the mining of lithium – a metal critical to the production of batteries that power electric vehicles.

Airtel Africa reported a loss of US$89 million as it also suffered from the devaluation of the Nigerian naira, despite growth in customer base.

Vietnamese technology firm Viettel High Tech announced on Thursday that it has signed its second partner contract to sell its private 5G solution in India – this one with United Telecoms Limited (UTL).

Veon-owned Bangladesh operator Banglalink said on Thursday that it has become the first mobile operator in the country to phase out 3G services as it shifts focus to boosting performance of its 4G network.

Tecnotree, which describes itself as a global digital platform and services leader for artificial intelligence (AI), 5G and cloud-native technologies, has announced its partnership with people+ai, an initiative of Indian non-profit learning-focused group EkStep Foundation, on joining the Open Cloud Compute (OCC) project.

Access Bank Group, a multinational bank, says it has today launched an innovative solution in collaboration with payments giant Mastercard to expand access to cross-border payments and remittances to and from the African continent.

Angola Cables and Camtel have partnered to expand digital and connectivity services in Cameroon and the West Africa region.

Safaricom announced flat profit growth in its full 2023 financial year as income was dampened by investment into its new Ethiopian unit and inflation. 

Kenya has reportedly begun talks on data sharing with the European Union (EU) – a process that could enhance Kenya’s income from digital trade.

Indonesia will become the third South East Asian nation to gain SpaceX’s satellite service Starlink after the government granted the Elon Musk company, permission for operation with aims to expand connectivity to remote locations.

DECIX Indonesia Pratama, the joint venture between internet exchange operator DE-CIX and Salim Group subsidiary IDMarco Digital Solusi, announced on Tuesday that its DE-CIX Jakarta IX is now live and connecting customers.