The direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity business has been back in the headlines with the, potentially, highly significant news that two satcoms businesses, Lynk Global, a patented and commercially licensed D2D system, and Omnispace, which says it is delivering a unique, 5G-based ‘one global network’, are to merge. But how will this affect the developing world?

Huawei has launched a new framework designed to help governments in the Middle East and Central Asia advance their digital transformation agendas, while underlining the role of technology as a catalyst for economic growth.

Saudi Arabia-based telecoms and digital infrastructure company Etihad Salam said on Tuesday it has entered into a strategic partnership with AFR-IX Telecom to be the primary landing and interconnection hub for the Medusa subsea cable system and extend the system’s reach to the Red Sea.

The GSMA announced on Tuesday two separate key initiatives with African mobile operators – one to make 4G handsets more affordable across the continent, and the other to strengthen Africa’s AI ecosystem.

Two major international subsea cable connectivity announcements have just been made – both of them relevant to developing markets. One, not too surprisingly, comes from the Philippines. However, the other has a starting point in Greece – on the island of Crete.

Internet exchange (IX) operator DE-CIX, which provides interconnection services in approximately 60 locations across Europe, Africa, North and South America, the Middle East, and Asia, says that, having successfully launched operations in São Paulo, it is expanding its presence in Brazil with DE-CIX Rio de Janeiro, its newest interconnection hub in the country.

State-owned company Telkom Indonesia, a multinational telecommunications conglomerate, has agreed to partially spin off its wholesale fibre connectivity business to its infrastructure-focused subsidiary Telkom Infrastruktur Indonesia in a deal valued at 35.787 trillion rupiah ($2.16 billion).

The ups and downs of the payment service provision business, particularly in Africa, have been highlighted in two recent news stories: one involving expansion for SPAYZ.io and the other signalling the end of Pay U Kenya.

Over 160 operators worldwide have published AI strategies, and research from the GSMA indicates that there are three key ways in which AI integration is helping them increase revenue and improve efficiencies: monetizing traditional services, expanding new services, and improving O&M efficiency.

Vodafone Group and Vodafone Ukraine have announced plans to begin construction of a new submarine cable system in the Black Sea, aimed at creating a digital corridor between Europe and Asia.

Ethio Telecom and Djibouti Telecom announced that they are actively exploring new collaboration opportunities to deepen their ongoing partnership to advance integration in the broader East African digital ecosystem, including international gateways and mobile money.

South African telco Vodacom said on Sunday it plans to invest over ZAR660 million (US$38.2 million) in network infrastructure in Southern Gauteng this financial year to accelerate rollout of 4G and 5G.

UAE-based digital solutions firm Yango Group and China Mobile International (CMI) have reportedly signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop technology solutions for businesses in Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

AdventEnergy, the retail electricity supply arm of Aboitiz Power Corporation, a power company in the Philippines that champions the use of both renewable and non-renewable energy sources, has entered into a strategic partnership with Philippines telecommunications company DITO Telecommunity by providing electricity to 1,642 of its cell towers.

It’s already proving a busy week for Bahrain-headquartered technology group Beyon, with a cybersecurity-related deal and a new brand identity launch, along with associated investment plans for Jordan, now making news for the company.

Ericsson is deepening its focus on mission-critical connectivity as sectors such as public safety, defence, utilities and transport demand more resilient and secure networks powered by AI, satellite and 5G, says Todd Ashton, Head of Enterprise and Mission Critical at Ericsson Europe, Middle East and Africa.

UAE telco du announced on Friday it has partnered with NextGenAI to launch an Nvidia-powered AI supercluster that more than doubles the capacity of du's existing supercluster.

Ethio Telecom launched a new line of low-cost cloud-based smartphones on Thursday to not only boost uptake of its 4G network, but also address the problem of smartphone affordability that’s keeping millions of people from accessing digital services.

Ericsson has announced that Malaysia’s Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) has become the first mobile operator in the world to be officially validated by TM Forum for achieving Level 4 autonomy in service assurance on its 5G network.

UAE-based satellite firm Space42 says it has signed separate MoUs with e& UAE and South Korean autonomous driving company Autonomous A2Z to develop the UAE’s autonomous mobility services ecosystem.

MTN’s digital infrastructure arm Bayobab said on Thursday it has signed an MoU with US-based AI company Seekr Technologies to offer AI-as-a-service (AIaaS) to private and public organisations across Africa, to include Bayobab’s connectivity services.

A new arrival in the Paraguayan market, Argentine operator Nubicom, plans to invest US$200 million in the next few years to build a standalone 5G network in Paraguay.

Turkey's 5G spectrum tender, confirmed in August, is over and, according to Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu, it well exceeded the target of US$2.125 billion, which was set as the minimum value.

Hard on the heels of a major expansion announcement earlier this week, Khazna Data Centres, a global leader in hyperscale digital infrastructure, is back in the headlines thanks to news of a deal with Presight, a leading global AI and big data analytics company.

At the 11th global Ultra-Broadband Forum (UBBF 2025), Huawei's President of the Optical Access Domain, Feng Zhishan, officially launched an Intelligent ONT at the F5.5G All-Optical Summit.

A major financing deal, announced this week, aims to fund an upgrade that will see the Tcell mobile network in Tajikistan enhanced in both quality and accessibility.

ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) Philippines announced on Wednesday it has onboarded connectivity partners Globe Telecom, Radius Telecoms and Source Telecoms at its flagship STT Fairview 1 data centre.

Indian telco Bharti Airtel announced on Wednesday it has signed a strategic partnership deal with IBM to upgrade its recently launched Airtel Cloud service to enable enterprises in regulated industries to better scale AI workloads across multiple environments.

Ukrainian telco Kyivstar says it is partnering with Mastercard to create new financial services, boost uptake of digital payments, and develop a more stable financial services infrastructure to support all this using Starlink’s Direct-to-Cell (D2C) satellite service.

Technology giant Ericsson and operator e& Egypt say they have extended their long-standing partnership through a four-year agreement focused on modernising and expanding e& Egypt’s network to enhance 5G readiness through what is described as an ambitious cloud-native transformation programme.

Hyperscale digital infrastructure specialist Khazna Data Centres (Khazna) has announced plans to expand its operational capacity by more than 1GW over the next five years.

UAE-based satellite firm Space42 announced at GITEX Global 2025 in Dubai on Tuesday it has signed an MoU with e& UAE to explore collaboration in direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity via Space42’s Equatys venture with Viasat.

Bharti Airtel and Google confirmed on Tuesday that they signed a strategic partnership deal to invest a combined US$15 billion in Google’s first AI hub and gigawatt-scale data centre in India, with AdaniConneX roped in as an ecosystem partner in the project.