How satellite technology is the main source of connectivity in Africa, and its contributed to increased commercial productivity and efficiency

 Satellite technology is the preferred source of connectivity in Africa. It is helping contribute to increased productivity and efficiency in the African enterprise sector. “In our fast moving digital world, the single most precious and expensive commodity today is unquestionably time itself,” stated Doron Ben Sira, CEO of SkyVision. “As global connectivity establishes itself as the lifeline at the heart of more and more business practices around the world, now, in Africa too, enterprises are acutely aware that when it comes to greater productivity, higher levels of efficiency and resulting increased profitability, the more reliable their connectivity, the greater their chance of business success.”

 Reliability rules It would be fair to say that most countries have two main options with regards to connectivity; fibre and/or satellite. Indeed, over the last few years, Africa has witnessed the introduction of several international submarine cables with fibre optics attempting to deliver reliable, robust connectivity solutions to answer the growing demand from enterprises in the region. Although fibre is indeed capable of providing fast, reliable connectivity within major cities, the reality is that inland infrastructure in Africa is often limited and unreliable, not to mention subject to challenging topography and extreme weather conditions. Hence, the pure infrastructural cost of laying out cable service frequently makes it simply economically unfeasible to cover large tracts of rural Africa.

 “It is precisely here, that satellite connectivity comes into play,” observed Ben Sira. “Satellite connectivity, by sheer virtue of its footprint, is unrivalled in the access it offers to even the most remote locations, making it an ideal solution for Africa’s demanding and vast geography. Located hundreds of kilometres above earth, existing geosynchronous satellites see all, and therefore, have access to all areas. And so, inexorably, as far as Africa is concerned at least, satellite effortlessly wins over fibre as it achieves vast, reliable land-mass coverage at a fraction of the cost of setting up extensive fibre infrastructures.

 Exploding demand for corporate connectivity solutions In recent years, trends show that numerous multinational enterprises, such as mining, gas & oil, airline, financial and retail in Africa are jumping, ‘all guns blazing’, on the connectivity bandwagon. As they open more and more branches throughout Africa, so their demand for reliable corporate connectivity solutions grows exponentially.

 Take, for example, oil and gas operations in Africa. Whether exploration and production is offshore or in land, operational costs can ring up a hefty $500,000 per day! Field teams often find themselves located far from civilisation and daily comforts, working in harsh conditions on difficult terrains and in the most extreme weather conditions. The same is true for Africa’s growing finance sector. In order to operate effectively and deliver high quality service to a rapidly growing customer base, financial institutions need to maintain a secured reliable network to ensure that all their information is synchronised and recorded without alteration or disruption. And, as more and more banks and micro finance organisations within Africa deploy rural branches and mobile money services, the need for reliable connectivity is increasingly paramount to their business success. Indeed, financial institutions in Africa are aware now, more than ever before, that when it comes to a positive customer experience, high efficiency and return on investment, loss of connectivity is simply not an option.

 Locally and globally connected When asked to sum up the new wave of demand for satellite-based corporate connectivity solutions in Africa, Ben Sira stated, “We have found that the most important thing for enterprise in emerging countries is a ‘glocal’ approach. By deploying an increasing number of PoPs (points of presence), hubs and teleports throughout the continent, a rising number of corporates in Africa can now communicate freely inside the African continent and with the world, while at the same time benefiting from a vital local presence that provides truly local support.”

 SkyVision has installed PoPs in 4 countries throughout Africa in Nigeria, Kenya, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo - so offering single hop connectivity to local enterprises wishing to expand their businesses, without the need to rely on terrestrial infrastructure.

 The company also caters to a selection of fibre customers in Africa via its International submarine cables and POPs located in various locations in Africa, where it offers both local and global corporate customers world-class IP-VPN network and tier-1 internet connectivity. African businesses increasingly need highly optimised satellite networks designed to guarantee both costeffectiveness and reliable always-on connectivity that is easy to maintain.

 As a result of SkyVision’s and other companies’ satellite connectivity activities in the region, enterprises in Africa now have within their reach a vital tool to assist them to increase their productivity for increased profitability.

 “Without even realising it, each of the enterprises in Africa that have chosen satellite-based corporate connectivity solutions to boost their businesses are part of a huge collective effort that will eventually take Africa to entirely new economical heights.

 “As a company, we are both proud and thrilled to be part of that,” concluded Ben Sira.

SkyVision is meeting the increasing demand for satellite connectivity with an extensive range of solutions based designed especially for enterprises in emerging countries. Among them: Satellite Internet connectivity, VPN (Virtual Private Networks), Private Networks and VNO (Virtual Network Operation) solutions, each complemented by extensive Professional Services.

SkyVision VPN is a professionally managed private corporate network. A fully customised, satellite-based Virtual Private Network service completely managed by SkyVision, the service was recently employed by a major bank in Nigeria to connect 90 new ATM sites to their headquarters. Enabling enterprises to connect their WAN sites and share information by means of voice and data applications, today, SkyVision’s VPN employs a single common VSAT-based network to provide high quality network performance and reliability to enterprises of every kind all over Africa.

SkyVision Private Network is a private network solution with a management option, making it ideal for enterprises and governments looking for security and control. Providing customised connectivity solutions, the solution was recently acquired by a customer in Benin. This same customer purchased a mini-hub and space segment to serve his own network sites, of which he himself configures to control his network’s changing requirements, allowing him to maintain dynamic allocation of resources to his own private network.

SkyVision VNO is backed by SkyVision’s VSAT facilities and enables service providers to operate their own VSAT network without the high cost of investment in teleport infrastructure. AstroSat, one of Africa’s biggest sellers of communication equipment to local vendors all over the continent is now managing its entire C-band hub as a cost effective solution as a result of SkyVision’s VNO. SkyVision’s VNO service is highly scalable and carefully engineered to meet the evolving needs of users with various network requirements. In addition, each VNO’s network bandwidth is physically separated from the resources of other users or service providers, and can be remotely configured and managed. The virtual network operator’s equipment is located within SkyVision’s teleport, but the operator controls global services for his customers with the highest level of autonomy.

You can download the excerpt of the SkyVision CEO Doron Ben Sira Interview in the African Review of Business Technology Magazine - Sept 2011 Issue below: