14 November, 2009-Mogadishu,Somalia

The forgotten conflict country in East Africa and its technological development

Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa, adjacent to the Arabian Peninsula; Somalia is geographically located in a very advantageous region, bordering both Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. Country's land area is estimated to 637 660 km2. It shares borders with Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti.

For close to two decades Somalia has not had a central powerful government since the overthrow Siad Barre regime in 1991 and has had 18 regions from corner to corner The country has an estimated population of about 9 million in 1995, of which 75% in rural areas.

Rate of population growth is about 3%, while Mogadishu is growing by a rate of 10% a year (World Bank, 1995). Agriculture is the second traditional occupation for most Somalis, after nomadic livestock grazing/raising. Livestock and banana export is country's two principal revenue generating sectors. Somalia has one of the lowest human development index (HDI) in the world.

Although Somalia has had the above mentioned history things was changed since 1993 and Somalis acknowledged establishing a business system so as to maintain their existence as nation and community.

The technology development in the country and the on going violence became analogous and each district and village has its own three telecom companies such as Hormuud Telecom, Telecom Somalia and Nation link telecom.

These three telecommunication companies are the leading telecommunication companies in the country and each one has small branches in all districts and villages in Somalia.

However, the National Association of Somalia Science and Environmental Journalists (NASSEJ) would like to explain in this report the activities of each this listed telecommunication companies in Somalia.

Somalia people have easy access to make conversation on landline phones each other without charge but there is a monthly rent amount of $10 per each line in a house or business room.

In addition to that, these three telecommunication companies have GSM mobile lines as well and Somalis are oral society who is active customers for using GSM mobiles. More then 50,000 people are using currently at these three telecommunication companies countrywide.

For example the family consists of 8 people 5 of them have a GSM mobiles both female and male as well as the most beneficiary people are political parties and business community while the civilians are non beneficiary society.

The warring sides and the independent gangsters have also a good opportunity for using GSM mobiles while they are organizing assassinations, attacks and abductions.

The youth people have no tangible benefits for using GSM mobiles according to the airtime scratch cards but for using the landline phones is the opportunity of youth particularly for those have a close relationship or those who are going to start a new dialogue for courtship because there is no charge accept the monthly rent.

For now, have looked the works and products as well as services of each company.

1- Telecom Somalia Company

Telcom is the largest and the leading telecommunications network operator in Somalia. Telcom is the first major privately owned company providing telecommunications in Somalia territory. Telcom principal activities include local, long distance, national and international telecommunication, mobile communications, and a wide range of data services including broadband access.

The company is headquartered in Mogadishu, and has representative offices in Dubai, UAE and London, Uk where accounting, international relations and carrier services are handled. The company total employee strength is 750.

Apart from Telcom, there are two other groups of companies providing telecommunications services in Somalia/Somaliland. Telcom, therefore, operators in a fully deregulated environment and has established a reputation as a leader in marketing, network and operation initiatives designed for operating in one of the most competitive markets of the world.

From first day of its operation the company has been profitable despite the un-regulated and un-protected extra free market environment, this due to increased and unexpected demand for communication in Somalia/Somaliland.

The transformation of the Telecom from a global calling center during unrest in the country to a world-class communications company has been remarkable, outstanding and notably conspicuous. From its modest beginnings in 1994, it has immensely expanded over the years to cope up with the growing demands of both technology and commerce.

Telcom has seen its mobile communications division growing a fully-fledged cellular operator, Telcom mobile with 70 percent country wide coverage in major important towns and it provides both post paid and prepaid services with sms, voice mail services to all its customers.

Telcom will to continue to maximize infusion of skills, expertise and funding brought by these equity partners in becoming a top-notch communications company that lives to meet all the international telecommunications standards.

Product and Services

Land line services:
 ISDN
 Prepaid
 Postpaid
 Lease lines

Mobile Services
 Prepaid
 Postpaid
 Short Message Services (SMS)
 International Roaming Facilities
 Voice Mail

Internet Services
 GPRS
 
 Value Added Services
 Call waiting
 Caller ID
 Caller ID Restriction
 Call Conferencing
 Call Wake Up (Alarm Call)
 Automatic Recall (Call to last incoming call)
 Call Forwarding on busy
 Call Forwarding to fixed announcement
 Call Forwarding on no reply
 Call Forwarding on no reply to voice mail
 Call Forwarding unconditional
 Call Forwarding unconditional to voice mail
 Fixed destination call-delayed
 Fixed destination call-immediate
 Do not disturb

Land Line Services
 ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network): Allows you to make maximum use of your single line can be used for fax, internet, voice at once or simultaneously.

Prepaid: Going with our prepaid cards is easy and has a host of benefits, you can talk from where ever you can get a Telcom phone at any time, without asking help from some one else.

Postpaid: Choose from a variety of Post Paid service specifically to meet your usage pattern and monthly budget. What's more, every post paid connection comes pre-activated with extra deposit that we suggest most of the people to use Prepaid. With us you get the best of everything. Choose from a wide range of talk plans to suit your usage and budget. Enjoy a host of value added services

Lease lines: We can give you a lease line if you plan to stay only several weeks and then travel or for budget limit you need to use a certain period and stop.

Mobile Services
 Prepaid: Prepaid Mobile cards are wide varies from 5$ to 100$, and you can call to every where in the world.

Postpaid: This service we provide only to customers with deposit account

Short Message Services (SMS): You can send a written message or Photo to other GSM Telcom Mobile

International Roaming Facilities: What's more, when you are not in Mogadishu, you get to enjoy the widest national and international roaming coverage on your Mobile Phone. The next time you plan a trip abroad, remember to pack your GSM Mobile phone as well. And enjoy the widest international roaming coverage in over 100 countries on your prepaid or postpaid card, Before you go please contact with our customer services for price and coverage.

Voice Mail: Don't miss You important callers, they can leave their messages for you, so far you can answer later

Internet Services
 GPRS:General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology is used for providing mobile/wireless access to the Internet.

Value Added Services
 Call waiting: Never miss a call when you're online, keep your friends always. No more missed calls. No more busy signals. If you're on a call when another person tries to contact you, an audible beep on your phone will let you know that someone is waiting. You can then decide whether or not to put the current caller on hold and take the incoming call. Call Waiting means you can prioritise your calls to ensure that important business calls always get through is like a second phone line.

Caller ID: is used to show who is calling you (the calling party number), When you receive call you see it's phone number on the display, You can then decide whether you want to take the call, or divert it to your answering service. It means that important calls can be answered immediately and unknown callers can be diverted to your Answer Phone and screened at your convenience.

Caller ID Restriction: is a service preventing your number to be presented to the terminating user while making a call to this user.

Call Conferencing:enables a user to participate in, and control, a simultaneous communication involving a number of users. From the office or while on the move, saving time and repetition. You can bring in several people on a single call, avoiding the need to make numerous individual calls to relay the same information.

Call Wake Up (Alarm Call): enables users to order alarm calls (calls made by the network to the user's line) at a time or times specified by the user himself.

Automatic Recall (Call to last incoming call): Call Return (CR) is an incoming call management feature which registers details for the last 'unanswered' call and enables a user to subsequently establish a return call to the registered number, if desired.

Call Forwarding on busy: enables a served user to redirect calls which are addressed to his number, while he is busy, to another user.

Call Forwarding to fixed announcement: The Call Forwarding to Fixed Announcement (CFFA) supplementary service allows the served user to have all incoming speech calls by the network redirected to an announcement facility located in the same or another exchange, to inform the calling party of the unavailability of the served user.

Call Forwarding on no reply: enables a served user to redirect calls which are addressed to the served user's number, to another user, if they are not answered within a defined period of time.

Call Forwarding on no reply to voice mail: enables a served user to redirect calls which are addressed to the served user's number, to a voice mail, if they are not answered within a defined period of time.

Call Forwarding unconditional: enables a served user to redirect calls which are addressed to the served user's number to a another user.

Call Forwarding unconditional to voice mail: enables a served user to redirect calls which are addressed to the served user's number to voice mail.

Fixed destination call-delayed: enables after off hook plus a limited time period (typical 5 seconds) the served user to establish a call to a predefined destination number, without sending any address information to the network at call set up. Before the limited time period has run out, the user can initiate calls in a normal way.

Fixed destination call-immediate: enables at off hook the served user to immediately establish a call to a predefined destination number, without sending any address information to the network at call set up.

Please call me: enables you if your account is 0 balance to send the number you want as a message in to 700 and then he/she see yuor number as message.

Missed Call Notification: allows you to see your missed calls as message when your mobile phone is power off or busy.

Do not disturb: allows the subscriber to have all his incoming calls forwarded to either a fixed tone or a fixed announcement as defined by the administration.

2- Hormuud Telecom Company

Hormuud Telecom Somalia was established in April 2002 to cover gap in the telecommunication needs.

Background Information
 
 Hormuud is a privately held enterprise established in April 2002 to cover gap in the telecommunication market in Somalia with its head quarter is in Mogadishu, Somalia.

More then 600 Somali investors have shares in Hormuud Telecom. Its better known as HORTEL and its the leading Telecommunication Services Provider (TSP) in the Southern and Central Somalia. Hormuud Telecom provides a variety of Telecommunication service such as fixed line, GSM service and Data services.

Hormuud employs more then 1700 fulltime staff with different specialties such as Telecommunication Engineering, Customer Services, Sales and Marketing and financial experts.

Since its formation, the company has enjoyed a very good reputation among the society because of its social responsibilities, social welfare, excellence in customer care and its uniqueness services.

Hormuud has received numerous awards in recognition of its grass-root work to developing the local community welfare including supporting educational institutions, sanitary improvement and water supply.

Product and Services

For more details go to; http://www.hortel.net/main.aspx

3- NationLink Telecom Company

Company Profile

NationLink Telecom came into being on September 1997. The company provides telecommunication services to all over Somalia and is one of the leading service providers in the country. The company's focus is in the core areas of Mobile, Fixed Lines, Internet and Satellite Mobile services. The overall objective of NationLink Telecom is to provide telecommunication services to all Somalis and by doing so, change their lives positively.

We believe that access to communication is the right of every Somali. Therefore, we are committed to providing products and services that will ensure that no matter who you are and where you are in Somalia, you will have such access.

NationLink applies the following business concepts, which have proven to be essential to its success in the telecommunications field:

Intuitiveness:
A commitment to a spirit of intuitiveness in all of its business activities is what makes NationLink unique among other companies.

Privacy:
Respect for our clients' and candidates' confidentiality is a fundamental part of NationLink’s business policies. Which is crucial in today's competitive telecommunications market.

Experience:
NationLink’s numerous projects and long history have given it the additional knowledge that can only come from experience, enabling it to provide better service to its customers.

Quality:
NationLink’s executives and employees insist on achieving and maintaining the standards in technological expertise, customer service and business relations.

Respect:
Respect for opinions and ideas are essential to maintain a progressive environment.

Team Work:
NationLink realizes that the increasing complexity of business and technology requires a combined effort on the part of all employees to maintain a competitive edge.

Vision:
Working toward the future demands that we not only focus on today's needs, but also develop technologies for the needs of tomorrow.

Mission Statement

Change and dynamic thinking is a distinguishing feature we relished over the years. In order To keep up with the pace of innovation and growth in the business of telecommunication our only choice is to embrace forward thinking and better adaptation to change. To perfect the art of better adaptation to changes is not a matter of choice, but out of sheer necessity.

In the last few decades, the world of technology has experienced a dramatic pace of innovation. These sweeping changes turned the world into small village. No place on the globe became safe from this wind of change. We, NationLink Telecom of Somalia, have not been spared. Moreover, we have strived, through adversity and harsh environmental settings mired by civil war, to establish one of the best telecommunication services in Africa. Our goal became that of bringing together a nation dispersed by civil strife throughout the globe.

With new technologies, excellent customer service and cheap prices we have perfected the art of providing services that are tailored both to individual needs and satisfaction.

Services

Land Line Solution

Since we are a leading telecommunications service provider in Somalia, we are committed in satisfying our customer's requirements. Today we provide very efficient basic telephone lines, GSM mobile, satellite Mobile, and Internet services in Somalia.


Conditions for Basic Telephone Lines:

When you apply for the provision of a telephone service, we will, within 24 hours.

Either:
Install the line for you or,
Notify you due to any technical reason, that installation may be delayed.

We will try to provide you with a telephone line no later than 36 Hours. This time limit cannot be guaranteed unless the following conditions are met:

a) Provide correct address.
b) Pay installation fee.
c) Prove that you are not bad debtor from another telephone operator.
d) Counter sign the relevant agreement.

Conclusion the National Association of Somali Science and Environmental Journalists (NASSEJ) will focus the second report for Somalia technology developments particularly the industries.

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