CAIRO: The financial crisis is spreading skepticism across the world, yet spirits and attendance were high at the North Africa Com Conference, the largest conference on telecommunication in the region, held Oct. 14-15 in Cairo. Several participants commented on the record participation saying that it underlined the importance of the North African market for investors. Informa, a market intelligence provider, foresees 158 million mobile users in the region by the end of 2012, marking a growth rate of 55 percent over the next five years. In a press statement, Nasreddine Mana, Informa Telecoms and Media's analyst, said, "The region is set to become a springboard for further investment, driven by a low penetration rate and a population estimated to reach 230 million by the end of 2012. For Egypt, a 2008 report by the Business Monitor sees growth in the mobile industry continuing annually at two-digit rates, doubling current market penetration to 80 percent by the end of 2012. Presentations at the conference brimmed with optimism. Haitham Abdul Razzak from Emirati Etisalat said his company was eyeing opportunities in broadband technology, which remains under-developed in Egypt. Guillaume Van Gaver of Egypt's market leader Mobinil said the company's recent acquisition of a 3G license will reduce network costs while improving internet access. Other speakers presented country studies from the region and discussed content such as music services. The audience, however, remained divided on the usefulness of these contents for the region at this early stage. The second day saw foreign investors such as Matthieu Coutière from French Vivendi underlining the benefits of global-local alliances for both partners and the need for knowledge sharing. On the recurrent dilemma of volume versus value, Eric Kerbouriou of Tunisiana, owned by Egypt's Orascom Telecom, stressed the necessity to strike a balance. He argued that loyalty programs to retain high-value customers needs to accompany the expansion of services to low cost users. Khaled Rabie of Nokia Siemens networks presented his company's vision for getting more than two-thirds of the world population connected by 2012. Nokia Siemens networks has successfully run a test case in rural India to provide distant villages with phone access by franchising a village-based terminal to local entrepreneurs. Concerning the data access of rural areas, attendees saw WiMAX, a long-range wireless connection technology, as the most probable solution for North Africa in the mid-term. For the short-term, Hatem Dowidar from UK-based Vodafone, predicted growth to remain essentially voice-driven with rates depending on the heterogeneous market penetrations across the North African countries, Egypt occupying a middle position. Data services might in the mid-term offset diminishing margins. The same holds true for enabling services like money transfers and other m-commerce, attendees agreed. Country strategy examples from Sudan, Tunisia and Lebanon were followed by a presentation on the advantages of infrastructure sharing to cut costs. Attendants appreciated the opportunity for networking the conference provided and overwhelmingly said they were sure to mark next year's session in their calendar. Comprising Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia, the region had 102 million subscriptions at end of 2007, but penetration remains low at just below 50 percent, according to a statement from Informa. The North Africa Com event is part of Informa Telecoms and Media's Com World Series, an annual suite of 12 telecommunication conferences and exhibitions focusing on emerging, high growth markets.
