CAIRO: Raya Telecom signed an agreement, Saturday, with Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) to launch a new service, AsiaConnect. With the outsourced International Virtual Private Network (VPN) using the latest telecommunications technology, Multi Protocol Labels Switching (MPLS),companies operating in Egypt will be able to directly exchange data securely with their offices in Asia for the first time. "Previously, any company in Egypt that wanted to connect with a company located in Asia had to connect through another company or network in Europe. The information and data would either go through Europe and then to Asia,and this method is not cost effective; or [alternatively] the connection would take place via the Internet, explained Chairman and CEO of Raya Holding, Medhat Khalil. "Lack of data security and reliability, data delay and high costs are the main disadvantages of these solutions which make the AsiaConnect a better solution, Mohammad Fares, managing director of Raya Telecom, further elaborated. Subject to international voice deregulation starting January 2006, AsiaConnect will enable companies to run international voice calls on their VPN to Asia. With this new service, companies can choose the speed that matches their exact need for the performance level at more competitive costs. "This partnership which we have with Raya Telecom will breech not only two nations,but two regions, declared Abdul Wahid bin Omar,group chief executive officer of TM Group. TM is expanding its presence globally by developing nodes in countries where it has a presence, along with countries where it could develop partnership with other foreign telecommunications companies - Raya being a case in point. TM's venture into the Egyptian market for its IPVPN services will mark the company's first significant presence in the region and,through its partnership with Raya, hopes to offer its services and direct a high volume of IP traffic to the North African market. "When we look at the North African markets, we feel that Egypt is the most appropriate country in terms of the economic activity, in terms of stability, in terms of the state of the IT infrastructure, noted bin Omar. "To us, Egypt is the natural choice to gain entry to the North African market, and the Middle East. Khalil strongly agreed. "Firstly, the choice of Egypt - and its preference over other countries in the Middle East - shows confidence in our business environment that the new government has created . Which has given incentive to a number of investments, he said. Khalil went on to list other key factors that make Egypt the ideal choice: The qualified human resources and technical knowledge that is present in Egypt and the strong, advanced IT infrastructure that the Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology was able to establish. For Raya,AsiaConnect is another step toward securing its position as one of the leading telecommunications players in Egypt and the region. "This partnership is part of our strategy to realize a strong presence on the international level as a main provider for outsourced connectivity solutions, said Khalil, adding that Egypt is being positioned as a global destination for outsourced solutions. Specifically,the government's deregulation of the telecommunications sector is spurring the growth of investment in the sector." So we are investing heavily in the telecommunications part of the business, Khalil said in an earlier interview with The Daily Star Egypt. We hope that this [partnership with TM] . Will enhance Egypt's strategic role in this sector, added Fares. Raya and TM are optimistic that AsiaConnect will enhance the business environment for companies working with the Far East, and see a large potential demand for this service. "[We discovered] that there are hundreds of companies, whose headquarters are in the Far East, who have representative offices or branches here in Egypt, said Fares. "This service is also targeted to Egyptian companies who deal with companies in the Far East. All these companies will need this service, or this service will help them in improving their efficiency, be it economic or performance. Today,Raya operates in three areas of business, IT, Telecommunications and Retail and Distribution, with operations that venture across Egypt's borders into the region. In 2000, a new Raya subsidiary, Raya Telecom, was granted a license by the Egyptian Telecom Regulatory Authority to establish a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier for data services. In 2001 Raya Telecom launched its operations offering data connectivity that includes DSL, ISDN, VPN and dial up services. Raya continues to aspire to play a greater role in telecommunications service market in Egypt. TM is Malaysia's leading communications provider, offering a range of services and solutions in fixed line, mobile, data and broadband communications.TM has investments in several countries in Africa, South Asia, and South-East Asia,which it identifies as emerging markets with high potential for growth.
