Nokia and Togocom deploy first 5G network in West Africa

By Harry Menear
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Togocom has teamed up with the international service provider to initiate Togo’s 5G network rollout...

Finnish multinational telecommunications leader, Nokia, has announced a new three-year partnership deal with the West African mobile operator Togocom to supply 5G equipment, services and connectivity to the region.

The move comes following Nokia’s recent losses this year which saw the enterprise experience an 11% decrease in Optical Networks business due to supply chain constraints caused by Covid-19. 

Work on the new West African 5G network service has already begun, starting in Togo’s capital city of Lomé, which is the first location in the region to experience the new technology. 

As part of the collaboration, Nokia will enhance Togo's legacy networks of 2G, 3G and 4G that currently support the local economies. It is hoped the 5G connectivity will encourage greater investment in the country's digital services, offering better opportunities to local businesses.  

Togocom will receive hardware from Nokia’s AirScale portfolio, including AirScale Base Stations, AirScale massive MIMO Adaptive Antenna solutions that will enable Togocom to deliver market-leading 5G experiences to subscribers with ultra-low latency, connectivity and capacity.

The network will benefit from Nokia’s AirScale Micro Remote Radio Head (RRH) solution to meet the demand for capacity and reliable coverage both indoors and outdoors. Togocom already uses the Nokia AirFrame data centre solution to support cloud-based applications necessary for future telco networking.

Long-term services

A long-term partner of Togocom, Nokia previously supplied the country's 3G and 4G networks. New network benefits will include data management, CloudBand Infrastructure Software, Digital Operations software solutions, Nokia Converged Charging and Archive Cloud to automate the backup and storage of network data.

Speaking about the new partnership, Paulin Alazard, CEO at Togocom, said, “Nokia’s technology helps us to modernise our existing nationwide network and enable us to offer subscribers with access to cutting-edge 5G services. We are proud to be the first country in West Africa to offer 5G’s incredible connectivity, which is be a game changer in supporting Togolese citizens with a range of new services and opportunities.”

Other telecom areas facilitated by Nokia include digital deployment, network design, optimisation and technical support services enabling Togocom to benefit from a faster network launch.

Togocom will use the new 5G network to connect fixed subscribers using the Nokia FastMile 5G gateway – a user-friendly solution that delivers ultra-fast broadband speeds to homes while using Wi-Fi to connect devices within the home.

Pierre Chaume, Vice President of North and West Africa at Nokia, explained, “We are delighted to continue our long-standing and successful partnership with Togocom by supporting them in becoming the first mobile operator in West Africa to deliver commercial 5G services to their subscribers.”

He added, “Togocom has ambitious plans for 5G and we are proud of our collaboration with the operator to bring incredible connectivity to its customers as we enter the 5G era.”

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