Etisalat COO highlights African expansion strategy at Financial Times World Congress

Mr. Julfar highlighted Etisalat's achievements in the UAE and in the international markets focusing on Africa.

Ahmed Abdulkarim Julfar said: "We are totally committed to expanding our operations and investments and we are investing strategically and for the long-term in markets abroad."

Discussing the companies many initiatives in Africa, Abdulkarim Julfar added: "Etisalat is bringing its valuable assets and experience to Africa - including our ability to train the best engineers in the world. We are presently investigating the construction of Etisalat Academy subsidiaries in both Sudan and Egypt to help enhance the availability of talent on the continent. These will help to train and produce engineers for the future of the industry in both of these countries, and in neighboring provinces."

One of the major hurdles for African nations is the shortage of international connectivity to the rest of the world. Africa has a limited number of submarine cable landing points, and in East Africa countries have been reliant solely on satellite connectivity, making it difficult for many poorer nations to join the global community. This situation is changing with undersea marine cable initiatives, The East African Marine Systems (TEAMS) in which Etisalat is investing. Once these projects are completed, tangible improvements in economic strength and growth are expected.

"Etisalat recognizes the potential of Africa and aims to help the continent to achieve its full potential, wherever we are able to operate. We believe that the provision of telecommunications services act as a catalyst for economic growth, and therefore our investment strategy has a self-fulfilling prophecy for success," Julfar said.

Etisalat has last month contributed AED 25 million or almost USD 7 million through the Dubai Cares initiative, founded by His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE.

"We believe that it is the human capital, or the development of a talent pool of educated and viable employees which is the most important for the long-term growth, as such, we have committed ourselves to all markets we enter," Mr Julfar concluded.

Today Etisalat heads a consortium of investors across Asia, Africa and the Middle East in the last three years. It has obtained licenses to provide telecommunications services in fifteen countries including Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Cote D'Ivoire, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Niger, Nigeria, Zanzibar, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Pakistan.