Case Studies
Support Rapid Growth Across Africa
Wananchi Telecom Ltd has partnered with Epsilon to connect its customers around the globe using outsourced network services. Wananchi Telecom Ltd (WTL), a leading Tier 1 carrier in Africa and a member of Wananchi Group, has outsourced its international connectivity to Epsilon to support its customers while focusing its resources on developing its local market operations. WTL offers regional capacity across Africa and international capacity on undersea cables, providing core services to carriers, ISPs and other telcos. As it expands its already extensive network in more countries in Africa, it will simultaneously benefit from Epsilon’s global infrastructure, network intelligence and international expertise. The Kenyan-based carrier has operations in high-growth markets like Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia and South Africa, and is dedicated to growing its business services networks and product offerings across more geographies in Africa. To ensure it could serve the international needs of its customers efficiently, WTL selected Epsilon to provide global connectivity to over 170 countries due to its proven reliability. This gives WTL’s African service provider customers immediate access to whatever global business hubs they need to reach.
THE CHALLENGE
WTL needed to serve the global needs of its customers, while at the same time ensuring the sustainability and profitability of its current operations. It is investing in the development of local infrastructure and services while ensuring a global network footprint is offered to its customers so as to provide them maximum reach. It is not enough for WTL to focus on developing customer relationships in its home markets if it cannot offer robust and reliable international connectivity.
Like other service providers addressing the diverse needs of Africa’s emerging economies, WTL must prioritise these objectives if it is to be efficient in service delivery and also achieve growth. This means evaluating where it can add maximum value to the communications ecosystem and then focusing its efforts in that direction. Assuming it is unnecessary to allocate skills and capital resources to both areas, WTL had to decide whether to invest in expanding its local infrastructure or connect points of presence around the world. It was this challenge that led WTL finding a solution that enabled them to address both areas.
THE SOLUTION
Network outsourcing from Epsilon offers WTL the global infrastructure it needs without having to commit unnecessary resources, skills and budget that would be necessary to build, maintain and manage its own global network. Partnering with Epsilon gives WTL the freedom to focus on local business development while having the confidence that it is being supported by a flexible, reliable and scalable international network infrastructure that it needs to support growth and its customers’ demands.
WTL uses virtual points of presence (vPoP) in Telehouse East London and in the SmartHub facility in Fujairah, UAE. Through these connections, WTL gains access to more than 600 carriers and network service providers around the world in more than 170 countries. Epsilon can link WTL to these critical hubs through its interconnection with major submarine networks like SEACOM on the East Coast of Africa and WACS on the West Coast. From these hubs, traffic travels via Epsilon’s Global Network to the world’s largest internet exchanges as well as to global content and cloud service providers. Epsilon will also provide a remote hands-on service for cabling, installations and PoP management. WTL’s carrier customers will benefit from this partnership with Epsilon as they will access robust connectivity that stretches from Africa to locations in Europe, US and Asia, coupled with readily-available infrastructure, network intelligence and international expertise. Wherever they need to be present globally, WTL will ensure they receive the efficient and reliable connectivity that they require, and are free of any geographical limits.
Network outsourcing is simply the fastest and most efficient way for service providers like Wananchi Telecom Ltd to go global and connect customers to the rest of the world, in a cost-effective yet efficient manner. A partnership such as this one, marries local density with international presence, ensuring availability of high-quality services to more destinations for the customers.
PARTNER:
Rakesh Kukreja,
Managing Director, Wananchi Business Services
THE BENEFITS
- Increased Choice - WTL gains access to 600 plus networks on five different continents around the world, enabling it to consequently provide its customers with ample choice of routes and destinations.
- Efficiency - WTL will leverage on Epsilon’s bespoke network services, eliminating the need for its own global procurement team
- Scalability - WTL has access to limitless international capacity that is ready to grow with its customers
- Independent - WTL selected Epsilon due to its proven track record of delivering flexible customer-centric solutions
- Local Expertise - Epsilon has dedicated staff on-ground ready to serve the needs of WTL and its customers.
- Future-Proof - Epsilon’s technology is agnostic and therefore can serve its customers with whatever network technologies they require
Clint Collins
Regional Sales Director - MEA, at Epsilon
THE FUTURE
As the digital economy of Africa flourishes, Epsilon will continue to support service providers across the continent with efficient and effective solutions to their networking needs. It is on hand to help them meet the demand of a growing African telecommunication market today and in the future. As WTL expands the scope of its business across Africa into new international markets by launching new customer focussed services, it will further secure its leading tier 1 carrier position by using a reliable international connectivity partner that will readily meet all its global connectivity needs.
