In order to improve telecommunications access across the towns and under-serviced areas in South Africa, Neotel has partnered with the Wireless Access Providers’ Association (WAPA) as a full member.
The partnership gives Neotel access to WAPA resources and members that rely on telecommunications services to do business.
Neotel and WAPA will work together to foster strategic partnerships between larger and smaller companies, in order to extend the reach of quality products and services to communities in under-serviced areas, and to explore the development of new products and services that address the opportunities and challenges specific to those areas.
Angus Hay, GM at Neotel says, “We are excited to have partnered with WAPA to address some of South Africa’s telecommunications challenges, particularly outside of the major metros, in smaller cities, towns and rural areas.
Neotel has enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship with WAPA for a number of years.
“This continued partnership will enable us to further broaden our scope and become the preferred communications partner to WAPA members by providing them with a wide range of services such as high speed voice and Internet, as well as backhaul and hosted solutions. In addition, we will jointly be able to deliver our leading broadband products over WAPA wireless infrastructure to places previously starved of proper broadband.”
He says that many Internet service providers (ISPs), businesses, and end users in these areas still rely on ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line), or cellular services, which are not suitable for larger bandwidth requirements, such as video conferencing or streaming media. Neotel’s capacity and fibre together with the wireless infrastructure and local reach of WAPA members can change this.
“Both WAPA and Neotel aim to improve telecommunications access in South Africa and believe in collaboration and partnerships as a way to innovate, grow and drive competition. As a non-profit organisation, our main goal is to provide value to our members. Having Neotel on board complements our efforts,” says WAPA chairperson Mohammad Patel.
