China's Huawei Technologies, a leader in providing next generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, is seeking to expand its services to become a dominant player in telecom services in East Africa.

The telecom firm which is marking its 10 years of business in East Africa said its expansion is in line with Huawei's strategy to expand its regional network by offering customer's specialized service and engineering teams to respond promptly to customer requirements.

The telecoms company has had exceptional growth in the region since it began operations in 1998 in Kenya and become the largest CDMA product provider in the region. Speaking during celebrations in Nairobi on Tuesday night, Huawei Kenya CEO Herman He said the company first tapped into East Africa market with its cutting-edge technology and top-ranking services.

He said Huawei, together with African operators, has built a comprehensive communication infrastructure, enriching the life of African people due to diversified communication services offered by the telecom company.

"Based on our equipments and solution, Kenyans enjoy various quality and affordable services, including value added service, voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) and broadband service through NGN, CDMA and 3G," said Herman.

Herman noted that some of the leading telecommunication companies such as Kenya's Safaricom, Celtel Kenya and leading fixed-line incumbent Telkom Kenya have benefited from Huawei' s advanced technology, reliable products and quality service.

"In Kenya, Huawei is the major supplies of optical transmission network of Safaricom, and have offered it high speed wireless internet access service of 7.2 MB through leading 3G solution in Nairobi," he said.

"We have also successfully built Telkom Kenya's National CDMA wireless, as a end to end solution, we also provide Intelligent Network, NGN, Data Communication," he said.

Herman said Huawei will never stop its efforts in providing timely response, proficient service and customized service portfolio.

The Chinese company has created more than 400 jobs both directly and indirectly in Kenya while it has employed over 3,000 employees in the sub-Saharan Africa.

Joe Deng, Huawei's East Africa President, said the firm has invested about $1 million in Kenya to establish a fully furnished training centre with the latest and best equipment to train local customers, partners and their staff in the latest communication technology.

"Huawei East Africa has long-term strategically plan to invest in Kenya and become 100 percent Kenyan company. Area of investment will cover social responsibility, environmental awareness, technology education and knowledge transfer as well as enriching Kenyans life through communication, Deng said.

Huawei Kenya, with around 65 percent Kenyan employees, is a registered local company. It is the headquarters of East Africa, serving other branch offices including Uganda, Tanzania, Congo, and Ethiopian among other countries.

"We constantly update our customers on the latest technological developments which allow them to make informed decisions for their organizations and customers. In 2008, we will strengthen our investment in wireless terminals, as well as research and development," said Deng.

The Chinese company was the first to introduce next generation telecommunication technologies in Africa such as UMTS/WCDMA, WiMAX and CDMA EV-DO and services mainstream mobile operators such as Vodacom, Orange, Telkom, MTN, Milliccom, Celtel and Safaricom among others.

(Xinhua News Agency June 5, 2008)