Thuraya expands into Zambian market

Dubai: Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company has forged a service provisioning (SP) alliance with SatCom to promote and distribute its satellite services in Zambia.

The latest agreement with Zambia is seen as a major step forward for Thuraya's continuous focus on African markets taking the total number to more than 110 countries in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Asia where Thuraya offers services.

The long-time commercial partner for Thuraya, the UK-based SatCom Distribution, will market and sell the whole range of Thuraya's products and services in the southern African country.

These include Thuraya's second-generation handsets and Payphone and Rural Telephony solutions as well as ThurayaDSL broadband data service.

According to the agreement SatCom will also promote the "AfricaTalk tariffs", a special tariff package customised for African communities.

Currently available in 18 African countries, the package offers Thuraya-to-Thuraya calls at $0.45 per minute and international calls at $0.65 per minute.

Zambia, a nation of 11 million people, has made major progress in telecoms expansion in recent years, but both fixed-line and mobile phone services have yet to reach many parts of the country.