{"id":18439,"date":"2021-09-28T09:43:26","date_gmt":"2021-09-28T08:43:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=18439"},"modified":"2025-10-28T15:05:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T15:05:41","slug":"gsma-opens-doors-to-mwc-africa-2021-a-virtual-event-powered-out-of-kigali","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/press-release\/gsma-opens-doors-to-mwc-africa-2021-a-virtual-event-powered-out-of-kigali\/","title":{"rendered":"GSMA Opens Doors to MWC Africa 2021 \u2013 A Virtual Event Powered Out of Kigali"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>This year\u2019s online event will bring together decision-makers from across Africa\u2019s vibrant mobile ecosystem to explore how technology and connectivity can lead the global recovery <\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>28 September 2021, London<\/strong>: GSMA is today celebrating the launch of MWC Africa 2021, a virtual event powered out of Kigali. Together with founding partners Mastercard, MTN, Orange and, ZTE, the organisation will convene Africa\u2019s mobile leaders at the continent\u2019s most connected and influential technology event.<\/p>\n<p>The theme for MWC Africa 2021 is\u00a0<em>Powering a Continent<\/em>.<strong>\u00a0The next three days will see GSMA and industry leaders\u00a0<\/strong>explore the potential impact of 5G and showcase how the mobile ecosystem is sparking conversation and imagination &#8211; powering a better future.<\/p>\n<p>Over 100 keynote and conference speakers will inspire and provoke. Speakers include;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Paula Ingabire, Minister of ICT and Innovation,\u00a0<strong>Government of Rwanda<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Lacina Kon\u00e9 Director-General<strong>, Smart Africa. <\/strong><\/li>\n<li>John Omo, Secretary General,<strong> African Telecommunications Union<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>St\u00e9phane Richard, Chairman and, CEO,\u00a0<strong>ORANGE <\/strong>Chairman of the Board,\u00a0<strong>GSMA<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Alioune Ndiaye, Chief Executive Officer, <strong>Orange Middle East and Africa<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Shasolutions-and-impact\/connectivity-for-good\/public-policy\/regulatory-environment\/mobile-energy-efficiencyl Joosub, CEO,<strong> Vodacom Group<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Yolanda Cuba, Group VP Southern and East Africa Region, <strong>MTN Group<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Michael Foley, Regional Director &#8211; Francophone Region, <strong>Airtel Africa PLC<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Amnah Ajmanl, EVP, Market Development, Middle East and Africa,\u00a0<strong>Mastercard<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Daddy Mukadi, Chief Regulatory Officer Africa,\u00a0<strong>Airtel Africa PLC<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Matthew Harrison Harvey, Chief External Affairs and Regulatory Officer<strong>, Safaricom Ethiopia<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Steve Chege, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, <strong>Safaricom PLC<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>James Zhang, SVP, President of MTO BG &amp; Global Marketing,\u00a0<strong>ZTE <\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Ingrid-Gabriela Hoven, Managing Director,<strong> GIZ<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Andrew Rugege, Regional Director for Africa,<strong> ITU<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Magdalena Banasiak, Senior Innovation Adviser, UK, <strong>Foreign, Commonwealth &amp; Development Office (FCDO)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>John Giusti, Chief Regulatory Officer, <strong>GSMA<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Angela Wamola, Ag Head Sub Saharan Africa, <strong>GSMA<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Max Cuvellier, Head of M4D, <strong>GSMA<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><u>Analysing mobile trends and usage\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Eagerly anticipated industry reports are launching this week at MWC Africa. These include the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/somic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">State of Mobile Internet Connectivity Report 2021<\/a>, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/solutions-and-impact\/connectivity-for-good\/mobile-economy\/africa\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/connectivity-for-good\/spectrum\/gsma_resources\/africa-ssa-5g-spectrum-roadmaps\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Roadmaps for 5G Spectrum: Sub-Saharan Africa<\/a>. The reports consider the latest data, forecasts, and trends for the region and include a range of policy recommendations that highlight considerations governments and regulators need to explore in the planning for 5G. These reports ultimately aim to ensure that mobile internet makes the best possible contribution to the regional economy, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing the ever pressing usage gap.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMobile connectivity is a vital enabler of economic and social development across Africa, particularly in developing countries. Delivering on mobile\u2019s true potential relies on public and private stakeholders coming together to reduce barriers to digital inclusion. This includes ensuring consumer affordability and creating a favourable legislative environment that encourages operators to continue further investment programmes that accelerate our digital economy,\u201d said\u00a0<strong>Angela Wamola, Ag Head Sub Saharan Africa, GSMA.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cWe are collaborating with governments in countries across Africa to develop legislation that boosts connectivity, economic growth, investment, and fiscal stability \u2013 ultimately creating Connected Impact for citizens across the continent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>We hope to see you there and invite you can find out more about MWC Africa <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwc-africa.com\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">-ENDS-<\/p>\n<p><strong>About GSMA<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive. Representing mobile operators and organisations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for its members across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, tackling today\u2019s biggest societal challenges, underpinning the technology and interoperability that make mobile work, and providing the world\u2019s largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.<\/p>\n<p>We invite you to find out more at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">gsma.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Media Contacts<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>GSMA Press Office<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"mailto:pressoffice@gsma.com\">pressoffice@gsma.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This year\u2019s online event will bring together decision-makers from across Africa\u2019s vibrant mobile ecosystem to explore how technology and connectivity can lead the global recovery 28 September 2021, London: GSMA is today celebrating the launch of MWC Africa 2021, a virtual event powered out of Kigali. Together with founding partners Mastercard, MTN, Orange and, ZTE, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":18446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"algolia_discover_type":[6627],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.0 (Yoast SEO v22.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>GSMA Opens Doors to MWC Africa 2021 \u2013 A Virtual Event Powered Out of Kigali - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/press-release\/gsma-opens-doors-to-mwc-africa-2021-a-virtual-event-powered-out-of-kigali\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"GSMA Opens Doors to MWC Africa 2021 \u2013 A Virtual Event Powered Out of Kigali\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This year\u2019s online event will bring together decision-makers from across Africa\u2019s vibrant mobile ecosystem to explore how technology and connectivity can lead the global recovery 28 September 2021, London: GSMA is today celebrating the launch of MWC Africa 2021, a virtual event powered out of Kigali. 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