The Baton Issue 3 | Jan – Jun 2023

As one of Africa’s leading innovation and systems integration partners, we deliver managed services, digital services, consulting services, maintenance and support. Learn more in our latest corporate magazine.

ISSUE 3 | JAN - JUN 2023

ADVERTORIAL

NEC NAMED STRATEGIC ALLIANCES Partner of the Year: 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022

Cloud Metro

Sustainable Systems

Sustainable Architecture

Juniper Optics

Sustainable Operations

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Paragon Automation

IP Services Fabric

Unified PON

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Embedded Active Assurance

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AI-Enabled

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Cloud Delivered aaS + New

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Sustainability in Action

Juniper Cloud Metro Networks Leave your retro metro in the past.

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CONTENTS:

Issue 3, 2023 • The Baton is NEC XON’s biannual corporate magazine • NEC XON is an NEC Company • NEC XON combines the businesses of XON and NEC Africa. XON has been a systems integrator servicing the needs of government, enterprise, telcos and service providers in Africa since 1996. NEC Africa is the African operation of global technology giant NEC Corporation, which implemented its first communication solution in Africa in 1963. • Copyright reserved 2023. You may not reproduce any portion of this magazine without quoting the source fully or requesting permission from NEC XON’s duly appointed marketing representative. Registered and unregistered trademarks are protected by ownership and first-use common law in the Republic of South Africa and remain the property of their respective companies. • Editorial credits: NEC XON Marketing, Scarlet Letter.

Decypher helps SMEs solve their

NEC XON helping to carry Africa’s

cyberattacks threaten network uptime. A shortage of skilled staff is disrupting operations. And manual operations, at scale, are not sustainable — especially when customers demand and expect uninterrupted services. More so, they expect service providers to be environmentally conscious and reduce factors detrimental to climate. Retro metros weren’t built for this. Service providers must reinvent their architectures to support new traffic patterns, capacity, and user expectations. Juniper Cloud Metro is architecture for a sustainable future. Built from the ground up on cloud principles that enable secure, guaranteed performance, it takes an innovative approach to delivering superlative experiences at the edge. It transforms the metro by building a next-generation network that is more intelligent, service-aware, and people-first. Juniper Cloud Metro includes: • Paragon Automation as a Service • ACX7000 Family of Cloud Metro routers • Scalable IP Services Fabric

biggest IT challenges

IT baton

5G ORAN set to satisfy Africa’s

A pan-African vision for growth

appetite for mobile data

New Human Capital team to help IT

Cloud-Delivered, AI-enabled Paragon Automation as a Service simplifies operations, frees up resources, and reduces time-to-service from months to minutes.

Threat hunting from reactive to

execs source the right talent

proactive cybersecurity

East Africa RMT boosts NEC XON’s

American Tower company signs supply agreement with NEC XON to monitor sites Leading pathologist deploys managed cybersecurity Creating a facial recognition platform for Dakar Airport

business agility

ACX7000 is a family of multiservice routers with energy-efficient designs that achieve

Malawi Fertilizer Company looks to NEC XON to provide Hybrid Power System

the right balance of density, scale, and performance with capacity to grow. The Scalable IP Services Fabric introduces new ways to build secured metro architecture for converged services and advanced

PEOPLE

Open RAN security in 5G

Sustainable Business Growth

Exciting times: Africa’s digital and

energy transformation

network slicing. Embedded Active Assurance agents turn Cloud Metro networks into a distributed sensor for assured

e-Voucher for Mozambican women 35 in distress

PROFIT

PLANET

Cameras and sensors could kick off smart city strategies for SA Low-cost peering infrastructure from Teraco, TIP and NEC XON Airtel Kenya upgrades core Juniper network with NEC XON support

user experiences. Built-In Zero Trust Security ensures data at rest and in transit are well-protected, giving service providers and their end-users peace of mind. 400G ZR/ZR+ Optics reduce your costs by consolidating IP and optical layers with coherent optics, eliminating the DWDM transponder terminals’ entire layer by 400G ZR/ZR+ DCO integration. At Juniper, we make design choices not just for today, but for the next decade. You can build a more sustainable business with Cloud Metro–for your people, the planet, and profit. Statement of Product Direction

· Embedded Active Assurance · Built-in Zero Trust Security

• 400G ZR/ZR+ Optics

Our African footprint

Solutions for an evolving world

Scan to learn more.

FOREWORD

COLUMN

African GROWTH NEC XON - PAN -

OUR COMMITMENT TO YOU Technology has the power to

transform businesses and societies. Our team of experts is passionate about delivering solutions that enable our clients to achieve their goals and thrive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. We invite you to partner with us on your digital transformation journey. Our team of experts is ready to work with you to design and implement solutions that meet your unique needs and help you achieve your business objectives. Thank you for considering NEC XON as your technology solutions partner.

NEC XON helping to carry Africa’s IT baton

A s a leading Pan-African technology solutions integrator, NEC XON has a rich history of providing innovative solutions to customers across the continent. I am proud to present the continuation of that tradition in the latest edition of The Baton. PAN-AFRICAN GROWTH NEC has been doing business in Africa since 1963, and the XON journey began in 1996 when the South African-based ICT services and solutions provider was formed. NEC has grown a majority stake in XON, starting with an initial minority share acquisition in 2015. NEC XON has positioned itself to support its customers across the continent through its South African head office and East and West African regional hubs. This support happens either directly, or through strategic partnerships and together we have provided solutions in 54 African countries. Our unwavering commitment to quality solutions and services has earned us trusted partner status with key customers in industries like telecommunications, financial services, government, and retail. NEC XON’s strong African presence is built on a growing continental network of expertise positioning us to continue to grow in the African market and beyond. END-TO-END EXPERTISE - DELIVERING SOLUTIONS TAILORED TO AFRICA At NEC XON, we pride ourselves on our broad expertise, which extends beyond networking to include energy and infrastructure, safety and security, national identity, next- generation AI-managed surveillance

and cybersecurity solutions. We have also invested significantly in building local capabilities in professional services, human capital services, and data management, enabling us to provide end-to-end solutions irrespective of the technology used. We design, implement and manage large-scale projects across various technologies and industries, making us the go-to technology solutions integrator across Africa. Our passion for the continent is evident in our involvement in alternative energy systems and backup energy solutions. NEC XON’s comprehensive range of products and services includes solar energy solutions, hybrid power systems, and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems. These solutions are particularly relevant where access to reliable, affordable energy remains challenging.

Sincerely, Johann Coetzee Executive VP of NEC XON

A ccording to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the African continent will be home to the world’s fastest-growing economies over the next 10 years, with GDP growth of an estimated 5.4%. The future of technology in Africa simultaneously holds immense potential. With the exponential growth in mobile connectivity, mobile data usage, and the increasing adoption of 5G networks, Africa is at the forefront of the digital revolution. In particular, the

needs of African customers, with a particular emphasis on high-speed, reliable performance. The solutions we discuss in this issue include networking equipment and the added monitoring and analytics to help customers better understand the behaviour of their networks. When it comes to cyber security, you will find examples of NEC XON providing finely-tuned solutions that incorporate multi-factor authentication, identity management and more. 5G ORAN is another area where we are particularly active, offering a range of services designed to support the deployment of mobile networks in Africa. We are a part of Africa’s telecoms engine room with innovative services helping African customers make the most of their telecoms infrastructure. From the digitalisation of their operations to the development of new products and services, businesses now have access to a range of tools and services that can help them become more competitive in the global market. NEC XON is here to help them do so. We hope you find this edition of The Baton relevant and informative. Please reach out to me if you have any thoughts you’d like to discuss.

advent of OpenRAN and Meta’s Telecom Infra Project (TIP)

will be instrumental in accelerating the development and deployment of open,

disaggregated, and standards- based technology solutions.

In this context, NEC XON is excited to be at the forefront of innovative telecoms solutions in Africa, as is demonstrated in this third issue of

The Baton. We offer bespoke solutions

Kind regards Carel Coetzee CEO of NEC XON

tailored to the

NEWS

“The recruitment team has a particular focus on sourcing top-tier talent from various industries and positions, ranging from entry- level positions to executive leadership,” Stephan Ras, Executive Managed Services and Consulting at NEC XON

various industries and positions, ranging from entry-level positions to executive leadership,” he said. The Human Capital team adopts a personalised approach to each client engagement, working closely with IT executives to understand their specific skills requirements and sourcing the right talent to meet those needs. With a deep understanding of the skills required across various roles and industries, the team is well-equipped to deliver tailored staffing solutions that align with each client’s unique needs. In addition to recruitment services, Human Capital also offers workforce management solutions to help IT executives optimise their staffing operations. These solutions include workforce planning, scheduling,

performance management, compliance, and risk management. By leveraging Human Capital’s expertise in workforce management, IT executives can streamline their staffing processes, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Overall, NEC XON’s Human Capital business unit provides a valuable resource to IT executives needing critical skilled contract resources. With a deep understanding of the talent landscape and a commitment to delivering personalised staffing solutions, the Human Capital team is well-positioned to help IT executives achieve their staffing goals and drive business success. For more information about NEC XON’s Human Capital business unit, please contact humancapital@nec.xon.co.za.

N EC XON has announced the launch of a Human Capital business unit. The unit provides a range of workforce management and contract resourcing solutions to meet the critical staffing needs of South African businesses. The unit boasts a team with the requisite knowledge and expertise to offer precision-tailored staffing solutions. Stephan Ras, NEC XON’s Executive for Managed Services and Consulting, explained that the Human Capital team is dedicated to helping IT executives find the right talent to achieve their business objectives. “The recruitment team has a particular focus on sourcing top-tier talent from Stephan Ras, Executive: Managed Services and Consulting at NEC XON

NEC XON boosts business agility with East Africa RMT

knowledge. That knowledge is a product of relationship-based familiarity.”

It’s also about trust. Local RMT members have grown up and done business with NEC XON’s key regional clients for years. “We are one people across the EA market. As an example many of our clients in East Africa speak Swahili, so it makes sense for Swahili speakers to lead efforts to develop these regional clients,” said Nganga. East Africa is a technically mature and highly competitive market. The responsibility given to the team is enabling previously untapped opportunities to be embraced. This means more personal growth and development for local employees and leaders. “Apart from the established local team, we’ve also hired key new people who will further support improved service delivery across our business units,” said Nganga. Munro is confident about the team. “We have good human capital. Our skills include management, telecoms, networking, and safety and security. Contact with local customers will be key to the strategy we implement in the next five to ten years.”

senior leaders who understand how to support East African customers,” said Gary Munro, NEC XON VP of Africa Operations. Kenya has been the regional office since the eighties, with support from Japan and South Africa and the members of the EA RMT have the local management knowledge critical for navigating the EA market. Regional NEC XON Sales Manager Philip Nganga said strong relationships lead to success. “We provide solutions, and relevant solutions require deep customer “We provide solutions, and relevant solutions require deep customer knowledge. That knowledge is a product of relationship-based familiarity.”

HUMAN CAPITAL NEC XON Launches Business Unit

I n 2022, NEC XON appointed a Regional Management Team (RMT) in East Africa (EA) to improve responsiveness to local customers with faster, locally astute decisions. “Traditional corporate decision-making structures aren’t as aware of the regional market as local leaders are. We need business agility and, to achieve that, we empowered local

CUSTOMER SUCCESS

NEC XON to provide Malawi Fertilizer Company with a Hybrid Power System.

Data center experts deploy

N EC XON has been contracted by Malawi Fertilizer Company (MFC) to provide a state-of-the-art Hybrid Power System (HPS). The contract will help to protect MFC’s investment in new infrastructure in Nacala, Liwonde and Blantyre to improve its business efficiency on the Nacala corridor. MFC blends and supplies NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) fertiliser mixtures for the agricultural sector in the region. “The new facility in Liwonde is a modern, 15 000m 2 structure with a bagging capacity of 2000 metric tons per day and a production capacity of 1000 metric tons per day,” said Herman Viljoen, GM Renewables and Storage at NEC XON. “One of the main challenges faced at Liwonde is consistent, clean energy supply. MFC therefore approached NEC XON to provide and install the hybrid energy plant with backup capacity to support the facility’s operations.” The HPS is designed to reduce the cost of energy, enhance energy supply quality, protect equipment, support energy-sensitive applications and reduce carbon emissions. MFC can expect a huge reduction in diesel and generator maintenance costs. The system will include a 321.5kWp photovoltaic (PV) farm, 668.8kWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), AC infrastructure, 550 kVA generator, and an Energy Herman Viljoen, GM Renewables and Storage at NEC XON

with less risk.

Management System (EMS) that can be remotely monitored and controlled.

power returns, the site will seamlessly switch back.

The HPS combines various power sources into one system that is controlled by an EMS. The EMS controls the various sources and ensures that the site is supplied with power at all times, while reducing the cost of running the system with functions like peak shaving and time of use management. The HPS switches seamlessly between on and off-grid supply, depending on the grid’s availability and quality of the supply, ensuring that critical equipment is protected. The BESS will allow the site to be powered while the grid is unavailable, along with solar energy, and use the excess power to charge the BESS. If the solar is unable to fully charge the BESS during load-shedding, the generator will be started based on the State of Charge (SOC). When grid

The site was commissioned in February 2023.

EcoStruxure ™ for Data Center delivers efficiency, performance, and predictability. • Rules-based designs accelerate the deployment of your micro, row, pod, or modular data centers. • Lifecycle services drive continuous performance. • Cloud-based management and services help maintain uptime and manage alarms. • Deliver sustainability, lower TCO and maximize floor space

Galaxy ™ VL

“One of the main challenges faced at Liwonde is consistent, clean energy supply. MFC therefore approached NEC XON to provide and install the hybrid energy plant with backup capacity to support the facility’s operations.”

#WhatsYourBoldIdea

se.com/datacenter

PARTNERSHIP

Open RAN security in 5G

for MNOs and CSPs in the 5G world, particularly where Open RAN enables integrated equipment from a multitude of vendors,” said Paul Willemse, Technical Sales Consultant at NEC XON. “It’s vital to secure the radio access network (RAN), mobile roaming, 5G edge deployments, and the telco edge cloud (TEC).” It is essential to prioritise security in 5G and Open RAN environments to protect infrastructure from constantly emerging threat vectors.

N EC XON and Fortinet have created a demonstration and test facility of best practice Open RAN security in the NEC XON Experience Centre in Midrand, South Africa. The Experience Centre includes FortiGate from Fortinet, the world’s highest performing hyper-scale firewall, as well as NEC XON’s carrier- grade integration expertise and resources. “We can cost-effectively secure Open RAN environments using FortiGate, and customers can test it in our

Experience Centre before bringing it to their live environment,” said Anthony Laing, GM of Networking at NEC XON. Because 5G massively increases data traffic and introduces architectural shifts to mobile network operator (MNO) and communication service provider (CSP) networks, this requires them to protect against emerging threats without sacrificing customer experience. NEC XON can show customers how to get deep visibility into their user, application and threat environments via a single pane of glass, and how to protect themselves from unknown threats in the emerging 5G era.

Fortinet’s security solutions include automation capabilities and AI-driven threat intelligence that

customers can test in the Experience Centre. NEC XON will leverage these solutions and ICT giant NEC’s

network expertise accumulated at its NEC Centers of Excellence (CoE), and NEC Open Networks, an ecosystem consisting of an end-to- end suite of future-proofed open products and solutions.

“There are new security concerns

“There are new security concerns for MNOs and CSPs in the 5G world, particularly where Open RAN enables integrated equipment from a multitude of vendors.”

Paul Willemse, Technical Sales Consultant at NEC XON

TRENDS

private sector does it better. In South Africa, for example, the private sector typically plays a critical role and the government needn’t invest heavily in IT infrastructure. The private sector’s contribution to the energy sector is becoming apparent. In other African countries, the private sector is typically a little slower to invest. In the networking space, the deployment of mobile networks in the 90s and 2000s provided an opportunity for many providers to leapfrog many legacy networking stages. This trend will

one that creates a sustainable impact in Africa. How? Well, Africa’s networks need to be built, and powered, data needs to be stored, decentralised and secured. The benefits of the digital economy must be appropriately translated for an African context characterised by a wide variety of localised needs and unique regulatory requirements. PUBLIC-PRIVATE COLLABORATION NEEDED Both the public and private sectors have a role to play. International investors have recognised the “NEC XON plans to be firmly at the centre of Africa’s growth, helping to orchestrate a brighter future through a vision that will be beneficial to all.”

D igital transformation is a key African economic growth driver and will change the way we learn, work, transact and interact. Digital infrastructure will create an environment for e-government services, education, smart agriculture and digital business that could transform the continent into a global economic powerhouse. That infrastructure includes digital identity, cybersecurity, networks and data centres. International aid agencies, microfinance and development finance institutions that historically focused on industrialisation, agriculture, poverty alleviation and education now include digital transformation in their efforts. AFRICA NEEDS RELIABLE ENERGY Africa’s growth and digital transformation will rely on the availability of stable and reliable energy. Schools, hospitals, farms, water treatment plants, pumping stations, SMEs, industry, networks, data centres, and government services all need to be powered. There is rapid global migration toward clean, renewable and sustainable sources of energy. Africa’s lack of electricity transmission infrastructure is not necessarily a hindrance, as it allows for distributed energy generation models, minimising transmission losses and maximising renewable energy investments. NEC XON plans to be firmly at the centre of Africa’s growth, helping to orchestrate a brighter future through a vision that will be beneficial to all. Not a purely commercial vision, but By Gary Munro, VP of Africa Operations at NEC XON

continue into the future. New innovative operators have an opportunity to

disrupt the market using 5G OpenRAN. Simultaneously, Meta’s Telecom Infra Project provides flexibility of hardware and software pairings they choose for their data centers and network peering infrastructure. GLOBAL STRENGTH NEC XON is perfectly positioned to leverage its relationship with parent company NEC to Africa’s benefit. NEC

correlation between digital transformation, energy - and

economic growth. Africa is benefitting from large investments in start-ups in areas like Fintech, Finsure, IoT, digital infrastructure and renewable technologies. Where private sector investment is lacking, African governments are investing in digital infrastructure and renewable energy. They are creating digital acceleration roadmaps that provide policy certainty – the key that unlocks private sector investment, encourages confidence and stimulates infrastructure growth. ENCOURAGING INVESTMENT THROUGH POLICY The regulatory environment needs to promote ease and security of long-term energy and technology investments. While some sectors in African countries are reserved for local companies or governments, on the whole our experience is that the

has transitioned from being a Japanese company into a truly

global player developing local solutions in those markets - while drawing on the best expertise to solve problems using its global diversity of experience. We need to think beyond the

Africa’s digital and energy transformation

EXCITING TIMES:

bottom line and, using our deep understanding of African needs, work with governments and customers to help Africa build that bright future it so richly deserves.

OPINION

re-allocate public transport from low-volume routes to deal with sudden peak demand – outside sports stadiums, for example. Cameras could also detect accidents and send first responders to handle medical needs and manage traffic while clearing the scene to minimise congestion. But cameras on their own still require humans to watch screens and pick up events. Generally, dashboards and reports tend to be retrospective. City leaders want and need a view of events as they unfold, with automatic alerts when thresholds are exceeded, and automated processes initiated in response to events. Using analytics to identify people and events becomes exciting when camera technology connected to

around them. AI systems learn continuously, and proper analytics can cut down the need for human monitoring by about 70%. Those people can be reallocated to more important tasks, or tasks that really require human intervention. With AI, machine learning and process automation, important alarms are raised, and key contacts alerted automatically. Mean time to respond (MTTR) to critical events can be massively reduced while

H igh crime rates are a reality in South Africa. For that reason, a number of cities have already created camera-based monitoring systems to deter criminals or identify and prosecute them if they transgress the law. One example is Safe City Msunduzi, an entity of the Msunduzi Municipality which monitors 169 CCTV cameras across Pietermaritzburg. Some are going even further, like the City of Cape Town which is building on its camera-based system to deploy drones, gunshot sensors and a tech- heavy Highway Patrol Unit that will automatically scan number plates. STEPPINGSTONE TO A SMART CITY Camera-based security provides a natural springboard for strategic smart city management systems which also use cameras, but add sensors and analytics engines – ideally consolidated in a command and control centre. IoT-based monitoring systems can use smart data analytics to collect, correlate and flag relevant data. Machine learning can identify trends and outliers in critical infrastructure to automatically dispatch technicians to deal with outages, or even predict outages and prevent them in the first place. Smart technologies are being applied in areas such as transport, where cities use smart sensors in roads to improve traffic flow, and connected buses give commuters accurate travel times. Such systems could monitor and automate a broad range of city processes and intelligently allocate By Gregg Sanders, GM Digital Solutions at NEC XON

eliminating human error and ensuring process adherence.

CHALLENGES TO OVERCOME

Without connectivity, cameras can’t feed into a real-time smart city system. Connectivity must be built-in, but in a country affected

by loadshedding, redundant power supply is also a necessity.

PROGRAMMED TO RESPOND

How AI and ML systems handle real-world situations Average MTTD (Mean Time To Detect) reduced from >2 hours to <1 second • Average MTTR (Mean Time To Respond) reduced from >6 hours down <2 hours • Monitoring staff reductions from >400 to < 170 (staff were re-deployed to more critical areas of the business)

A smart system should provide centralised command and control with feeds from all sensors in the city’s ecosystem. In South Africa, many city departments operate in silos. South Africa needs to build on camera-systems by deploying IoT- based monitoring systems for water, electricity, the environment and safety. We need to drive community involvement in smart city efforts to educate the public about the possibilities, and to illustrate convenience, build trust between local government and citizens,and ultimately drive adoption.

a smart backend can kickstart the process and help city authorities understand events and the patterns

“Using analytics to identify people and events becomes exciting when camera technology connected to a smart backend can kickstart the process and help city authorities understand events and the patterns around them.”

Cameras and sensors could kick off SMART CITY strategies for SA

resources for greater efficiency and better services to citizens.

During large events, a combination of camera-based monitoring and backend analytics could automatically

CUSTOMER SUCCESS

PARTNERSHIP

monitoring and reporting platform that consolidates

“Juniper is a strategic partner for Airtel, and if there were any network outage, the impact on voice and data services would be huge. This makes NEC XON’s support absolutely business- critical.”

across vendor network automation solutions. “Anuta ATOM delivers stateful service provisioning and workflow management for stateless services, along with configuration compliance and

LOW-COST peering infrastructure from TeraCo, TIP and NEC XON

“Juniper is a strategic partner for Airtel, and if there were any network outage, the impact on voice and data services would be huge,” said Willys Wendoh, Regional Lead Product Management at NEC XON “This makes NEC XON’s support absolutely business-critical.” The MBPN upgrade was divided into two phases, a $1m first phase awarded in April 2022 and a $2m second phase awarded in mid-2022. The core network capacity upgrade is enabling Airtel to accommodate new routing technologies, such as seamless MPLS (multiprotocol label switching), and modernise its data centre. This makes network growth possible by means of new architecture and platform options driven by traffic and service demands. The solution includes Juniper routing, switching and security platforms namely MX routers, QFX switches and SRX firewalls in the data centre.

device life-cycle management,” Wendoh explained.

N EC XON has been entrusted based Mobile Packet Backbone Network (MPBN) core upgrade in Kenya. Airtel is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company that provides services throughout Africa. with Airtel’s Juniper Networks- The project involves a capacity upgrade and re-design of Airtel’s MBPN network to be ready to grow on demand. Airtel was using a mix of old/ EOS Juniper equipment and Extreme Networks switches which were being replaced with Juniper MX Routers and QXF Switches. Willys Wendoh, Regional Lead: Product Management at NEC XON

NEC XON beat multiple international suppliers to the Airtel work. Airtel’s strategic relationship with Juniper meant NEC XON benefitted greatly from Juniper’s recommendation.

Airtel also liked NEC’s global footprint and reputation.

“We’re building a network model that simulates traffic growth,” Wendoh said. “The model enables us to recommend changes to the architecture to accommodate projected growth, and identify scaling issues and potential areas of failure. From this model, you can capture network transport costs that outline equipment and CapEx overhead for the entire network extrapolated for each year in the evolutionary period. It also allows networks to bring revenue generating capabilities online faster for bigger productivity gains, greater market reach, and higher levels of customer satisfaction.”

flexibility to choose the hardware and software combinations that suit their requirements. It drastically lowers the cost of infrastructure and uses open, standards-based interfaces that still allow integration with existing network management systems. LOW INTERNET PENETRATION STIFLES AFRICAN GROWTH Anthony Laing, GM of Networking at NEC XON, said lower networking infrastructure costs can be passed on to consumers. “That means fast Internet access becomes available to a much wider user base – opening up unprecedented education and business opportunities in Africa.”

South African homes numbered just 1,796,360 as of 2021. That’s low for a country reported to have 17,947,000 households (also by Statista). “The technology disaggregates hardware and software and makes high-speed network and datacentre interconnectivity far more accessible and affordable,” said Laing. “The net results are faster, cheaper Internet access for the average user. Lowering barriers to access is vital for Africa where connectivity still isn’t pervasive, and cost is a bigger concern than in some parts of the world.” Michele McCann, Head of Interconnection and Peering, TeraCo, said: “The deployment of TIP’s 400G

T eraco, Africa’s leading carrier- neutral colocation provider, originally broke the high-cost Internet peering spell in South Africa with NAPAfrica. However, notwithstanding NAPAfrica’s low-cost peering, Teraco and its customers remained locked into high-cost proprietary hardware and software providers. Addressing the hardware and software cost issue, TeraCo recently announced the successful deployment of TIP Phoenix in its South African production network, with support from NEC XON. Provided by Facebook/ Meta-found Telecom Infra Project (TIP) Phoenix’s open architecture gives network operators the Anthony Laing, GM of Networking at NEC XON

The solution is also integrated with Anuta ATOM, a network orchestrating,

Airtel Kenya upgrades core Juniper network with NEC XON support

For example, according to Statista, fixed internet connections to

Phoenix solution marks a first in Africa. It greatly enhances TeraCo’s ability to deliver greater capacity and more reliable connectivity for customers, which is at the core of our mission. We would like to thank TIP and NEC for their contributions to this successful initiative.”

“The net results are faster, cheaper Internet access for the average user. Lowering barriers to access is vital for Africa where connectivity still isn’t pervasive, and cost is a bigger concern than in some parts of the world.”

COUNTRIES & SOLUTIONS

African OUR footprint

SENEGAL

REGIONAL HQ: LAGOS

GAMBIA

NEC XON has operated across Africa since 1963. We have a strong local presence and delivery capabilities, either directly or through one of our strategic partnerships.

NIGER

Our Solutions, Products & Services

CHAD

NIGERIA

COTE D’IVOIRE

GHANA

REGIONAL HQ: NAIROBI

Cyber Security

Retail

GABON

ETHIOPIA

Identity Management

Enterprise Technology

CONGO

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

UGANDA

Surveillance & Analytics

KENYA

Digital X

TANZANIA

ANGOLA

KEY:

Infrastructure

Wireless

ZAMBIA

AFRICAN HQ: JOHANNES- BURG

MALAWI

NEC XON OFFICE/PRESENCE

Renewables & Storage

NAMIBIA

STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP OFFICE

Networking

ZIMBABWE

MOZAMBIQUE

Telco Energy

BOTSWANA

NEC OFFICE

SOUTHERN AFRICA WESTERN AFRICA EASTERN AFRICA

MADAGASCAR

SOUTH AFRICA

REUNION

MAURITIUS

LEADERSHIP

NEWS

innovation near Tokyo. Provisionally named “NEC Innovation Building”, it will be used by around 4,700 people belonging to organisations involved in innovation. It’s part of NEC’s aim to become a forum for “creating knowledge” by working with startups and partners around the world and driving social value through innovation. NEC INDUSTRY AWARDS HIGHLIGHT OPEN RAN LEADERSHIP • NEC won the award for `Best Vendor’ at the new Telecom Review Global Excellence Awards in December 2022 for delivering the most open and high-performance 5G networks. The award win recognises NEC’s investment and innovation across its NEC Open Networks offering.

Awards 2022, which recognise innovation and excellence from companies that are transforming the telecoms industry. IMAGE RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGY DIGITALISES WORK ACTIVITIES NEC has developed a highly accurate technology that recognises – in real time – a wide variety of work activities performed by multiple people from images captured by cameras. Even in congested environments with many people, such as construction sites, which have been difficult to accurately analyse until now, it is possible to stably recognise various work activities at one time.

Decypher helps SMEs solve their

biggest IT challenges

N EC XON parent company in the integration of IT and network technologies. The company enables businesses and communities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in society and the market. Committed to safety, security, fairness and efficiency, NEC Corporation promotes a more sustainable world NEC Corporation is a leader where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential. We celebrate with them some recent company highlights. GLOBAL INNOVATION BASE NEC Corporation is constructing a 12-storey green global base for

GATELESS ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM ALLEVIATES

OVERCROWDING AT BUSY EVENTS Imagine a smooth entry to big events with no congestion at the doors. That’s what NEC’s combination of face recognition and person re- identification technologies enables. Using biometric recognition to authenticate large numbers of people the Gateless Access Control System matches people and provides fast, reliable entry control. Instead of using gates, which cause bottlenecks as crowds pass through, authentication can be performed even when lots of people enter, reducing congestion and enabling visitors to move through quickly.

•

NEC won the Editors’ Choice Award for `Most Innovative Open RAN Solution or Product’ at Light Reading’s Leading Lights Awards 2022. The award win bolsters NEC’s leadership position in the Open Radio Unit (O-RU) segment. 18 new O-RU products launched in 2022 help meet the demands of private and public mobile networks that will drive Open RAN initiatives. NEC was commended for its ‘Outstanding Contribution to Open RAN’ at the Global Telecom

N EC XON Western Cape’s Decypher, a managed shared service that helps SMEs overcome their biggest, most common IT-related challenges, is a cloud- based software-as-a-service and security network management service for the SME market. “The biggest SME challenges are limited access to skilled resources, understanding what drives network performance, security, and how that constrains business operations and growth potential,” said Brad Kewney, Regional Head of Coastal Regions at NEC XON. “This is the only service of its kind in the country designed

effectively through a single pane, and enjoy a number of business benefits, including flexibility and greater functionality.” Decypher is a 24x7 service that provides standard packages based on the number of users, the amount of data that can be retained, and the reports it provides. It can also be adapted based on specific business needs. “We’ve worked closely with internal architects and vendor partners to create this flexible service based on enterprise-grade solutions and powered by FortiNet’s FortiAnalyzer,”

for analysis and reporting needs.”

The single pane view into the business’s network has a number of benefits, including simplifying management, improving security, reducing operational overheads, and reducing costs. “Decypher provides a comprehensive monitoring solution with multiple levels of views and summaries of critical alerts in real-time,” said Grant Ferreira, Security Solutions Architect at NEC XON. “SMEs can spot all the top threats and indicators of compromise (IOC) to their network.

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SOLUTIONS for an evolving world

said Kewney. “We manage the customer’s network devices, integrating them into our environment without accessing their client data. That stays in their

“The biggest SME challenges are limited access to skilled resources, understanding what drives network performance, security, and how that constrains business operations and growth potential.”

domain and log files are stored in South Africa, so it’s fully POPI compliant. We pull only the relevant data to create a single pane of glass

for the SME. It helps businesses analyse networks, understand the complete environment, manage it

Brad Kewney, Regional Head of Coastal Regions at NEC XON

is now Adtran.

TRENDS

new network while leveraging the opportunity to minimise capital

“There’s nothing stopping 5G ORAN from becoming Africa’s de facto standard.”

expenditure is important, as is understanding the regulatory

environment and best practices for dealing with financial institutions, government, mobile operators and technology vendors. But the commercial opportunities for individuals to get preferential rates if they are employed by a carrier’s corporate

user (ARPU) using data networks in a market where traditional voice business is diminishing. Operators can partner with finance institutions and governments to implement ecommerce projects, while new, smaller telcos can use 5G ORAN to achieve standalone status, instead of piggybacking off bigger players’ networks, because the investment needed is far smaller. The process of moving commercial networks to ORAN can be confusing. Knowing how to deploy a brand-

A frica’s hunger for inexpensive wireless data transfer capacity remains unabated, despite cost and frequency availability barriers. 5G Open Radio Access Network (ORAN), which brings dramatic data traffic volume capacity growth over current 4G networks, is the answer. It provides network operators with flexible vendor selection and deployment choices that lower total cost of network ownership (TCO) while increasing data throughput. And it comes in at 30-40% cheaper than traditional networks. This means everyone – from school children to business users – can look forward to much faster mobile Internet access at lower costs than ever before. Access to 5G ORAN could provide the stimulus for significant business growth. With the ability to spark entrepreneurship in isolated areas, the technology needs to be rolled out quickly. There’s nothing stopping 5G ORAN from becoming Africa’s de facto standard. It can accommodate market capacity and content demands while lowering the average rate per By Willem Wentzel, Head of Wireless at NEC XON

client are most attractive. We recommend finding a partner positioned to help you grasp 5G ORAN and navigate the complexities of the opportunity it presents.

5G ORAN set to satisfy Africa’s appetite for mobile data

TRENDS

THREAT

from reactive to proactive cybersecurity HUNTING:

Strategic digital voice and data communications

partnership promises high quality clear and fast communication on-demand

The Elvey Group, a member of the Hudaco Group of Companies, has entered into a strategic partnership with NEC XON SA to add high-quality voice and data communications to the well-established NEC XON digital infrastructure deployed in Africa over the last 50 years. Both parties see great potential in growing an already large African footprint. Radio communication is now more relevant and important in Africa as it provides secure high-quality and independently controlled management of a client’s day to day operations. Radio communications has grown from its humble analogue beginnings to feature-rich digital solutions that are deployed relative- ly fast, and are easy to expand, being utilised in government defence departments, all forms of mining operations, and all major security companies multi-nationally. Many of these instances are in remote and hard to reach areas, making self-managed infrastructure and communications networks vital in running successful operations. This is evidenced in the case studies on our website: http://www.globalcomms.net/case-studies

Both parties have operated in Africa for many years and have very strong customer relationships in both government and private enterprise. Integration into NEC XON’s existing and planned infrastructure will offer both existing and future clients access to turnkey communications solutions. The TETRA range of products supplied by the Elvey Group are world-leading in the mission critical space (national police, emergency services, local municipal service supply and other government departments). The SEPURA radio terminals and Rohill infrastructure combine to offer high-quality voice and data comms, with many digital features that the world has come to expect.TETRA is however not limited to the mission critical space and has been very successfully deployed in the mining sector both in South Africa and various other countries in Africa. The Kenwood Professional Mobile Range of analogue and digital products also offers a high-quality voice and digital solution in all sectors. Having partnered with Kenwood for the last 40 years, Elvey has rolled out many communication networks on the African continent through its distribution base. The strategic partnership makes a lot of sense. Integrating Elvey’s basket of products with NEC XON’s high-quality, high-speed infrastructure offers the market a turnkey solution to any and all requirements in terms of wide area voice and data communications. There are a number of high-prole opportunities tabled and the long-term relationship is secure.

Cyberthreat hunting is becoming essential because the threat landscape has become so much more complex in a world of hybrid work. It detects and neutralises advanced threats that could slip past the rules and algorithms of automated defences and relies heavily on the skills of human threat hunters who have expertise and experience in finding, logging and counteracting threats before they can cause serious damage. They know how to identify patterns of suspicious

Threat hunters also look outside the company’s network. For instance, they will analyse which cybercrime syndicates are targeting the company’s industry or country, as well as the techniques they may apply. This not only offers immediate action points, but also informs long-term budgeting and planning. The most secure companies of the future will understand the difference between passive cybersecurity administration and active cyber threat anticipation. Investing in threat hunting can deliver a worthwhile return by helping you to significantly improve detection rates and accelerate time to detect, investigate and remediate threats.

A re enterprises looking at information security in the right way? Recent data breaches and ransomware attacks suggest that many are not. Cybersecurity is still largely shaped by vendor education about the newest tools, best practices and threats on their radar. It sounds good in theory. They’re the experts after all. But the snag is that vendors, too, are responding to new threat vectors as they emerge, leaving a gap that cybercriminals can take advantage of. That’s why forward-thinking companies are not just defending themselves against known threats – they are seeking out unknown dangers too. By Armand Kruger, Head of Cyber Operations & Adversarial Threat Hunting at NEC XON

activity that may indicate the presence of hidden malware,

vulnerabilities or attacks that security information and event management (SIEM) and endpoint detection and response (EDR) missed.

Why NEC XON and the Elvey Group?

As radio communications has developed over the years, it has sought infrastructure partners to provide the backbone for its digital base stations to cover the vast areas in Africa in which communications are required.As such, the partnership with NEC XON allows our Kenwood (digital radio networks) and Rohill (digital mission critical radio networks) portfolios such access.

“Cyberthreat hunting is becoming essential because the threat landscape has become so much more complex in a world of hybrid work and hybrid clouds.”

THE NETWORK OF

Mobility • Wired & Wireless Access • Indoor Location • IoT

Cloud/Telco Cloud • DC edge and Interconnect • Automation • Flexible and open fabrics

AI Driven Network • AI-Driven Operations • SD-Campus & Branch • SD-WAN • Enterprise at Home

Security • Security Director Cloud • Secure Edge (FWaaS) • Connected security • Threat intelligence

Deliver the best client-to-client network experience with Mist AI. Our insight and automation drive real results for your IT team.

www.juniper.net

CUSTOMER SUCCESS

A TC, which owns extensive network tower infrastructure across Africa, selected NEC XON after an 18-month proof of concept (POC) as a technology partner to supply and install hardware and software to monitor and report on the company’s tower sites in Uganda. ATC services major carriers like MTN and wanted remote and full visibility of newly acquired tower sites. Maintaining tower uptimes, having real time visibility and improved MTTR (mean time to respond) and MTTR (mean time to repair/resolve) ensure that customer SLAs are attained. Tower companies incur high operating costs in fuelling diesel generators at tower sites and maintaining a large labour force to ensure service level agreements with carriers are

“A total of 330 sites were fully installed and are reporting to the management platform, and we are looking forward to further growth in 2023.”

met. Understanding the nature of the failure of equipment using smart metres and sensors and IOT technology with effective bidirectional site communication is vital. NEC XON provides remote monitoring services for power assets at ATC’s tower sites, including the capture of raw site data, data analytics and a reporting tool to enable fault fixing and support preventative maintenance. Its RTU and sensors collect vital data on aspects like generator fuel, temperature, power and power sources. “Phase 1 was awarded in June 2021 with rollout starting in December 2021,” said Tracey Townshend, Key Accounts Executive at NEC XON. “A total of 330 sites were fully installed and are reporting to the management platform, and we are looking forward to further growth in 2023.” “We provide smart monitoring, not just reactive monitoring, and our aim is to extend this into ATC,” said Townshend.

“At each site, a lightweight onsite processor collects telemetry from a variety of devices over a variety

of protocols. This data is uploaded, stored and processed into detailed reports by cloud software specifically configured for IoT data. These are displayed as operational, technical and management reports for company use.”

American Tower Company signs supply agreement with NEC XON to monitor sites

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