The Vietnamese-Cameroonian joint venture Viettel Cameroon S.A.R.L has agreed to use IBM Smarter Computing solution software to create a 3G data service infrastructure in the African nation.

The new IT platform will help provide advanced mobile services to millions of subscribers in the country.

Cameroon is home to about 20 million people, while the mobile penetration rate is about 49 percent. Mobiles are used mostly for voice calls and less for advanced data applications due to infrastructure limitations. The introduction of integrated 3G data services is expected to attract up to six million new subscribers.

Phung Van Cuong, Chief Information Officer of the Viettel Group, said that the IBM Smarter Computing solution will unleash new services in Cameroon, allowing a customer to make a video call while surfing the Internet, chat online, play interactive games with friends and connect to multimedia apps through tablet devices.

Viettel Cameroon S.A.R.L is a joint company between the military-run telecoms provider Viettel and Bestinver Cameroon S.A.R.L. This joint venture is the largest telecommunications company in the African country, with 6,000 employees and a network covering 81 percent of Cameroon’s area.-VNA