Leading telecommunications operator, Globacom, is enhancing its reputation as one of the biggest voice and data carriers in Africa. Head of Glo Gateway, Globacom’s international services arm, Steve Stretch, said in a statement in Lagos that the company has deepened its roaming services offering with the addition of over 100 leading network partners across the world in the last one year. Subscribers to Glo who are on the postpaid platform can enjoy seamless roaming services in almost every part of the world as Glo has interconnectivity arrangements with over 430 partners in 176 countries. Thus, Glo is now the network in Nigeria with the largest international postpaid roaming footprint. He noted that Glo had similarly extended its prepaid roaming to more destinations as the service is now available in most major destinations where it is partnering with over 80 leading networks. The countries include United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, South Africa, Ghana, UAE, Algeria, Belgium, Italy, India and Israel. They are also in Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Cote d’Ivoire, Benin Republic, Cameroon, Egypt, Gambia, Kenya, Russia, Turkey and Qatar. Among operators on the African continent, Glo’s General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) roaming footprint is also one of the largest. The service which enables data roaming for mobile phones, laptops, ipads, Blackberry and android handsets is available in 115 countries comprising all the major travel destinations. GPRS roaming enables the subscriber to access the value added services available on the Glo GPRS technology such as Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) and Mobile Internet. Stretch added that that the company’s multi-billion dollar infrastructure, extensive footprint and manpower have made Glo Gateway a major force in international telecoms business.
Globacom made history in 2004 as the first operator in Africa to launch gateway switches outside the continent to carry international voice and data traffic. The international switches in the United Kingdom and Africa have strategically positioned the network as a major player in the global telecommunication industry as they have enabled Glo Gateway to directly interconnect with other leading international carriers. Stretch said: “Glo Gateway’s mission is to build strong customer relationships, loyalty and satisfaction by delivering high-quality cost-effective international communications services on the African continent and the rest of the world through a state-of-the-art network infrastructure, best in class business practices and its empowered, highly skilled employees.”