Company Announcement - Pan African telecoms operator, Gondwana International Networks has announced that its iWayAfrica business has launched a managed infrastructure and services solution in Kenya. The new product offering, iManage has been developed in conjunction with managed services company, SevenC Computing and is according to iWayAfrica, a welcome reprieve for local SMEs. Winston Smith, General Manager, Terrestrial Services for GIN and iWayAfrica says the timing of the iManage launch is just right as Kenya welcomes a new dawn in terms of how business ICT services are managed: “At a time when data is a key decision-making tool, its optimal management and protection is paramount and the launch of iManage in Kenya is thus happening at the right time.”

Smith says that the partnership with SevenC Computing has already proven beneficial in several countries: “With the recent addition of Uganda and Ghana, coupled with the success achieved in Namibia and Zimbabwe, we anticipate tremendous growth in Kenya. There is great demand for level three managed services support in Africa, as cloud simply cannot deliver on its own.”

According to the African Development Bank, Kenya is the anchor within the East African Community. The overall performance of the region will to a great extent depend on what happens in Kenya. It is the largest economy in the region and is much more dynamic than those of other member countries. Kenya’s economy is much better linked to the other economies in terms of investment flows and trade.

SevenC Computing Managing Director, Darren Osbourn says Kenya is indeed a fast developing country and needs the SME sector to succeed, propelling the economy forward and creating long-lasting employment: “Given that IT skills across Africa are lacking, IWayAfrica has a significant opportunity to successfully introduce a unique managed service solution in conjunction with SevenC Computing.”

Ken Munyi, Managing Director: iWayAfrica Kenya says that the local market faces several IT challenges including data loss; lack of efficient delivery of content to multiple platforms; attacks from cyber criminals and hackers; high cost of ICT services; difficulty implementing disaster recovery plans; a lack of comprehensive reporting and analytics of the IT Environment; and a lack of SLA on service delivery and performance.

He says that IT is seen as a significant enabler, but one better suited to being outsourced as opposed to provided in-house: “Local SMEs usually do not have the resources or skills to manage these functions in-house and would prefer directing their resources to their core business instead of using such in capital expenditure for the required IT infrastructure. The iManage solution is as a result, perfect for the Kenyan market, enabling SME businesses to focus on building their businesses and not managing IT.” The iManage solution according to Munyi will address the majority of these local IT issues, making it much easier for Kenyan organisations to concentrate on building a vibrant economy.