China Telecom Global has established a new subsidiary to serve as the regional headquarters for the Africa and Middle East area.
China Telecom (Africa and Middle East) Limited will oversee all market development, network construction, business development and management of subsidiaries in the MEA region.
Over the past few years China Telecom Global has expanded its reach in the region, improving accessibility in the UAE, South Africa, Kenya, Egypt and Nigeria.
The operator also recently signed a contract with East Africa's Wananchi Group to help build a 428km national optical network in Malawi.
Under the deal, China Telecom will be involved in construction of the Malawi Virtual Landing Point for a regional ring connecting Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia, with a link to five subsea cable networks.
Announcing the establishment of the new regional headquarters, China Telecom Global said Africa is the world's second most populous content but telecom infrastructure in the region remains immature and backbone services are high in cost.
This gives the operator the chance to expand in the booming new telecom market and play a role in developing the telecom sector in the region.