The World Bank has approved US$85 million of funding to help the government of Senegal and the Senegal National Power Utility (SENELEC) to improve electricity services in the country.

The financing will be used over a five-year period to upgrade and modernise electricity transmission and distribution components; create more transparency and accountability within the energy sector; develop a medium and long term strategy for the energy sector; and upgrade SENELEC billing systems to reduce high collection costs and losses related to fraud.

Australian airline Qantas has confirmed it is in discussions with a number of other airlines about potential alliances.

Shares in the national carrier have soared after it confirmed the rumours, adding that one of the airlines it is engaged in talks with is Dubai-based Emirates.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based LB Foster has been awarded a $60 million contract—its largest ever for rail products—for the Honolulu Rail Transit Project.

The contract has been awarded by Kiewit/Kobayashi, a joint venture for the county-wide construction of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) passenger transit system.

Submarine fibre-optic cables are helping Africa keep up with rapacious growth in consumer demand and fulfil the ambitions of the Connect Africa Summit.

Africa experienced an explosion in demand for mobile voice services in the first decade of the 21st century, but if broadband Internet access is to come of age in the second decade, it will require a considerable amount of investment in infrastructure.

Political will, fiscal capability and technical ability have come together in Panama to help alleviate traffic congestion in the capital city with an elegant solution – El Metro de Panama.

Broadband growth is strongly linked to GDP growth, job creation, and ultimately, economic health. And although Africa’s mobile industry has come a long way over the past few years, there is still much work to be done.

One organisation is using the massive growth in Africa’s mobile technology sector to connect the continent’s population and drive positive social change.

Airtel Kenya is focusing on the power of innovation to satisfy the needs of its growing base of loyal customers in one of East Africa’s fastest-moving markets.

Airtel’s African operations are owned by Bharti Airtel Limited, a leading integrated telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top five mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers.

Business leaders should consider how they can remove layers of unnecessary complexity within their organisations in order to improve operational processes and benefit from simplicity.

Getting clean and safe water for those who desperately need it is just one of the areas of operation for infrastructure specialists Sukuma Consulting Engineers.