BNET signs agreement with BearingPoint//Beyond to build digital solutions on AWS to operate the National Broadband Network

Bahrain National Broadband Company ‘BNET’ signed an agreement with BearingPoint//Beyond to enable the provisioning of AWS (Amazon Web Services) advanced digital solutions to power the ‘BSS’ & ‘OSS’ systems used to operate the National Broadband Network. The signing took place during a virtual meeting attended by executive teams from both companies, enabled through digital channels.

‘BNET’ was launched in October 2019 following the separation of Batelco into two independent entities as per the requirements of the 4th National Telecommunications plan ‘NTP4’, which was introduced to achieve growth and economical diversity in the telecom sector, improve the infrastructure of superfast internet, and connect it to 100% of businesses and 95% of households in the Kingdom of Bahrain. ‘BNET’ has the responsibility of providing National Broadband Network services to all licensed operators including Batelco.

This strategic milestone is the result of a meeting that took place between ‘BNET’ Chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa and Teresa Carlson, AWS Worldwide Public Sector Vice President, in November 2019, which directly contributed towards building a collaboration between the two companies to support the telecom sector in Bahrain, in line with the government’s vision for the Kingdom’s digital economy.

Commenting on this occasion Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said, “This partnership comes as a result of the government’s vision for the telecom sector in the Kingdom. Having AWS establish its regional data centres for the Middle East in the Kingdom of Bahrain contributed towards elevating the standards of the sector in general, with significant transformation towards cloud technology as well as improving the operational performance in various organisations.”

“As part of the NTP4 requirements, the Kingdom adopted a unique model in the region to operate its National Broadband Network, by establishing an independent entity responsible for operating the network as is the case in countries that are advanced in their telecom infrastructure. Today we see a true strategic partnership between these two companies which shall translate the vision into reality and achieve the government’s expectations for the sector while also addressing the aspirations of the operators,” Shaikh Abdulla added.

By adopting cloud solutions in managing its operations, managing its project and delivering its infrastructure services, ‘BNET’ will be able to increase its operational performance while efficiently managing operational expenses. This is mainly due to the fact that with cloud solutions the Company can apply the required level of support with flexibility to scale up without the need to invest heavily in technical assets.

BNET Chief Executive Officer Mohamed Bubashait commented by stating, “Signing with BearingPoint//Beyond is part of our strategy to adopt the latest digital technology in operating the National Network, and as per the technical indicators published by leading technical institutes in the telecom sector, cloud technology is the future of the business world.”

“AWS provides the most implemented cloud solutions in the world, hence adopting this technology is in line with our long term strategic goals to provide solid quality national broadband network, with high speeds and competitive prices that enables operators to provide internet products and services to its customers that are value added and provide creative solutions,” he added.

“I would like to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to the Chairman, Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, who provided tremendous support to establish this strategic partnership and achieve the desired results in record time. This will motivate us to continue working hard in putting all our efforts into delivering results that help elevate the telecom sector in line with the government’s vision,” Mr. Bubashait concluded.