HP announced it has expanded its operations in Africa by
establishing new entities in 10 of the continent’s fast-growing economies.
By extending access to its portfolio of hardware,
software and services across Africa, HP will enable governments, businesses and
consumers there to use information technologies to improve how they work and
live.
This month, HP announced openings in Angola, Botswana,
Congo, Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda. The company expects to announce the
opening of offices in Ethiopia, Mauritius and Mozambique by the end of the
year. HP also appointed a new country manager in each country to lead local
operations.
The expansion is part of HP’s recently announced strategy
for accelerating growth in the world’s fastest-growing markets by creating
specialized go-to-market strategies, technology solutions, and customer,
partner and public sector relationships that meet the unique needs of rapidly
developing markets.
The new African offices add to HP’s existing operations in
Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa and Tunisia. HP first
opened operations in Africa in 1994.
Business customers across Africa will now have better
access to HP’s broad portfolio of products and services, allowing them to
transform their businesses through the implementation of secure, cloud-based
systems.
Governments can use HP technology to drive economic
growth by modernizing the delivery of services in key areas such as education,
healthcare and e-Government services. HP also intends to broaden access to its
consumer printers and PCs in these markets.
HP’s expansion in Africa will support the development of
a strong information technology industry, which will underpin sustainable
economic growth, helping to create employment, stability and life-changing
opportunities across the continent,” said Brian Humphries, senior vice
president, Growth Markets Organization, HP.
HP’s unmatched portfolio of products and services
positions it to become the leading IT provider in Africa and an important
contributor to the growth in this region,” Humphries added.
Recognizing the importance of engaging multiple
stakeholders to contribute to the long-term success of Africa’s IT industry, HP
is investing in a series of collaborations and initiatives with governments,
universities and local communities to achieve the shared goal of driving
responsible, sustainable growth.
HP has signed Memorandums of
Understanding with leading universities in the expansion countries, aimed at
preparing local university students with the skills and experience required for
a career in the IT industry.
The agreements call for the creation of HP internships
and post-graduate job opportunities for university students, and the creation
of curricula to educate students about HP solutions and sales techniques.
The collaboration between HP and Africa’s top
universities is designed to foster the development of a local workforce that
has the right skills to lead Africa’s burgeoning IT industry in the future.
HP has created an Educational Experience Center for
Africa in Casablanca, Morocco, to showcase how the latest technology can
enhance the education experience. This facility is among the first of its
kind in Africa, and the only such HP facility in the Europe, Middle East and Africa
region.
The center is open for government officials, educators
and students of any level from across Africa to see firsthand how technology
can support and improve teaching methods and enhance interactive learning to
boost the productivity of Africa’s education sector. The inauguration of the
center is scheduled for next month.
HP has built on its social innovation strategy in Africa,
which seeks to deploy cloud-based and mobile technologies through collaboration
with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to reduce poverty, improve
healthcare, and connect disparate communities and groups.
HP is extending NGO relationships in five of the
countries where new offices have opened.
HP is extending its program to fight counterfeit products
to the 10 expansion countries. The company will work with local law enforcement
authorities to fight the availability of counterfeit products, which
defraud customers, pose potential risks to consumers and bring negative
economic impacts to the local economy.
The lack of an overall sustainable e-waste management
infrastructure in most African countries means that unsafe dismantling and
recycling of used equipment pose serious threats to workers’ health and the
environment.
As part of HP’s commitment to a responsible, sustainable
growth strategy in Africa, the company will continue to drive programs to
address this issue in a manner that attends to local conditions and provides
jobs and training while ensuring high environmental and health and safety
standards are met.
HP recently announced the launch of
the updated HP Pavilion dm1, a consumer notebook PC featuring a gloss finish or
HP Soft-touch Imprint design, Beats Audio and HP Premier Experience an
exclusive set of innovations designed to improve on the Microsoft Windows
experience.
By Telecomlead.com Team
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