Digital Economy

Nov 28, 2011 (LBO) - Alcatel-Lucent has said it sees big opportunities in post-war Sri Lanka especially in extending its services from the island's telecom sector to railways and public safety. Alcatel-Lucent’s Managing Director for Sri Lanka & the Maldives Upendra Samaratunge said the company’s association with Sri Lanka started over three decades ago when the first digital exchange was supplied by them.

œWe see huge potential in 2012 and beyond in Sri Lanka, not only in telecommunications but in the public sector such as railways and public safety," he said in a statement.

The company has been a key supplier to major telecom operators in the island having installed second and third generation mobile networks.

Alcatel-Lucent has also connected Sri Lanka to the rest of the world by installing the South East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe undersea cable network.

The company’s Asia Pacific President Rajeev Singh-Molares, who is visiting Sri Lanka this week, said they see mobile broadband as a key element in developing nations’ ability to connect to the global 'digital economy'.

Such connectivity can have a significant impact on increasing economic growth, he s