According to one of the more pleasantly-named industry journals we’ve seen recently, MyJoyOnline.com, Huawei (News - Alert), a vendor of telecommunications network tools, has announced a five-year managed services agreement with Vodafone Ghana.

Under the agreement, MyJoy says, “Huawei will be responsible for the operations and maintenance of the Vodafone (News - Alert) mobile, microwave, SDH, and fixed switching networks.”

The public relations manager of Huawei, Harry Yuan, said “network planning and optimization, the Network Operations Center, and management of the spare parts of Vodafone will be performed by Huawei Staff,” under the agreement.

“The award of this managed services contract to Huawei is a significant milestone in meeting our objective of providing a superior network to our customers in Ghana,” said Tony Dolton, Chief Technology Officer of Vodafone Ghana. “In selecting Huawei, we have combined their product innovation with an extensive training and development program for employees, so that Vodafone delivers the best network with the best products and services, with the best people.”

The partnership is intended to provide Vodafone Ghana with a long-term sustainable operating model, Vodafone officials say, “reducing its operational expenses and enabling the operator to focus further on providing more attractive new services to its customers.” The network operations agreement also guarantees the performance and quality of the Vodafone network, which is used by multiple vendors across the country.

Under the managed services agreement, a number of Vodafone Ghana employees will also be employed by Huawei in similar roles and receive cutting-edge training on new processes, technology and tools that will be introduced by Huawei.

Last month TMC’s (News - Alert) Beecher Tuttle wrote [http://voice-quality.tmcnet.com/topics/phone-service/articles/126462-metropcs-rolls-out-android-based-huawei-ascend.htm] that MetroPCS on Monday introduced its second Android (News - Alert)-based handset, the Huawei Ascend:

“Designed for your entry-level smartphone owner, the Ascend is priced at an affordable $179 without an annual contract. MetroPCS is currently offering rate plans starting at around $50 a month for the unsubsidized handset: