Nokia, Grameen Foundation In Mobile Phone Financing Pact"

STOCKHOLM -(Dow Jones)- Finland's Nokia and U.S. Grameen Foundation said Tuesday they will collaborate to bring affordable, accessible telecommunications to rural villages in Africa through microfinance.

This collaboration builds on GFUSA's global Village Phone initiative that helps people living in rural areas start self-sustaining businesses while providing affordable telecommunications to their communities.

With tiny loans, financial services and mobile technology, Village Phone provides affordable access in a sustainable manner.

The collaboration between Nokia and GFUSA is designed to accelerate efforts to make universal access, particularly in rural areas of Africa a reality.

As part of this effort, Nokia and GFUSA have jointly developed a solution based on Nokia's most affordable phones and an external antenna to serve rural communities in Uganda and Rwanda, the two countries where GFUSA's Village Phone currently operates.

As a part of the cooperation, Nokia and GFUSA will conduct a study to further examine the broader impact of the mobile telecommunications on socio-economic development and individual business integration as well as to evaluate microfinance as a sustainable tool to make telecommunications access more affordable.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 15th November 2005