Mauritius became the first country in Africa to launch a 3G network, as cellco Emtel beat South Africa's Vodacom who is set to go commercial in mid-Dec 2004.

Emtel, which has 154 000 subscribers, said the UMTS project bodes well with the government's objective to develop the ICT industry into a leading sector.

Mauritius' Minister of Telecommunications and IT Deelchand Jeeha became the first person to make a 3G video call on the continent.

Handsets such as Sony Ericsson z1010 and Nokia 6630 will be sold on the Island. Emtel, the number two on the island, spent some  $20m  with Chinese-based Huawei Technologies in deploying 3G on the island.