SA's MapIT buys 26% of Uganda's SatNav

MapIT will also provide SatNav with technical support and improved digital maps across six East African countries, said Vincent Okema, SatNav chief executive, adding that the new arrangement involves shares worth $2.1 million which will help his firm in its expansion drive in the East African region including South Sudan.

SatNav East Africa is Uganda's pioneer in Global Positioning System [GPS] technology and GPS based consumer electronics, and MapIT is a South African IT firm that provides digital mapping and location based services. Okema said that SatNav has developed pay-based digital maps and address codes for the whole region. Navigation devices, he said, are linked to digital maps to give direction, identify points of interest such as hospitals or restaurants as well as help to sort out emergency cases.

"We have navigation devices that can guide you to any location whether in the village or in congested urban areas," Okema said. MapIT managing director Etienne Louw said the South African firm is looking forward to working with SatNav. "With our detailed mapping datasets for Africa, we can assist SatNav East Africa in achieving its business goals," the Daily Nation says.

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