The Middle East and Africa (Mena) region is among the fastest growing telephony markets globally, as its  becoming a major focal point for mobile phone manufacturers, this is evident with the presence of Magnus Telecom, a technology company headquartered in Germany that has made a debut in the UAE. The company which has its registered office in UK, on Tuesday unveiled eight models of the Magnus mobile range in Dubai, being its first global launch. At the same time, the company announced that it has also signed a contract for sale of its mobile phones in Nigeria.  Following its inaugural launch, Magnus Telecom company, plans to have other launches in the Mena region, and South East Asian countries respectively, said the Jabir Mohammed, the company’s regional Head. Speaking to The Gulf Today at the sideline of the launch, Mohammed said that the company was targeting emerging markets especially the African continent. Asked why the UAE was chosen as the Mena venue for the global launch, Mohammed explained that the region is driven by its high per capita income and rapid growth in many economic sectors. The UAE, he said has led the mobile telephone growth in the region with a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 37 per cent, to achieve mobile penetration levels of 200 plus per cent of the population. “Penetration of smart phones is expected to increase by 11 per cent year on year over the next three years and the Magnus brand mobile phones are all set to leverage this growth,” said Mohammed who was also flanked by Naushad Abdulla of Telelink Technologies UAE, the regional partner of Magnus Telecom. He went on to explain that the Magnus brand of mobile phones has been effectively priced to make it accessible to all customer segments at various price points, and will be available at more than 20 Telelink outlets and 300 retailers across the GCC in the first phase. Mohammed said that the usage of mobile phones in the UAE is on the increase and that there are two mobile handsets per person in the country. He said Dubai is aiming to gain better access to what is becoming the world’s fastest growing telephony market and has thus facilitated local development of new features in phone models. ( from The Gulf Today )