SWEDISH telecoms equipment maker Ericsson plans to spend millions of rand to develop new technologies for African clients after setting up a regional service hub in South Africa. Ericsson South Africa Managing Director Christer Hohenthal said the move would have a ”significant impact” on the level of mobile networks being rolled out across the continent, and would also raise South Africa’s profile as a research and development hothouse. ”The mandate we’ve been given means that we will have additional core resources available to focus on developing new technologies for Africa,” he said, without giving figures. ”Ultimately, though, we’re creating technology out of Africa that can now be applied in other parts of the world.”