Opeke was acknowledged for her achievements in launching MainOne subsea cable in 2008, as well as expanding data centre facilities and connectivity in the West of Africa.
Announcing the award, Capacity head of sales for Africa Rob Barton said: “Funke is one of the best known figures in the community. She began as an electrical engineer and spent 20 years in the US, before leaving Verizon Wholesale to return to Africa.
“In 2008, planning began for a subsea cable system to run from Portugal to South Africa, connecting numerous Western African countries along the way, and two years later, the MainOne cable system went live. Since then, she has led the launch of data centre assets and new services, as well as tackling the enterprise market. She is is one of the best known voices in African telecoms.”
Liquid Telecom were the other big winners at the awards, which took place during this year’s Capacity Africa event in Kampala, taking home three gongs – for Best Rural Connectivity – Terrestrial project, Best Infrastructure Sharing Initiative, and the prestigious best wholesale provider. The African provider will be hoping to replicate this success in October, at the annual Global Carrier Awards.
The winner of the award for Best Rural Connectivity – Satellite was World Telecoms Labs, while Best Anti-Fraud Initiative went to PCCW Global.
The award for New Market Penetration From A Non-African Company went to Gilat Telecom, for its massive expansion on the continent, while Airtel Ghana was recognised for its projects supporting Corporate and Social Responsibility.
