Vodacom Business has become the first telecommunications operator in Africa to achieve the prestigious MEF3.0 SD-WAN certification. This certification enables providers to confirm that their solutions comply with the highest industry standards for performance, assurance, and agility.

'The MEF3.0 certification underscores Vodacom Business’s commitment to being a technology and standards leader which improves the quality, management and interoperability of Ethernet and IP services for all our clients across the continent. The accolade highlights that indeed Vodacom Business offers best in class SD-WAN service offerings', says Marten Scheffer, Managing Executive for Enterprise Technology and FTTX at Vodacom Business.

'MEF congratulates Vodacom Business for achieving MEF3.0 SD-WAN certification, a milestone for industry innovation particularly in the African markets the company serves,' says Nan Chen, President, of the MEF. 'Vodacom’s Business clients can have confidence that the company’s SD-WAN offering has passed a rigorous set of tests demonstrating alignment with well-developed standards created by the world’s authority for standardised network services,' adds Chen.

MEF’s certification programs are designed to accelerate availability and adoption of MEF3.0 solutions that address the most demanding networking needs of the digital economy. Apart from strengthening client confidence in Vodacom Business’s ability to create powerful hybrid networking solutions by delivering overlay SD-WAN services that are coupled with high-performance underlay connectivity services, the MEF3.0 SD-WAN certification provides additional benefits to clients including:

• Streamlines buying decision process

MEF3.0 certification reduces the time, effort, and cost for clients to evaluate SD-WAN providers. Clients will have a reference to help determine if a service meets their requirements for SD-WAN use cases, saving time previously spent on client proof of concepts and trials to demonstrate use cases.

• The basis for standardising SLAs

Certification testing enables standardisation of service level agreements (SLAs) between Vodacom Business and SD-WAN subscribers.

• Foundation for innovation

Establishes a core set of required capabilities upon which differentiated offerings tailored for end-user needs can be built.

The MEF3.0 SD-WAN certification doesn’t only hold benefits and peace of mind for clients. Several benefits have already been derived from a service provisioning, operating and support perspective which include: 

• Accelerated service deployment

Standardised SD-WAN service functionality is normalised, pre-tested, and verified. Internal coordination among different departments is facilitated with certified services and technologies.

• Faster RFI/RFP response

Demonstrating conformance with rigorous test requirements for service attributes, functions, and capabilities reduces time and operational costs when responding to RFIs/RFPs. Vodacom’s presence in MEF’s Service Certification Registry also simplifies and accelerates evaluation with new customers.

The real benefits lie in what has been demonstrated through the Vodacom Business certification journey, and what has been certified:

• Application-aware networking

SD-WAN services can identify traffic based on application/ or application group and route accordingly.

• Policy-driven

Ability for network administrators to configure in advance what traffic is prioritised and directed, thereby simplifying and automating network management.

• Direct Internet Breakout

SD-WAN services have verified the ability to breakout internet traffic directly at the branch.

• Multiple underlay options

Allowing clients to select from multiple underlay connectivity service options, while maintaining a secure SD-WAN.

Vodacom Business

Vodacom Business is here to help take your business to the next level. We offer a wide range of products and services to fulfil the telecommunications needs of organisations of all sizes. From mobiles and fixed-line connections to a wealth of broadband and networking solutions, you can count on us to keep you confidently connected.