China Mobile Qinghai and Huawei's RuralStar Plus Wins GSMA GLOMO "Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets"

[Barcelona, Spain, March 6, 2025] During the MWC Barcelona 2025, China Mobile Qinghai and Huawei won the GSMA Global Mobile Award (GLOMO) "Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets" for their RuralStar Plus solution.

China Mobile Qinghai and Huawei's RuralStar Plus Wins GSMA GLOMO "Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets"

Golog is located east of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau — the world's highest-altitude area —where mobile network construction is extremely challenging. Heavy machinery is needed to erect the towers, but bad weather and rough roads often impede construction efforts. Fiber for data transmission is also not an option as permafrost makes laying the necessary cables entirely impractical, and this kind of construction would harm the local ecological environment. To make matters worse, powering base stations is a challenge, since local mains supply is often unstable or insufficient.

RuralStar Plus is a joint pole-site innovation of China Mobile Qinghai and Huawei, purpose-built for the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau region. This solution encompasses an integrated base station, an intelligent microwave unit, a lithium battery cabinet, and solar panels. These devices are all installed on a pole, which simplifies site deployment by eliminating the need to build a tower. By making full use of local solar power, RuralStar Plus does not need to work with an external mains supply to provide green 4G and 5G connections. With a microwave unit equipped, the solution does not require extra fiber. In addition, remote intelligent O&M is supported, which minimizes the number of labor-consuming site visits.

RuralStar Plus helps narrow the digital divide for a large number of users and makes their lives more convenient. By expanding access to high-speed connectivity, it assists local authorities in disaster monitoring, ecological conservation, and disaster prevention and relief efforts.

Fang Xiang, Vice President of Huawei Wireless Solution said, "Thank you to GSMA, analysts, and others for recognizing the RuralStar Plus project. This project fully demonstrates that digital inclusion can deliver both economic value and profound social impact. In the future, Huawei will continue to empower operators with innovative technologies to advance digital inclusion, pushing to connect the unconnected, and contribute to building a more equitable, efficient, and inclusive digital society."

MWC Barcelona 2025 is held from March 3 to March 6 in Barcelona, Spain. During the event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at stand 1H50 in Fira Gran Via Hall 1.

In 2025, commercial 5G-Advanced deployment will accelerate, and AI will help carriers reshape business, infrastructure, and O&M. Huawei is actively working with carriers and partners around the world to accelerate the transition towards an intelligent world.

For more information, please visit: https://carrier.huawei.com/en/events/mwc2025