Detecon senior partner Youssef El Ouariachi on stage at Small Cells World Summit
Youssef El Ouariachi, Partner at Detecon in the Middle East, recently travelled to the UK to attend the Small Cells World Summit, where he took the stage to host a session and share his expertise in the telecom and ICT landscape.
The Small Cells World Summit 2026 took place at the start of June at the Pullman London St Pancras. The summit is a leading global event dedicated to small cells, distributed antenna systems, and wireless infrastructure ecosystems – technologies that enhance mobile connectivity, particularly in areas where traditional mobile towers are insufficient.
The event brought together stakeholders from across the connectivity ecosystem to address key industry opportunities and challenges. Discussions covered connectivity for sports venues, cities, and towns, as well as the latest developments in non-terrestrial networks (mobile networks that use satellites or high-altitude platforms) and AI-enabled radio access networks (AI-RAN).
Detecon leader Youssef El Ouariachi moderated a panel titled ‘Digital Infrastructure for Smart Venues and Extended Coverage’, which featured industry experts Ahmad El-Deghaither (Qiddiya Investment Company), Samuel Buttarelli (Andrew), Moataz Alahmadi (Tawal), and Jan van Rees (Salience).
The panel discussed how integrated digital infrastructure – combining small cells, distributed antenna systems, and private networks – can deliver seamless, high-capacity connectivity across smart venues while ensuring consistent indoor and outdoor mobile coverage.
Reflecting on the session, El Ouariachi said: “It was a pleasure discussing the future of small cells, the challenges ahead, and the growing role of neutral host providers. As neutral host models gain momentum, success will depend on creating sustainable commercial structures that align operators, infrastructure providers, venue owners, and public stakeholders.”
El Ouariachi is currently in his 20th year with Detecon, the telecom and ICT consulting arm of Deutsche Telekom. He is a Senior Partner and serves as Managing Director of the firm’s Saudi business.
