On 12 December 2024, Liquid Intelligent Technologies (LIT) announced the completion of a 730-km fibre optic route from Ramatlabama on the southern border with South Africa to Ramokgwebana near the eastern border with Zimbabwe. According to a company press release, this 730-km route runs along the A1 road and connects key towns and cities including Francistown, Mahalapye, Palapye and the capital Gaborone. In addition to providing enhanced services to local users in Botswana, the fibre expansion project extends beyond national boundaries, becoming a connector of countries by connecting with the fibre networks in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sudan. Previously in November 2020, Liquid Telecom activated an 82-km fibre optic link from Gaborone to Lobatse near the border with South Africa, providing a new cross-border interconnection between Botswana and South Africa (see Botswana: Liquid Telecom Implements Cross Border Fibre Link To South Africa... Read More →
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Africa: Ethio Telecom, Djibouti Telecom, and Sudatel Sign MoU For Horizon Fibre Initiative
Filed under: Capacity, Fibre Long Haul, Submarine Cable Tags: Djibouti, Ethiopia, Sudan
On 3 December 2024, Ethio Telecom, Djibouti Telecom, and Sudatel Telecom Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the Horizon Fibre Initiative, to deploy a new high capacity, diverse cross-border terrestrial fibre route between Djibouti, Ethiopia and Sudan to connect the Horn of Africa to Europe and Asia. The Horizon Fiber Initiative has been in discussion since June 2024, when a technical team was established with representatives from all three operators. With an accelerated timeline, the partners aim to finalize the contract by the end of January 2024 and commence services by April 2025. “The Horizon Fibre Cable Initiative offers a transformative solution to the persistent challenges posed by submarine fibre cables in the Red Sea”, said a company press release. “These cables are frequently disrupted by issues such as anchoring incidents, degradation, potential sabotage, natural disaster and conflicts, all of which result in significant service interruptions and costly... Read More →
Botswana: Paratus Starts Construction Of SADC Highway Fibre Route Connecting Botswana With Zimbabwe And Zambia
Filed under: Fibre Long Haul Tags: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
On 4 December 2024, Paratus Botswana announced that it had started construction of a new regional fibre optic route, which it calls the “SADC Highway”, that will connect Gaborone in Botswana, through Zimbabwe, to Livingstone in Zambia. The first section in Botswana, running from Gaborone to Plumtree on the border with Zimbabwe, spans approximately 500-km and is scheduled for completion in February 2025 according to a company press release. The new SADC Highway route follows the recent completion of a new 840-km Botswana Kalahari Fibre (BKF) fibre route from Gaborone to the border with Namibia, which is now operational. Once completed, the SADC Highway route will deliver up to 11 Tbps of potential new capacity to Zimbabwe and Zambia, providing critical redundancy for existing routes through South Africa. The route offers an alternative to connect to the Equiano subsea cable at Swakopmund in Namibia, as well as a direct route South to the Teraco Data Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. In... Read More →
Cape Verde: Cabo Verde Telecom Launches Tender To Expand Submarine Inter Island Cable System
On 6 December 2024, Cabo Verde Telecom (CV Telecom) launched a tender for the design, supply and installation of six segments (750-km) of its submarine inter island cable system. The deadline for submission of bids is 6 February 2025, works are anticipated to commence in August 2025, and commissioning expected by June 2026. Cabo Verde Telecom’s inter-island cable was first launched in 1997, and was extended in 2002 to reach Porto Novo (Santo Antão) and to close a ring between S. Peter (Santo Vincent) and Tarrafal (Santiago). In 2010 the operator announced plans to extend the inter-island submarine cable to connect the islands of Fogo, Brava and Maio. Phase III of the inter-island submarine cable increased the fibre length to 2,050-km, and installed a new section connecting the islands of Santiago and Brava, and a second extension from between the islands of Santo Vicente and Santo Antão (see Cape Verde: Cabo Verde Telecom Embarks On Phase III Of Inter-Island Submarine Cable). Source:... Read More →
Burundi: Zambia and Burundi Sign MoU For Fibre Optic Link Through Lake Tanganyika
Filed under: Fibre Long Haul, Submarine Cable Tags: Burundi, DRC, Tanzania, Zambia
The Zambian government announced during October 2024 that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Burundi to facilitate the deployment of a bilateral fibre optic connection between the two countries. According to a government press release, a submarine fibre optic cable will be laid under Lake Tanganyika from Mpulungu District in Northern Province of Zambia, along the lake into Burundi. The Minister of Technology and Science Felix Mutati said that the private sector has commenced work on the project. Bandwidth and Cloud Services (BCS) previously announced during 2022 that it was deploying a submarine fibre optic cable link through Lake Tanganyika to connect the towns of Bukavu, Uvira, Baraka and Kalemie in Eastern DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo), and to serve as an alternate gateway in Eastern and Southern Africa (see DRC: BCS Deploys Submarine Cable Through Lake Tanganyika From Uvira – Kalemie). BCS previously laid a cross-border submarine cable through... Read More →
Zambia’s International Bandwidth Increases By 95% To Reach 345 Gbps By June 2024
Filed under: Capacity, Fibre Long Haul, Fibre Metro Tags: Zambia
Zambia’s utilised international Internet bandwidth reached 345.4 Gbps by June 2024, according to latest figures published by ZICTA (Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority). This was a 95% increase compared to 177.4 Gbps in June 2023, with ZICTA also reporting 177.1 Gbps by December 2023, 124.4 Gbps in 2022, 98.3 Gbps in 2021, 95.2 Gbps in 2020, and 80.4 Gbps in 2019 (see also Zambia: International Internet Bandwidth Reaches 177.1 Gbps, Dec 2023). The total equipped international capacity of wholesale carriers reached 1.080 Tbps by June 2024, compared to 976 Gbps by December 2023, 974.6 Gbps in June 2023 and 840.2 Gbps in December 2022. “This growth was mostly attributed to increased capacity by Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Global Connect in the first half of 2024,” said ZICTA in its 2024 mid-year market report, adding that “the increased network capacity and utilization stems from the increasing demand for broadband services amongst consumers. ZICTA also... Read More →
Kenya: WIOCC Completes Mombasa Metro Network, Building National Long Distance Network
On 30 October 2024, WIOCC (West Indian Ocean Cable Co) announced that it had completed the deployment of a Mombasa Metro Network, interconnecting all major data centres in Mombasa. According to a company press release, this strategic infrastructure allows clients to seamlessly scale their operations and access high-capacity bandwidth at key data centres and cable landing stations across Mombasa County. In addition, WIOCC said that a protected National Long Distance (NLD) network is being built between the capital city Nairobi and Mombasa and a Metro Network in Nairobi County set to be completed by the end of Q4 2024. The next phase, planned for Q2 2025, will see the network extended to other counties and the borders with neighbouring countries. James Wekesa, WIOCC Group’s Chief Commercial Officer, highlights: “Through our significant investments in subsea assets, terrestrial fibre and metro networks, we are uniquely positioned to support the growing connectivity demands of the region... Read More →
Africa: Paratus Announces Completion of East – West Africa Terrestrial Fibre Route
Filed under: Fibre Long Haul Tags: Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa
On 4 November 2024, Paratus Group announced that it had completed its East-West Africa terrestrial fibre optic route running from the east coast of Africa in Maputo (Mozambique), through Edwaleni (eSwatini), Johannesburg (South Africa), Gaborone (Botswana), and Windhoek (Namibia), to the west coast of Africa at the Cable Landing Station in Swakopmund (Namibia). “This sea-change in imperatives has arisen due to breakages in certain subsea cable systems,” said Paratus Group CEO, Schalk Erasmus in a company press release. “Operators need a more reliable route and, with, our new East-West route, by connecting to the Equiano subsea cable, we can assure customers a fast and robust alternative”. In October 2023, Paratus announced that it had established two terrestrial cross border fibre optic routes from South Africa to Mozambique (see Mozambique: Paratus Establishes Two Cross Border Fibre Routes From Mozambique To South Africa). One of the fibre links traverses Eswatini, and the other... Read More →
Kenya: Bayobab Launches 1,000-Km Kenya Railways Fibre Route From Mombasa – Nairobi – Malaba
On 27 August 2024, Bayobab Kenya announced the completion of a new long-distance fibre network running from the coastal city of Mombasa via the capital Nairobi to Malaba and Busia on the border with neighbouring Uganda. According to a company press release, the long-distance fibre network runs along Kenya Railway’s metre gauge railway line route which spans over 1,000 kilometres. Seven submarine cables now land in Mombasa: SEACOM, EASSy, TEAMS, LION2, DARE, PEACE, and 2Africa. In 2022, Bayobab Kenya launched the first phase of its National Long-Distance fibre running from Mombasa to Malaba along the Kenya Pipeline (see Kenya: Kenya Pipeline Company Launches Fibre Network). The second long-distance fibre route from Mombasa to Uganda provides redundancy and diversity for onward connectivity to Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Kenya’s utilized international Internet bandwidth reached 8,042.08 Gbps in December 2023, according to latest statistics released... Read More →
Zambia: International Internet Bandwidth Reaches 177.1 Gbps, Dec 2023
Filed under: Capacity, Fibre Long Haul, Fibre Metro Tags: Zambia
Zambia’s utilised international Internet bandwidth reached 177.1 Gbps by December 2023, according to latest figures published by ZICTA (Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority). This compared to 124.4 Gbps in December 2022, 98.3 Gbps in 2021, 95.2 Gbps in 2020, and 80.4 Gbps in 2019. The total equipped international capacity of wholesale carriers reached 976 Gbps by December 2023, compared to 840.2 Gbps in December 2022. ZICTA said that “the increase in transmission capacity in 2023 was partly attributed to the contribution by BCS and Global Connect who brought on board fibre transmission capacities of 100 Gbps and 238 Gbps during the year”. ZICTA also reported that the total fibre inventory of Zambia reached 31,915-km by December 2023, including Fibrecom (12,000-km), Telesonic (6,544-km), Bayobab (5,905-km), Zamtel (1,876-km), Liquid (1,420-km), BCS (1,166.5-km), Paratus (700-km), and Smartnet (2,260-km). The regulator said that collaboration between MTN and Airtel... Read More →
Africa: Airtel Africa Telesonic Total Fibre Network in Africa Reaches 75,400-Km, Activates 2Africa Submarine Cable Route From Kenya to South Africa
Filed under: Fibre Long Haul, Submarine Cable Tags: Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania
Leading mobile operator Airtel Africa announced that it has added some 5,000-km of new terrestrial fibre optic transmission networks to its operations across Africa in the last year, increasing its total fibre inventory to 75,400-km by March 2024 (source: 2024 Annual Report). Airtel Africa has deployed fibre networks across the 14 countries in which it operates in sub-Saharan Africa: Chad, Congo, DRC, Gabon, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. The operator previously reported a total fibre inventory of 70,500-km in March 2023, 64,500-km in March 2022, 54,500-km in March 2021, and 43,000-km in March 2020 (see Africa: Airtel Africa’s Total Fibre Network In Africa reaches 70,500-km). During February 2024, Airtel Africa announced the launch of a subsidiary company called Airtel Africa Telesonic Ltd (Telesonic) to leverage its terrestrial fibre optic cable and submarine cable assets to provide wholesale data services in Africa (see... Read More →
Mauritius: International Bandwidth of Mauritius Increases By 24% During 2023
The used international Internet bandwidth of Mauritius reached 292.549 Gbps by December 2023, a 24% increase compared to 235.682 Gbps in December 2022, according to latest statistics reported by the Information and Communication Technology Authority of Mauritius (ICTA) (see Mauritius: International Bandwidth of Mauritius Reaches 236 Gbps, December 2022). ICTA previously reported 211.312 Gbps of used international Internet bandwidth by December 2021, 144.973 Gbps in 2020, 101.657 Gbps in 2019, and 64.977 Gbps in 2018. Mauritius is now served by four international submarine cables, with a fifth under planning: South Africa Far East (SAFE) cable which entered service in 2002, Lower Indian Ocean (LION) cable in 2009, METISS (MElting poT Indianoceanic Submarine System) cable in 2021 (see Africa: METISS Submarine Cable Enters Service Connecting Mauritius, Reunion and Madagascar to South Africa), and the troisième cable (T3) in 2023 (see Mauritius: Mauritius Telecom Starts Deployment Of T3 Cable... Read More →
Morocco: Morocco’s International Bandwidth Reaches 4.543 Tbps, Dec 2023
Morocco’s utilized international Internet bandwidth reached 4.543 Tbps in December 2023, according to latest statistics released by Agence Nationale de Réglementation des Télécommunications (ANRT), compared to 4.557 Tbps in 2022. Morocco’s international bandwidth was 2.951 Tbps in 2021, 2.507 Tbps in 2020, 1.970 Tbps in 2019, 1.508 Tbps in 2018, and 1.125 Tbps in 2017 according to ANRT (see also Morocco: Morocco’s International Bandwidth Reaches 4.5 Tbps, Dec 2022). ANRT report that the 4.543 Tbps of utilized capacity in December 2023 was 44% of 10.4 Tbps of the total equipped capacity available. Maroc Telecom is connected to five submarine cables: Tetouan – Estepona (1994), Atlas Offshore (2007), SEA-ME-WE3 (2009), Loukkos (2012), and the West Africa cable (2021) (see also Morocco: Maroc Telecom West Africa Submarine Cable Enters Service During 2021). The operator reported that the combined capacity on these five submarine cables reached 6.925 Tbps in 2022, compared to 4.230... Read More →
Tunisia: Tunisia’s International Bandwidth Reaches 1.880 Tbps, Dec 2023
Tunisia’s international Internet bandwidth reached 1.880 Tbps in December 2023, according to latest statistics published by Instance Nationale des Télécommunications (INTT), a growth rate of 7% compared to 1.750 Tbps in December 2022 (see Tunisia: Tunisia: Tunisia’s International Bandwidth Increases By 58% During 2022). Of this total equipped capacity of 1.880 Tbps, INTT report that 1.113 Tbps was utilised by December 2023, compared to 1.088 Gbps in 2022. INTT previously reported that Tunisia’s international bandwidth was 1.110 Tbps in 2021, 910 Gbps in 2020, and 780 Gbps in 2019. Source: Instance Nationale des Télécommunications (INTT) Read More →
Egypt: Telecom Egypt Lands India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) Submarine Cable
On 5 June 2024, Telecom Egypt announced the landing of the India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) submarine cable in Egypt. The 10,000-km IEX cable will run from Mumbai (India) to Savona (Italy) with landings in Oman, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece. In Egypt, the cable landing stations at Zafarana2 on the Red Sea and Sidi Kerir on the Mediterranean are connected with diversified terrestrial network across Egypt (see for example Egypt: Telecom Egypt Inaugurates Red2Med Submarine And Terrestrial Fibre Route). The IEX cable previously landed in Djibouti on 29 November 2023, and also at Savona (Italy) on 29 November 2023. “Leveraging its cutting-edge infrastructure, Telecom Egypt played a pivotal role in connecting the IEX subsea cable system terrestrially between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean,” said Mohamed Nasr, Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt in a company press release. “By providing landing and crossing services at Zafarana2 and Sidi Kerir landing stations, and linking them... Read More →