Rinchi
TechInAfrica – MainOne Cable System—MainOne’s collaborative project with Orange Telecoms and its West African Affiliates, Sonatel and Orange Cote d’Ivoire—is reported to be completed soon. According to the schedule, it will soon connect Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire in September and October this year respectively.
The Cable Landing Stations (CLS) will be fully built in the two countries and ready for the equipment installation in Dakar and Abidjan. The equipment consists of the branching units that will be placed on a 7000-km-long omnibus fiber pair and connect them to the shore and terminal equipment.
Orange Marine is in charge of the installation of the MainOne Submarine Cable. The necessary equipment is already in Dakar and it will proceed to Abidjan for the final process. The system will be ready for service later in October while the commercial launch is scheduled to be in November 2019.
Speaking on the project development and completion, MainOne’s CEO, Funke Opeke remarked: “MainOne is committed to leading the digital transformation across West Africa, driving economic growth and development by enabling and empowering the ecosystem through affordable and ubiquitous connectivity. We are determined ultimately to improve the digital services of the region and today marks the realization of that journey for Senegal with the landing of the Submarine cable which will drive substantial impact on both GDP and employment.”
The statement is added by Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa who speaks on the company’s part about the project, “Africa is experiencing a rapid technological evolution with mobile broadband connectivity enabling a tech ecosystem. Orange, as part of its multi-service strategy, is an important partner in the continent’s digital transformation as demonstrated by our continuous investment. Through the partnership with MainOne, we expect to see improved high speed and affordable broadband services in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire that will reinforce connectivity and guarantee reliable access to global broadband networks.”
The collaborative project was signed last year and is scheduled to complete soon. In 2010, MainOne’s submarine cable recognized to be the first private subsea to deliver open-access and connectivity to West Africa.
The MainOne cable system will be fully on operational landing from Seixal, Portugal to Accra, Ghana – Lagos, Nigeria, and additional branching units in the Canary Islands, Morocco (which is yet to be connected)
Source: africabusinesscommunities.com
