News

Fibre project finished in Botswana

30/10/2008  The multi-million Pula Trans-Kalahari fibre-optic project was recently completed in Botswana. Covering approximately 2000km, the project is expected to act as a catalyst to the growing ICT industry in the country.

'Wishingful thinking on broadband prices'

02/09/2008  The cost of broadband connectivity in South Africa is likely to come down by 10% to 20% a year, but will never be as low as in countries like the UK and US, regardless of the level of competition in the market, some argue.

Looking to broadband 2.0

27/08/2008  The explosion of the internet has meant that global data bandwidth has dwarfed voice bandwidth. This makes Vint Cerf’s words “IP over everything and everything over IP” quite prophetic, and this is becoming increasingly obvious in South Africa.

'Last piece of fibre-optic jigsaw falls into place'

18/08/2008  They are the arteries of the modern world. Stretching for tens of thousands of miles over the ocean beds, the vast web of intercontinental submarine cables have brought the possibility of cheap high-speed internet and clear long-distance telephone calls to all major parts of the globe. Except one. The Guardian finally catches up with the story in East Africa...albeit in elegant prose.

"Capacity glut" in Africa predicted

15/08/2008  Industry pundits argue that it's unlikely that all the fibre cables planned for Africa are going to succeed. And, perhaps for the first time, projections of a "capacity glut" are being made.

Nigeria: Globacom's submarine cable to berth next year

12/08/2008  After a long wait, Globacom has announced that its Glo cable will reach Ghana by May 2009, and Nigeria shortly thereafter. It is still not clear when the cable will become operational - and although the company is talking of 14 West African landing points, it seems unlikely that this will happen.

Rwanda's getting wired

12/08/2008  The digging started on Rwanda's new fibre-optic network recently, and local telecom companies want their piece of the ICT pie. By the end of next year, the government's new 2,000 km fibre-optic network should increase broadband access to the country, linking all districts to high quality voice, data, and video services, according to officials.

SOUTH AFRICA: MTN to lay new cable network

29/07/2008  MTN plans to spend R1.4-billion to build a 5000km fibre-optic network in South Africa.

Bandwidth: Is West Africa ready?

24/07/2008  Four international fibre projects are racing to complete ahead of each other on the west coast of Africa to give some much needed additional capacity and price competition to SAT-3. The drop in bandwidth prices could be spectacular. Russell Southwood looks at the runners in the race, and asks whether West Africa is ready for the potentially market-changing impact of cheap international bandwidth.

SOUTH AFRICA: Neotel makes its move

29/04/2008  Industry insiders in South Africa are hopeful connectivity prices will come down, now that the SAT-3 undersea cable has opened up to competition, with new kid on the block Neotel gaining access to the network.

SOUTH AFRICA: Business says 'no' to ownership proposal

28/04/2008  In an unprecedented move South African telecom giants have made a joint submission in response to cable ownership guidelines proposed by the government. The guidelines include a mandatory minimum 51% “African or South African” ownership of all submarine cables - other than SAT-3 - landing in South Africa.

Infratructure merchants to get go ahead in Kenya

24/04/2008  Faced with rising infrastructure costs, the Kenyan government is set to issue licences to companies dedicated to building telecom infrastructure. The move is expected to lower the infrastructure costs for telecom operators - especially new entrants.

High hopes for Uganda

25/03/2008  Uganda says its president can now address parliament on a video call, following the completion of the first phase of the national data backbone in that country.

'Tow the line' APC tells Telkom

10/03/2008  APC has called on South Africa's regulator to take immediate action to counter the anti-competitive behaviour of Telkom, the country's fixed-line operator. “Telkom’s sole control of submarine fibre-optic cables such as the SAT3/WASC/SAFE undersea cable, the landing station at Melkbosstrand, as well as the land-based fibre optic cables has resulted in anti-competitive practices and consequent exploding telecommunication costs,” it said in a statement.

KDN expansion plans

05/03/2008  An equity partner is set to inject billions into Kenya Data Network to enable the cable operator expand to the west coast of Africa.

Seacom: Substantial impact on prices expected

21/02/2008  Analysts say the price of international bandwidth will plummet 80% when the Seacom undersea cable goes live on June 17 next year. Business Day's Lesley Stones reports.

Kigali protocol pushed through

21/02/2008  The NEPAD e-Africa Commission says the protocol on the policy and regulatory framework for the NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network, known as the Kigali protocol, is now in force. That's after Malawi became the seventh country to put pen to paper.

Date set for TEAMS project take-off

20/02/2008  The much-awaited $130-million East African Marine Systems (TEAMS) cable project is expected to kick-off in the last week of February.

Not such a team effort

19/02/2008  TEAMS continues to be dogged by controversy, argues the East African. A new row has erupted over the manner in which the financing of the cable has been arranged, and, apparently, the Kenyan government has delayed in meeting the conditions agreed by the contractors.

Nigeria: Fibre to link key cities

23/11/2007  Nigeria's Second National Operator, Globacom, has taken its vision of positioning itself on the continent to a higher level by commissioning the first portion of its $700-million fibre optic cable to link Nigerian cities. HANA's Remmy Nweke has more.

Not (quite) UHURUNET?

16/11/2007  The NEPAD e-Africa Commission has signed an MOU with United States firm 5-P Holdings to begin the construction of part of the NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network (IBIN), known as the UHURUNET. With a capacity of 3.84 Terabits/sec, the undersea submarine cable is intended to link the entire continent of Africa with the outside world including Europe, Brazil, India and the Middle East. The deal with 5-P also reportedly gives the firm a 25% minority controlling stake in the cable.

Convergence of views on access at international internet forum

15/11/2007  Access is the single most important element in any attempt to put in place a governance of the internet. That's according to APC, who issued a statement at the second Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

SAT-3 takes Cameroon off-line

12/11/2007  Internet access in Cameroon was down for several days following a technical fault in the SAT-3 cable. Internet cafe operators and users are said to have been hard hit by the development, which shows how vulnerable countries in Africa are.

Kigali: Major financing for broadband

29/10/2007  The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the African Development Bank have agreed to collaborate on interconnecting all African capitals and major cities with ICT broadband infrastructure. As part of this collaboration, the institutions say they will actively mobilise partners and financing to close the broadband gap.

South Africa: Bandwidth prices set to come down

18/10/2007  The cost of broadband internet access in South Africa is set to drop significantly with the adoption of the Broadband Infraco Bill. Infraco will be made up of state-owned telecommunications assets, with an additional capital investment of some R975-million. Amongst other things, the country's second national operator, Neotel, will benefit from Infraco's infrastructure, helping it to pose a credible challenge to the Telkom monopoly.

Nepad's fibre plans 'on track'

16/10/2007  The South African government insists that Nepad's planned fibre optic cable - which will compete with both EASSy and Seacom - will come online in time for the 2010 Soccer World Cup. That's despite still needing private sector investment to cover at least 70% of the project's cost.

Teaming up with Alcatel-Lucent

12/10/2007  Kenya has tapped a French-US telecoms giant to build an undersea fibre-optic cable linking east Africa to the rest of the world. The US$82 million East African Marine Systems (TEAMS) project has been awarded to the Paris-based Alcatel-Lucent.

South Africa: Undersea cable plan tangled in acrimony

10/09/2007  Project backers say plans by the South African government to prevent the US$235m EASSy cable from landing in South Africa would be denying citizens access to cheap bandwidth, and practising double standards. The Business Day's Lesley Stones reports.

South Africa: MTN unveils R1.3bn fibre plan

07/09/2007  MTN plans to roll-out a national fixed-line infrastructure in South Africa that could cost it as much as R1.3 billion. The network is expected to cover some 5000km nationally. ITWeb's Damaria Senne was at the media briefing.

South Africa: Seacom needs local ownership

29/08/2007  East Coast undersea cable operator Seacom says it is willing to collaborate on the Nepad Broadband Infrastructure Network (NBIN) and that “successful” discussions have been held with South Africa's department of communications. That's after the South African government said Seacom would need to meet local ownership criteria if it wanted to land in the country. ITWeb's Paul Vecchiatto got the story.

South Africa: All at sea with Seacom

20/08/2007  South Africa's department of communications, the country's second-national operator Neotel and Seacom representatives are not prepared to elaborate on discussions concerning South Africa's alleged opposition to the commercial undersea cable being landed in the country. Discussions have been ongoing behind closed doors, while ITWeb is reporting that Neotel may not be allowed to land the cable because the country has "no set guidelines" for it to do so.

Seacom hunts for investors

14/08/2007  A South African company has raised the stakes in the race to connect East Africa to the global network of high speed internet with an aggressive drive to recruit local private investors for its South East Africa Communication project — Seacom. In going to Nairobi in search of investors, Seacom literally took the battle to the doorsteps of a government that is fronting for the East African Marine System (TEAMS), and has also been shopping for investors to buy into the project. Okuttah Mark from the Business Daily reports.

New cable to to link the continents

04/08/2007  South Africa is planning a $700-million (R5-billion) submarine cable to cut the costs of accessing high-speed internet. The cable, to run from Durban to South America and London, will increase international bandwidth capacity, writes Business Report's Thabiso Mochiko.

South Africa: Mapping out Seacom

04/07/2007  While progress on a government-backed undersea cable to boost Africa’s bandwidth remains embroiled in political bickering, private investors constructing a rival cable - Seacom - have begun mapping out the ocean bed ready to start installation. Lesley Stones from the Business Day reports.

EASSy: South Africa soon on board

20/06/2007  South Africa's parliamentary portfolio committee on communications has approved the Nepad/EASSy protocol. It is expected to go before the national assembly for final ratification soon, making it law and binding the country to its provisions.

New fibre projects for Southern Africa

04/06/2007  Two new fibre projects are getting underway in Southern Africa. One aims to interconnect the fibre optic networks of electricity utilities, while the other is looking to connect South Africa to Nigeria to relieve capacity problems on SAT-3.

Universities call for cheaper SAT-3 access

31/05/2007  The Association of African Universities has called for African leaders to use the end of the monopoly on SAT-3 to provide cheaper internet access for students.

Is Telkom SA listening at last?

28/05/2007  South Africa's fixed-line operator, Telkom, has cut its retail price of international bandwidth to all destinations by 30%, with effect (retrospectively) from May 1. This follows calls by international and local activists for the monopoly to lower its access costs.

Adding up the costs

11/05/2007  Three of the fibre optic cables set for roll out in Kenya have indicated that they will charge $500 per month per megabit. To lease a line from Kenya to Europe on Intelsat costs $130 000, while EASSy will sell (not lease) the same capacity at $25,000 per month to the telecom operators. This report by Kenya's Business Daily.

No let up in Teams controversy

13/04/2007  Barely a month after The East African Marine Systems (TEAMS) courted bad press over a US$2.7-million survey tender through single sourcing, the cable was once again in the news last week for all the wrong reasons, writes Zachary Ochieng.

Sychelles still in the starting blocks

04/04/2007  The Seychelles says one of the biggest challenge it faces is connectivity - but plans for a fibre optic cable are struggling to get off the ground.

'Telkom SA will tow the line'

30/03/2007  The South African government says it will use its 38% stake in Telkom SA to make the operator tow the line in the EASSy project. While Telkom says its interest in the project is purely commercial, Department of Communications Director General Lyndall Shope-Mafole says this is not in line with government policy. She says all governments that have signed the EASSy protocol are determined not to have another SAT-3 on their hands.

Teams level ahead, says Kenya

30/03/2007  Kenya says The East Africa Marine Systems (Teams) undersea cable should be operational in three years. That's after an upbeat Information and Communications Permanent Secretary Bitange Ndemo received a route survey report from project scientists, who had docked in Mombasa. The survey started in Fujaira in the United Arab Emirates and covered a distance of 4,726 km to Mombasa. Cruising at a speed of eight knots, the survey ship took three months to complete the route.

Can Kenya hold it steady?

20/03/2007  Controversy is simmering between the office of the attorney general and the ministry of information and communications over the procurement for a multimillion-dollar plan by Kenya to build a fibre-optic cable link from Mombasa to Fujaira in the United Arab Emirates.

Ethiopia gets fibre

20/03/2007  Ethiopia has installed a new $68 million fibre-optic network to boost international communication flows and lower costs. The fibre optic system will cost the country about $106 000 per month, compared with the monthly $157 000 Ethiopia was paying for satellite operations.

EASSy 'now a reality'

17/03/2007  EASSy is upbeat following the recent signing of the supply contract with Alcatel-Lucent, who will lay the cable. “Despite many challenges, EASSy parties proudly announce that EASSy is now a reality. Telecom Operators have confirmed their participation in EASSy by signing on the dotted line," said John Sihra, Director of ZANTEL Tanzania and the EASSy project coordinator.

'No more broadband price cuts' - Telkom SA

17/03/2007  Telkom laid out its broadband plans for 2011 at a recent analysts' meeting - but much to the dismay of consumers, it said there would be no more cuts to is broadband costs. It's the kind of statement monopolies can bravely make...

Nigeria joins the fibre race

16/03/2007  Globacom, Nigeria's second national carrier, has concluded arrangements to launch its submarine cable Glo-1. The cable will link 16 African countries.

Kenya: Spicing up the debate

12/03/2007  When Kai Wulff, CEO of Kenya Data Network (KDN) and Private Secretary Bitange Ndemo are in one room discussing issues of internet connectivity, you can be assured of fireworks. But the common denominator is that they are concerned about reducing internet connectivity charges, writes Rebecca Wanjiku.

You can call it what you like, says NEPAD

05/03/2007  In response to criticism that NEPAD changed the EASSy name without consulting the project's shareholders, the e-Africa Commission issued a statement saying that a meeting was planned for April/May 2007, and that shareholders could chose any name they liked. But until then it would be called the NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network for Eastern and Southern Africa.

What's with all the (secr)EASSy?

01/03/2007  “We wanted to avoid the club-type situation we have had with the SAT-3 undersea cable, but this did not sit well with a number of other countries and institutions,” South African communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri told a partliamentary portfolio committee recently. She was commenting on Kenya's sudden withdrawal from the EASSy project, and the renaming of the undersea cable initiative - now The Nepad Broadband Infrastructure Network (NBIN). According to ITWeb, the minister wanted to elaborate on her comment, but then realised that the media were present.

TEAMS plan in 'high gear'

28/02/2007  Kenya says it's all systems go for TEAMS - the country's new cable project that will stretch from Fujairah to Mombasa. The country's ICT permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo says a special team is working around the clock to ensure that detailed plans are in place before the implementation of the project begins.

'Consumers shouldn't subsidise Telkom'

23/02/2007  It's time to stop subsidising monopolies like Telkom, argues APC's director Anriette Esterhuysen. That's after Telkom told the Financial Mail that too much competition in the provision of international bandwidth in Africa could be bad for business.

Blowing the whistle on Telkom SA

24/01/2007  The Telecoms Action Group (TAG) has been making waves in South Africa. That's after it took out a full-page advert in two South African newspapers slamming Telkom SA for its higher-than-fair connectivity costs. Read an interview with Alastair Otter, founding editor of Tectonic, who is part of the TAG initiative.

It won't be long, says Kenya

24/01/2007  The cost of international broadband in Kenya is set to drastically reduce within 18-months. That's according to the Kenyan government, which has confirmed that it is pursuing three different fibre optic cable projects simultaneously, to provide better and cheaper bandwidth to the country's consumers.

EASSy sees double

15/01/2007  The protracted wrangle between NEPAD's e-Africa Commission and the consortium of companies that initially conceived the EASSy project now looks set to result in the construction of two competing submarine cables, the Daily Monitor has learnt.

Kenya-SA fibre route planned

14/01/2007  India’s Reliance Communications is planning an African fibre optic cable that will connect Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Madagascar and Mauritius. That's part of a US$1.5-billion global project.

Zambia joins EASSy

12/12/2006  Zambia has become the twelfth country to sign the EASSy protocol. The ceremony happened under the auspices of the African Union in Lusaka recently. Ten countries have yet to agree to the terms of the EASSy deal.

Kenya signs undersea cable pact

28/11/2006  Kenya has entered into partnership with global telecommunications service provider Etisalat to lay a proposed $110-million undersea fibre optic cable, popularly known as The East African Marine Systems (Teams).

Kenya still in the game

26/11/2006  The Kenyan government has not pulled out of EASSy after all, writes Rose Zioka.

Stop the infighting, says editor

26/11/2006  The arrival of an underwater optic fibre cable in East Africa has been delayed by infighting between governments and telecom companies; but this needs to stop, argues Uganda's New Vision newspaper.

Breakthrough link with Asia

26/11/2006  A new undersea cable connecting Sri Lanka with the Maldive Islands might turn out to be the the first leg of a new Africa-Asia cable. The US$20-million, 850km cable owned by Sri Lanka Telecom and Dhiraagu Telecom of Maldives, is due to be commissioned in the first quarter of 2007.

SA broadband market looks good

25/11/2006  Market intelligence and consulting company BMI-T has upwardly revised its previous forecasts for the broadband market in South Africa.

Ministers delay signing

03/11/2006  EASSy has entered another rough patch, as ministers from Zambia, Mozambique, Sudan and Kenya say they need time to study the project's protocol before committing.

'More time needed' says Zambia

23/10/2006  November 30 has been set as the deadline for the 23 African countries participating in EASSy to sign the protocol. Only nine signatures have been collected so far. Of the countries who haven't yet come to the party, Zambian Communications Minister Peter Daka says he needs more time to read the fine print.

EASSy let down again

19/10/2006  Although disappointed that only two countries signed the EASSy protocol at a recent meeting in Cape Town, South African communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri remains confident more will join.

Seven more states to sign EASSy deal

14/10/2006  Seven more countries are expected to sign the EASSy protocol authorising the construction and operation of the undersea cable on Monday. The signing, which will happen in Cape Town, follows last month's botched attempt to get the fibre project off the ground in Rwanda. Only seven of 23 participating countries showed up for that event.

EASSy spend will be clarified soon

13/10/2006  The EASSy secretariat says it expects to know by mid-December how much money is available for the project so that it can sign a construction agreement with the cable contractor. Stakeholders who haven't yet signed the EASSy protocol have a 60-day window period beginning on October 12th to put pen to paper.

EASSy start date delayed

13/10/2006  The commissioning of EASSy has been pushed back to October 1, 2008. The project was originally to start next year - and Kenya is complaining again.

Lack of consensus threatens EASSy plans again

29/09/2006  The 31 telecommunications companies involved in developing and implementing the EASSy cable say that the 23-nation protocol to build the under-sea cable is unacceptable to them and could lead to them abandoning the project.

Kenya wants changes to EASSy protocol

25/09/2006  The Kenyan government has fundamental disagreements with the EASSy Government Protocol signed in Rwanda recently. Balancing Act’s Isabelle Gross spoke to Bitange Ndemo, the Permanent Secretary in the Kenyan Ministry of Communications and Information.

Kenya weakens cable plans

21/09/2006  Kenya says that it is thinking of issuing a long-term bond to finance its own undersea communications cable after plans to build one jointly with African nations were delayed by squabbling. Only seven out of 23 countries have signed a deal on how to run the proposed EASSy cable. Alari Alare Kenneth writes that this weakens the EASSy initiative, pitting Kenya and Nepad against each other.

African states look to SAT3 link-up

14/09/2006  Telecom Namibia, the southern African country's telephone monopoly, and its counterparts in Botswana and Angola are investigating the viability of linking their networks to the SAT-3 underwater cable.

Fibre optic link from Kigali to Kagitumba

11/09/2006  Rwanda will soon have a new 200km fibre optic link from Kigali to Kagitumba in the Northeast tip of the country. The cable is expected to cost US$3-million. Officials are hopeful that it will create jobs and serve as an educational resource, amongst other things.

'FOSS, bandwidth key' - Shuttleworth

11/09/2006  Open Source advocate and Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth says skills, free software and bandwidth are the key ingredients for successful ICT development on the continent. He was speaking at an ISP conference in South Africa recently.

Stick by your guns, urges Rwanda

05/09/2006  In what has been widely recognized as a show of Rwanda’s commitment to the EASSy project, President Paul Kagame has asked beneficiary states to act concertedly so that the $280-million venture is implemented effectively. Kagame was addressing African ministers at the signing of a policy framework agreement for the EASSy project in Kigali.

Fibre take-up won't be so fast

24/08/2006  With the proposed EASSy fibre cable coming on stream in 2008 and the steady roll-out of national backbone and cross-border links, it might be expected that the proportion of African traffic carried by fibre would increase very quickly. This appears unlikely to happen within the next three to five years, according to a new report from Balancing Act.

Regulators issue SAT3 statement

28/07/2006  Over 40 African regulators, policy advisors, civil society activists, consumer groups, and donors, amongst others, gathered in Johannesburg recently to discuss the future of SAT3. The workshop, entitled "What happens when national monopolies end?" raised a host of interesting questions regarding the future of the submarine cable and the important role the regulators can play. A statement was issued at the end of the workshop.

EASSy work set to begin

11/07/2006  After almost four years of bickering, work on the $230-million EASSy project begins next month. But, writes Noel Wandera, before the work begins, the EASSy secretariat has formed a task force to solve the last hurdle: the issue of internal cabling in landlocked countries.

KDN pips EASSy to the post

27/06/2006  The EASSy saga, which has had more twists and turns than a mountain road, took what may be a final turn. Kenya Data Networks announced that it has secured a separate deal with Flag Telecom to build a spur from off the cost of Yemen to Mombasa, writes Russell Southwood.

Rwanda selected for EASSy HQ

27/06/2006  Rwanda has been selected to house the headquarters of the EASSy project. Rwanda's selection is seen as a vote of confidence in the country's political will and the developments already underway in transforming the country into an ICT hub.

EASSy declaration signed by Africa ministers

12/06/2006  It is all back on track for EASSy. Government ministers have now signed a joint declaration, commiting themselves to the project. And Kenya has pointed a finger at the media, which it feels stirred up trouble ahead of the meeting.

Nepad in bid to ease Kenya's concerns

08/06/2006  The New Partnership for Africa's Development has organised a meeting to find a solution to the looming crisis caused by Kenya, which plans to break away from the EASSy project, an official of Uganda Communications Commissionn says. Kenya has threatened to withdraw from EASSy and construct its own "parallel line" if the project doesn't get its act together.

EASSy cable in the balance

07/06/2006  Efforts to complete the EASSy submarine cable could suffer a major blow if the parties involved fail to reach an agreement in the near future, experts say.

Kenya issues a deadline challenge

07/06/2006  Kenya has signalled its frustration with the delays to the EASSy project. It says if there's no clear progress soon, it is pulling out.

Rift exposed at EASSy workshop

07/06/2006  The rift between those for open access and those against it were clear at a recent EASSy national workshop in Uganda, argues Abubaker Basajjabaka.

(Broad)banding together

14/04/2006  African universities have banded together to challenge high internet bandwidth access costs by investing in the development of the EASSy undersea cable. According to the UbuntuNet Alliance, universities in sub-Saharan Africa are being hampered in their research and learning endeavors by the high cost of internet bandwidth. The Mail & Guardian picks up on the story.

Stakeholders divided on access issue

20/03/2006  Mail & Guardian -- South Africa's Mail & Guardian newspaper reports on the opportunities and challenges facing the completion of the EASSy fibre loop. As it points out, campaigners, investors and governments are divided on the issue of access.

EASSy task force gets on the road

20/03/2006  ITWeb -- The EASSy consortium has set up a task force to stage an East African roadshow to assess issues around the building of the undersea cable system. The roadshow included events in Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda.

Campaigners challenge EASSy assumptions

15/03/2006  BBC News -- BBC News online reports how campaigners fear that the EASSy fibre optic cable could become a missed opportunity. While this position is slated by some in the telecommunications sector, the BBC also asks its readers in Africa what they think, and gets some interesting answers.

EASSy must be transparent, must be open

08/03/2006  This EASSy project is at a crossroads, argue development experts. It can either follow the monopoly practices of its predecessor SAT3, or offer an open access regime that will increase competition and lower prices, and consider development needs.

Shuttleworth slams telecom 'cartels'

28/02/2006  Ubuntu Linux founder and entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth has hit out at the African telecommunications sector saying the current "cartels" as they exist are not able to deliver effective and affordable bandwidth to the continent.

EASSy misses finance deadline

28/02/2006  Balancing Act -- EASSy is struggling to get the written commitments to funding from the 27 members of its consortium. Russell Southwood writes that many of the participating consortium members will have to go to their governments for money and the governments in turn will need to go to the World Bank.

Why has SAT-3 gone soft?

10/02/2006  Daily Champion -- Despite a perhaps unprecedented collaboration between African states aimed at driving down connectivity costs in Africa, the submarine cable SAT-3 is turning out to be a little bit of a limp buscuit.

Enquiry into SAT3 monopoly on hold

05/02/2006  Balancing Act -- An enquiry by the regulator into whether Telkom should be allowed to retain its monopoly on the SAT3 undersea cable is on hold, pending clarification from government. At stake is whether Sat3, which provides most of South Africa's international bandwidth, should be declared an essential service.

EASSy plans on course

10/01/2006  East African Standard -- Laying of the undersea fibre optic cable to connect East African countries with the rest of the world is set to commence this year. African operators developing the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) say plans for the cable project are on course.

Work to start om EASSy in March 2006

26/10/2005  The Monitor -- The laying of the proposed fibre optic cable along the entire stretch of the East African coast will start in March next year. Upon completion, the fible optic cable will interlink the region to two other undersea cables serving south, west and northern Africa and form a highway continental loop that connects Africa to the rest of the world.

New wave of African VoIP operators emerge

17/10/2005  Balancing Act -- Africa's grey market VoIP operators are coming out into the light as attitudes and legislation change. The emergence of a VoIP service providers sector could prove almost as significant for Africa as the earlier emergence of independent ISPs.

Telecom Conference starts with a focus on access

06/09/2005  Cameroon Tribune -- There was every evidence at the Yaounde Conference Centre in Cameroon that the greatest challenge in telecommunication is not just the rapid developments in ICTs, but the difficult way to have access to them.

Botswana upgrades network

05/08/2005  Mmegi -- The Botswana Telecommunications Corporation has embarked on a number of projects to improve the capacity and reliability of its network. The government says that a reliable, high capacity national telecommunications network is essential to creating an environment capable of attracting high value investors in the sector.

Uganda set to legalise VoIP

18/04/2005  BalancingAct-Africa -- Uganda will legalize its VoIP services after July this year. This follows a similar move by Tanzania where VoIP services have been been legal since February 2005, writes Esther Nakkazi.

Zambia's first wireless ISP offers broadband

29/03/2005  Balancing Act -- 'Always-on' broadband is largely a dream for most African internet users. Earlier this month AfriConnect announced the launch of its iConnect wireless broadband internet service in Zambia, a service that they believe brings a whole new internet concept to the country by offering the first affordable, high-speed internet solution.

Behind the Issue

Kigali: Who's in, who's out?

30/10/2007  The Connect Africa summit, recently held in Kigali in Rwanda, has come under fire from civil society activists who say it is not inclusive. In a statement issue in the run-up to the summit, prominent global and regional ICT organisations have called for, amongst other things, a return to the multi-stakeholder values that drove other global processes such as WSIS.

More details on TEAMS deal emerge...

11/10/2007  Some details of the TEAMS project are emerging. That's after the French-US telecoms giant Alcatel-Lucent was awarded the contract to build the cable. KICTANeT summed up the key points of a public meeting on the issue.

South Africa: Free bandwidth campaign launched

04/06/2007  Yet another campaign targeting Telkom SA has been launched. This time, the Free Bandwidth Campaign is trying to highlight Telkom's local capping non-compliance. It aims to test Telkom's capability to deliver uncapped local content.

Ministers give EASSy another go

01/06/2007  ICT ministers from about 20 African countries have been invited to Malawi for a special meeting that is expected to iron out controversies surrounding EASSy.

Shifting sands for fibre

10/04/2007  Disagreements over EASSy could result in a duplicate cable laid in direct competition to the original R300-million project, writes Lesley Stones. Fundamental to this possibility is a clash between private investors wanting to profiteer and governments demanding cheaper bandwidth to reduce the cost of doing business and stimulate economic growth.

Yet another fibre project for the east coast

04/04/2007  While projects like EASSy and TEAMS bubble along, another fibre initiative for East Africa has been shoved somewhat unceremoniously onto the hotplate. Sithe’s SEACOM has been working quietly on the fringes to put together a privately funded “carriers’ carrier” project. Russell Southwood found out more.

World Bank puts the money on the table

04/04/2007  The World Bank has approved a US$164.5 million financing package for Kenya, Burundi and Madagascar as a first tranche in a US$424-million regional broadband infrastructure programme.

'We are not giving up on NEPAD'

04/03/2007  Kenya’s sudden exit from the EASSy project has set tongues wagging – and the controversy has not been helped by South Africa apparently unilaterally changing the project’s name to The Nepad Broadband Infrastructure Network (NBIN). CIPESA recently spoke to Uganda Telecom’s Donald Nyakairu, and NEPAD’s Dr Edmund Katiti, to get their views on the power plays unfolding.

Africa's great open access bandwidth debate

21/04/2006  Canadian PC World -- Africa's Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSY) is running into controversy over whether access to the new network's bandwidth should be granted for free to local service providers.

Research and Analysis

Consensus-building and NEPAD's broadband ambitions

06/12/2007  Bandwidth has become the lifeblood of the knowledge society, but it is scarcest where it is most necessary – in the developing nations of Africa. High unemployment rates and small skilled job markets in Africa have fostered brain drain and helped depress economic growth. Unless connectivity is improved, other efforts to accelerate development in Africa are unlikely to reverse these trends, writes Mike Jensen.

EASSy breaks fresh ground

12/06/2007  EASSy has concluded interconnection agreements with three cable systems to carry traffic between Africa, Europe and Asia. It has also included the Comoros in its planned fibre network, to which 29 African entities are party. Wairagala Wakabi gets the story.

TEAMS enlists

14/05/2007  Five African governments have signed a communiqué that may well be the first step on the road to the widening out of participation in the TEAMS fibre project to all East African Community countries, writes Russell Southwood.

The coming of the water snake

11/05/2007  Now, another snake is coming. An anaconda is on the way. A long water snake that will run from the Southern Seas right to the East African Coast. It will come to the ground from the sea and run deep into East Africa's remote parts. It has many heads, light and fire runs in its belly. This snake is the fibre optic line called the East African Submarine System.

Kenya raises the fibre stakes

25/04/2007  The Kenyan government has announced that it had set in motion a project that will see the country’s 124 districts linked by fibre optic, raising the stakes in what has become the fastest growing sector in the economy.

EASSy sinks Telkom boss

16/04/2007  The signing of the EASSy supplier contract was the final act that sunk Papi Molotsane as Telkom South Africa's CEO, writes Paul Vecchiatto. His sacking followed criticism from the government that the signing of the supplier contract was outside the government's policy framework.

Pro-poor way to go for ICTs

07/06/2006  The honour of simple pro-poor initiatives at the recent World Information Society Award underscores the need for Kenya's position on the proposed $200-280-million EASSy submarine cable to be driven by universal access principles, argues The Standard's Fred Mudhai.

Kenya’s un-EASSy about-turn

07/06/2006  The Kenyan government’s announcement that it will go it alone in constructing a link to the international fibre optic cable must be a cause for worry, particularly among its landlocked neighbours, argues Vincent Waiswa.

Who exactly can invest in EASSy?

07/04/2006  An informal ‘open access task force’ – made up of African NGOs and small and medium sized ISPs – has been set up to lobby for the implementation of an open access model in internet infrastructure on the continent. The task force, which has been operating since the beginning of March, is currently mobilised to make the EASSy submarine cable ‘easy’, affordable and open. APCNews staff writer Frederick Noronha spoke to two civil society stakeholders.

Resources

SAT3 consortium contract emerges

05/08/2006  A copy of the SAT3 shareholders' agreement has emerged in the public domain. The 76-page, highly confidential document was signed in June 1999. Amongst other things, it outlines the capacity held by the different partners as well as the consortium's governance structure. Russell Southwood investigates.