Largest subsea cable on the African continent extended to Namibia
London, Feb. 23, 2021 (AltAfrica)-Largest subsea cable on the African continent is to be extended to Namibia courtesy of Paratus and Telecom Namibia which signed an unprecedented agreement to land the subsea cable, Equiano, in Namibia.
The cable will provide Namibian networks and their customers with greater capacity, enabling more product options that can stimulate economic growth and support a competitive telecommunication sector.
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Paratus Group CEO, Barney Harmse explained, “This is a major milestone for Paratus. We are honoured to be co-investing with Telecom Namibia on the Equiano subsea cable project because this matches our goals of delivering unlimited connectivity and building Africa’s quality network with all the Internet capacity it needs.”
In 2019, Google first announced its subsea cable project, Equiano, would connect Africa with Europe, running along the west coast of Africa, between Portugal and South Africa.
Google’s Equiano cable incorporates new technology that enables approximately 20 times more network capacity than the last cable built to serve this region and provides flexibility to add and reallocate capacity in different locations as needed.
“This collaboration affirms that strategic partnerships between local network providers will greatly promote economic growth and digital transformation, while accelerating Namibia’s participation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. We are very proud to be an investor in the Namibian branch,” said Telecom Namibia CEO, Dr Stanley Shanapinda.
Paratus with its extended network provides a satellite connectivity-focused service in 22 African countries and an additional 4000 satellite connections across the continent.
The additional capacity offered by the Equiano cable, the largest on the African continent, further strengthens the Paratus SADC footprint and European network connection, as well as the operator’s long-term growth strategy.
The co-operation between Paratus and Telecom Namibia reflects the spirit and objectives of the Communications Act, as envisioned by the Namibian government. Collaboration by local operators is proving that the benefits of cooperation are far-reaching not only for customers but also for the entire ICT market in Namibia and beyond.
