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Ethiopia awards fiber optics project to SEACOM

  1. Posted on Friday 19 March 2010 - 13:58
    Yohanes
    Image of Yohanes
    Ethiopian Telecommunication Corporation (ETC) awarded undersea fiber optic telecommunications cable installation project to SEACOM, the privately funded company with 77 percent African investors’ ownership.

    The 47 Million USD contract signed on Thursday at the Sheraton Addis between the two companies will allow ETC to supply international broadband capacity via a link through Djibouti to its customers.

    The agreement covers expanding a submarine cable with a capacity of ‘3,100 mega bites per second’ (20 STM-1), out of which the ‘2,480 mega bite per second’ (16 STM-1) of the total capacity will be utilized for commercial purposes and the remaining capacity will be used for e-government development program.

    "The availability of high-quality broadband at lower prices will accelerate economic development and educational initiatives,” said Amare Amsalu Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Telecommunications at the signing ceremony.

    SEACOM’s Chief Executive Officer Brian Herlihy, on his part indicated that his company is honored to have been selected by ETC to provide this important international broadband connectivity element to Ethiopia, according to www.newbusinessethiopia.com

    “As we have seen in other countries that gained access to SEACOM, it is only a matter of time before the direct socio-economic benefits created by cheap and readily available bandwidth begin to manifest in Ethiopia and the region,” he noted.

    Currently Ethiopian government is engaged in a 1.5 billion USD national initiative to improve the east African country's telecommunications infrastructure. Amongst other projects, its national fiber optic network is set to be expanded significantly.

    SEACOM is a 17,000 kilometer submarine cable launched in July that aims to connect eastern and southern African countries to the rest of the world via India and Europe.

    The company is almost 77 percent owned by African investors, including an arm of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, Venfin Ltd., Convergence Partners and Shanduka Group. The remainder is owned by Herakles Telecom LLC.

    Ethiopia awards fiber optics project to SEACOM

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