Somcable Submarine Network has launched its second submarine web cable in a month within the Somaliland coastal metropolis of Berbera.
2 Africa cable is the largest submarine cable to be built. According to the consortium, 45,000km is length and runs between 33 countries in Europe, Africa and Asia, with 46 landings it will be the longest subsea cable ever deployed, “serving communities that rely on the internet for services from education to healthcare and business, with all experiencing the economic and social benefits that come from this increased connectivity.”
The 2Africa subsea cable system together with its Pearls extension is designed to deliver international connectivity to approximately 3 billion people, representing 36% of the global population and connecting three continents, Africa, Europe, and Asia.
Somcable Submarine Network currently works on an open access policy which fits perfectly with what 2africa stands for ‘as quoted by Mr Said Mohamed , Vice Board chairman”, “We welcome all other international submarine cables whom are currently in planning or have existing and upcoming submarine projects to consider Berbera as its now quickly becoming an important strategic location in the Horn of Africa.”
The 2Africa had landed in Djibouti on Friday May 20th and a week later hit the Somaliland coastal town.
The subsea cable funded by Meta and a consortium of companies, became the ninth to land in Djibouti.
“Djibouti Telecom plans to host this new cable in our new Cable Landing Station under construction, which will also host others in the future,” the release informs.
2Africa landed in Djibouti two years after the Djibouti Telecom signed an agreement with Facebook to become a landing station for the cable. The agreement was in line with the plan being implemented by the government since 2014 to provide broadband access to its population. That ambition was reinforced by the coronavirus, which accelerated digital transformation.
Over the past decade, the government of Djibouti, through Djibouti Telecom, invested more than US$250 million in new submarine cables and terrestrial networks to meet the growing demand for broadband connectivity.
By 2021, the incumbent doubled its internet capacity on the DARE1 submarine fiber cable to 400 gigabits per second. Recently, the operator announced its participation in the construction of a subsea cable system called SEA-ME-WE 6 (Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 6). In addition, the Reliance Jio IEX cable and the PEACE cable are expected to land in Djibouti in the near future.
2Africa is 45,000 kilometers long and is scheduled to be operational in 2023/2024. Its commissioning will enable the incumbent operator to significantly increase its broadband internet capacity, meeting the demand and even those of the other telecom operators in the region.
