Some major new fiber may get built in the Democratic Republic of Congo over the next few years. The pan-African provider Liquid Intelligent Technologies is teaming up with none other than Facebook to build out longhaul and metro fiber throughout the country.
Plans call for a digital corridor from the Atlantic Ocean through the Congo Rainforest over to the Indian Ocean, something Liquid has been trying to put together for a couple years now. It’s a 2000km fiber build through an area with both natural and man-made challenges, and will employ some 5,000 people locally at least during the buildout itself.
The infrastructure will improve connectivity from the DRC to multiple neighbors, including Angola, Congo Brazzaville, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. It will also connect on both ends to the 2Africa cable system, also backed by Facebook and almost encircling the continent, creating an quicker terrestrial path for data needing to cross east-west.
Liquid will build, own and operate the new network, providing wholesale services to service providers and network operators. Facebook will invest in the project and support network planning, presumably getting a fiber pair or something as well I assume.
If you haven't already, please take our Reader Survey! Just 3 questions to help us better understand who is reading Telecom Ramblings so we can serve you better!
Categories: Fiber Networks · Internet Backbones
Join Our LinkedIn Group
A lot of missed countries, with this build combined with 2Africa. Is the infrastructure in those countries that poor where there’s nothing to build to, or are those countries well enough served already?