Nigeria’s submarine cable company, MainOne, is expected to extend submarine cable to Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire by October, after the President Alassane Ouattara-led government handed it a submarine cable landing licence.
MainOne said it has made significant progress in the project implementation, adding that all critical surveys have been completed, and work is ongoing at the cable landing station and data centre in Abidjan.
After completion, the project is expected to facilitate intra and inter connectivity within the West African region, while strengthening regional economy.
MainOne’s Regional Executive, Kazeem Oladepo, made this known during the company’s yearly general meeting in Abidjan, where members of the Board of Directors of the Group visited the VITIB location, to observe the on-going construction of the data centre and the cable landing station.
MainOne on Sunday, said the data centre and landing station will provide the necessary infrastructure to support the growth of the broadband ecosystem in Cote D’Ivoire and the Francophone region, improve Internet access in the region, reduce bandwidth prices and make digital services more accessible.
“By investing in this infrastructure, we hope to bring meaningful and much-needed technology solutions to businesses and enable them in their quest for improved productivity and efficiency through dedicated and reliable connectivity services. We are prepared to collaborate with operators to expand capacity in Cote D’Ivoire and neighbouring countries to enhance regional integration and global access,” Oladepo stated.
The Nigerian firm explained that the strategic location of the data centre in the Grand-Bassam technology free trade zone, VITIB, will further strengthen the digital ecosystem in the zone, and attract more businesses and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the region.
Oladepo said MainOne is committed to deepening broadband access across West Africa via fibre infrastructure and data centres.
“With service delivery in 10 countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Cote D’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Togo, Cameroun, Benin, Niger, Senegal and Chad, MainOne operates up to 10Tbps international submarine cable system. This guarantees highly reliable connectivity to support the growing demand for Internet access and bandwidth-intensive applications such as eCommerce, Content providers, OTT players, and electronic banking and payment services,” he concluded.
