Togo: Equiano cable operational since August

Telecom

Thursday, 09 November 2023 17:43

Togo: Equiano cable operational since August

(Togo First) - Google’s Equiano submarine Cable has been operational in Togo since August 2023. The news was disclosed earlier this week by Csquared Woezon, the public-private joint venture responsible for managing the cable and offering the internet capacity emanating from it for sale in Togo.

"The cable has been operational since August 2023, and is in operation," said Eudes Gbessi, Csquared Togo country manager. "We have access providers and mobile operators who are already connected to this cable and who, through this cable, offer internet services to Togolese citizens, he added.

Equiano landed in Togo in March 2022, making the country the first in Africa to connect to the cable. President Faure Gnassingbe, himself, was present at the reception, alongside Cina Lawson, the minister of digital economy.

The equipment should offer around 20 times more network capacity than previous structures, and this capacity was meant to be sold to local operators, including TogoCom, Teolis, Café Informatique, but also foreign operators.

Now, however, the country targets neighbors such as Ghana, Benin, and Burkina Faso. It also plans to take advantage of the cable to boost its fiber optic network, serving more cities, all over the territory. In addition, Lomé plans to leverage the cable’s capacities to position itself as a "point of entry" for Internet connectivity in the sub-region.

"We will therefore continue to extend the network to every nook and cranny of the country," said Lanre Kolade, CEO of Csquared Group, to this effect. The joint venture, 44% owned by the Togolese government and 56% by Csquared, has also taken over control of the E-Gouv network, which connects various government departments, and is working to strengthen it as part of the new Internet architecture taking shape.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

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