The multinational Google signed an agreement with the Paratus Group, the pan-African leader in the provision of telecommunications services, for the installation of the Equiano cable in the Republic of Namibia and to accelerate connectivity in the southern region of Africa.
Following the announcement in February 2021 that the African telecommunications company, Paratus Group , together with Telecom Namibia, had been selected to build the Cable Landing Station (CLS) for the Equiano Submarine Internet Cable in Namibia, the cable was brought ashore.
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The Equiano submarine cable will provide communications diversity due to its greater capacity and this will have a direct impact on connectivity with faster internet speeds, more market flexibility and an enhanced user experience for consumers in Namibia and beyond. Paratus completed construction of the CLS in September of last year, and the interior fit-out – including power, cabling enclosures, conduits, runways, cages and security – was completed in January 2022.
According to Barney Harmse (CEO of Grupo Paratus), “Namibia has higher levels of Internet connection – at 40,5% compared to an average of 29% for sub-Saharan African countries – but was dependent on the West African Cable System (WACS) for its international connectivity so far. The arrival of the Equiano cable will significantly increase Namibia's international bandwidth capacity as it is four times that of WACS. This will not only ensure better connectivity stability in the country, but also lower latencies and higher speeds in global data transmission.
A improved connectivity will accelerate job creation. Between 2022 and 2025, Equiano is expected to indirectly create 21.000 jobs in Namibia, driven by the expansion of the digital economy and associated business sectors. This is also in line with Namibia's long-term development framework – Vision 2030 which positions ICT as a key pillar of the country's economy.
