wiredinUSA June 2013

Intercontinental cable

Executives of the PTA Bank have confirmed their approval of a $11.5 million loan for Burundi Backbone SystemsCompany (BBS) to build a national fiber optic network. The 13,000km fiber optic project will cover the capital, Bujumbura, 17 provinces and the country’s borders with Rwanda and Tanzania, connecting the country to international fiber optic cables for the first time. Burundi will rely heavily on the Rwandan and Tanzanian infrastructure. Rwanda has already completed laying its 2,300km national backbone, while Tanzania is still working on a 10,000km fiber infrastructure. The World Bank initiated the project in late 2008 with a funding of about $10.5 million. The East African states are jointly investing $400 million in terrestrial fiber optics for backbone cables that, when complete, will provide a vast network for Internet connectivity covering over 15,600km. Fiber funds for Burundi

AMEinfo reports that Etisalat, a leading telecom operator in the Middle East and Africa, has announced a strategic partnership in the construction of the Bay of Bengal (BBG) submarine fiber optic cable. Other major operators involved are Telekom Malaysia Berhad (Malaysia), Vodafone Group (UK), Omantel (Oman), Reliance JioInfocomm Limited (India) and Dialog Axiata (Sri Lanka). "Etisalat's Smarthub is the strategic terminal point for Bay of Bengal (BBG) cable. This reaffirms UAE's position as the telecommunication hub in the region. We are delighted to be part of this consortium that will enhance our already robust intercontinental capacity to support our customers growing high speed data requirements," said Ali Amiri, executive vice president, carrier and wholesale services, Etisalat. The construction of BBG will provide connectivity between the Middle East, south east Asia and south Asia, and is a clear indication of the growing demand for bandwidth in the participating countries. The 8,000km cable will provide upgradable and transmission facilities using 100Gbps technology. The system is expected to carry commercial traffic by the end of 2014.

wiredInUSA - June 2013

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