wiredinUSA October 2013

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Tanzania’s National ICT Broadband Backbone (NICTBB) fiber network is attracting interest from neighboring countries such as Mozambique and Uganda, now in connection talks with Tanzania, while some Kenyan companies are due to sign agreements to utilize the network. Telecommunications Company Ltd (TTCL) chief of marketing and sales officer Peter Ngota told journalists during the recent Capacity Africa 2013 conference in Dar es Salaam that the trend is encouraging. “A lot of people attending this international conference praise the expertise used to construct our optic cable fiber network... we should congratulate the government for this,” he said. Through the NICTBB, Tanzania has been connected with East Africa’s submarine cable networks including SEACOM, EASSY and SEAS. Ngota said that Africa is planning to utilize submarine cable networks in the continent to build an Internet center to serve the continent. Tanzania's optic fiber network attracts the neighbors The Tanzania

TE SubCom clinches cable contract

Hawaiki’s plan for a submarine cable to link Australia and New Zealand with Hawaii continues tomake progress with the signing of a supply contract with TE SubCom. The deal will see the supplier design and lay fiber capable of transmitting 10Tbps per fiber pair on the Australia–New Zealand to Hawaii trunk. The design will allow for Pacific Island nations near the main cable to connect to the network. Although no specifics about the price of the deal have been revealed, it is likely to be hundreds of millions of dollars. Hawaiki said in a statement that TE SubCom has a fleet of cable ships to lay the cable, and that the supplier has experience with local permitting practices – something that could become critical as the project develops. Although the contract is no guarantee that the project will be completed, Hawaiki plans continue to be that the cable will be in place by late 2015. The cable will be based on 100Gbps wavelength technology, in common with the Southern Cross cable which states it operates at 100Gbps.

ASIA / AFRICA NEWS

wiredInUSA - October 2013

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