18 October 2019

MainOne has confirmed the scheduled landing of its submarine cable systems in Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire in September and October 2019 respectively. 

With the cable landing stations (CLS) in both nations ready for installation of equipment in both Dakar and Abidjan, the company is poised to undertake the physical connection of the branching units on its 7000km-long omnibus fibre pair to the shore and terminal equipment. 

The MainOne submarine cable is being installed by the Orange Marine specialised Pierre de Fermat vessel, which has arrived in Dakar, having picked up the fibre and ancillary equipment, including repeaters from Brest, France in early September.

It will proceed to Abidjan to conclude the laying and final splice in the month of October, ready for service and commercial launch of the system scheduled for November 2019. 

“MainOne is committed to leading the digital transformation across west Africa, driving economic growth and development by enabling and empowering the ecosystem through affordable and ubiquitous connectivity,” said the chief executive officer (CEO) of MainOne, Funke Opeke.

“We are determined ultimately to improve the digital services of the region and today marks the realisation of that journey for Senegal with the landing of the Submarine cable which will drive substantial impact on both GDP and employment.” 

CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, Alioune Ndiaye added: “Africa is experiencing a rapid technological evolution with mobile broadband connectivity enabling a tech ecosystem. Orange, as part of its multi-service strategy, is an important partner in the continent’s digital transformation as demonstrated by our continuous investment.” 

Ndiaye said that through the partnership with MainOne, “we expect to see improved high speed and affordable broadband services in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire that will reinforce connectivity and guarantee reliable access to global broadband networks”.

MainOne’s submarine cable in 2010 became the first private subsea cable to deliver open-access, broadband capacity to west Africa, heralding the advent of high speed fibre-optic broadband in the region.