Konnect, a subsidiary of Eutelsat Communications is pursuing its ambition of connecting the entire African continent to very high-speed Internet, as the continent continue to grapple with the current health challenge.
In this regard, the company has proposed to offer broadband internet connection to isolation centers to fight against Covid-19 in Sokoto State, a north-western state in Nigeria, to enable the real-time connection of centers,
A statement made available to BusinessDay on Tuesday, indicates that the company is deploying the initiative as a way of assisting the state to effectively deploy telemedicine in coordinating medical services as well as improved the care offered.
With this offer, the company will be joining several African governments to combat Covid-19 through boosting access to care for the greatest number of people in the continent.
Under the program, isolation centers in the state will benefit from free broadband connectivity that is going to be deployed in partnership with Coollink, a foremost ISP in Nigeria.
Commenting on the program, Jean-Claude Tshipama, Chief Executive Officer of Konnect Africa, disclosed that the initiative was conceived as a support for the on-going efforts of the African governments to tackle the pandemic.
“This operation demonstrates our ability to meet as quickly as possible the connectivity needs of institutional and commercial structures, even in complex times like these.
“We want Sokoto State to benefit from our expertise and the quality of our broadband services by providing free connectivity to all isolation centers”, he stated.
Also speaking on the initiative, Shahin Nouri, Chief Executive Officer of Coollink noted that the intervention was borne out of the need to help the Government and people of Sokoto State to effectively curtail the pandemic.
“Helping the Sokoto State Government to provide free satellite internet services to isolation centers is very important to us. It shows our engagement to deliver high-speed Internet anywhere in Nigeria and to help communities in crisis.
“Eutelsat Konnect has been a very important partner for us, and with such initiatives, is showing its commitment to the Nigerian market”, he noted Commenting on the program, state commissioner for health, Muhammad Ali Inname thanked the two companies for coming up with the support program at this material time.
Muhammed said that the gesture is a demonstration of great concern towards the good people of Sokoto state, noting that the internet connectivity to three Covid-19 Isolation centers in the state would go a long way in facilitating the management of Covid-19 patients.
It will be recalled that Konnect, in partnership with Coollink, has been operating in Nigeria since 2017, with the ambition of offering broadband connectivity to all segments of the population, in particularly those located in unserved or underserved areas.
