Taking internet fibre from the seashores inland is a very costly engagement, so when an operator says it has succeeded in laying 100,000 km of fibre across Sub-Saharan Africa, it is a major milestone.
Liquid Intelligent Technologies said it has achieved 100,000km of fibre making them the largest independent network infrastructure provider in Africa and other emerging markets. The company said it added 10,010 km of meters in the first five months of 2021 to take the total fibre deployed so far from 89,989 at the beginning of the year to 100,000.
To put it into context, the five telecom operators in Nigeria have yet to deploy up to 40,000km of fibre.
The additional fibre networks means Liquid Intelligent Technologies now connects 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, helping them explore opportunities in Africa and across US, Asian, and European markets.
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Generally, the organisation’s fibre infrastructure impacts more than 100 million people across 643 towns and cities in Africa. Liquid’s goal is to make digital inclusion a reality for businesses and individuals across Africa and ultimately scale the ongoing digital transformation in Africa.
“Over the years we have been successfully connecting countries through our high-speed connectivity and digital services. Our successful partnerships with customers ensured that today we are recognised as a technology company that has brought local businesses access to Cloud capabilities, world-class Cyber Security solutions in addition to our existing telecoms and connectivity capability,” Nic Rudinick, Group Chief Executive Officer, Liquid Intelligent Technologies, said.
Liquid recently deployed a 2500km long haul fibre network in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), bringing its digital services to a country that previously relied only on expensive mobile broadband. For the first time, 2.7 million people of Mbuji-Mayi in the DRC will have access to fibre connectivity, creating an environment that stimulates exciting new sector growth opportunities.
Knowing that connectivity is vital for Africa’s economic growth, the extended penetration will also enable small businesses, enterprises, and government entities to increase their competitiveness through the many digital solutions catering to their individual needs.
“The internet offers unprecedented opportunities for economic growth in developing countries. By providing access to information, connecting people to businesses everywhere, and opening up new markets, the internet can act as an enabler of economic activity and an engine for information sharing. Economic development is not about choosing between access to the internet and basic necessities, they need to work together to allow societies to flourish,” Rudnich said.
According to Deloitte, it is estimated that by extending internet penetration, another 640 million children may access the internet and the wealth of information it makes available while they study. With only a 20 percent internet penetration in Africa, the internet plays a pivotal role in extending access to educational resources and accelerating knowledge sharing among students and teachers. It improves the quality of offline education, resulting in better school performance with online learning resources. As a result of education improvement, young people are more employable, and improved literacy promotes social inclusion and benefits the economy.
