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Kenya considers purchase of Djibouti undersea cable infrastructure

Kenya is shaping up as a centre-stage for the ongoing scramble for Africa in the tech space

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by Magdalene Saya

News11 June 2023 - 11:11
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In Summary


  • • TEAMS is an initiative spearheaded by the government of Kenya to link the country to the rest of the world through a submarine fibre optic cable
  • • Ruto has acknowledged that the establishment of digital connectivity is crucial in fostering innovation and expanding e-commerce
Kenya Launches the sixth submarine Pakistan and East Africa connecting Europe cables at Nyali Beach in Mombasa. The 15,000 Km fibres costing Ksh 46 Billion is meant to offset data cost and improve connectivity. March 29, 2022

Various institutions will be meeting in Nairobi this month to consider a proposal by Djibouti to sell its undersea cable infrastructure to Kenya.

President William Ruto on Sunday said Djibouti Telecoms had made the proposal to sell its undersea cable infrastructure to Kenya's The East African Marine System (TEAMS).

TEAMS is an initiative spearheaded by the government of Kenya to link the country to the rest of the world through a submarine fibre optic cable.

Ruto has acknowledged that the establishment of digital connectivity is crucial in fostering innovation and expanding e-commerce.

“Kenya will promptly review the proposal put forth by Djibouti Telecoms to sell its undersea cable infrastructure to Kenya's TEAMs, taking into account technological advancements and the requirements of both parties,” he said.

“In furtherance of this objective, our respective institutions will convene in Nairobi within the next two weeks to advance the discussions on this matter,” he noted.

TEAMS cable is connected to the Kenya national fiber backbone network and other major backhaul providers, thus extending the gigabit submarine capacity to the rest of the East African countries.

They include Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania through cross-border connectivity arrangements.

Kenya is shaping up as a centre-stage for the ongoing scramble for Africa in the tech space, with international firms from Europe, America and Asia landing their marine cables at the Coast.

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