Promise for improved internet in Africa

Own Correspondent

The recent arrival of Google’s Equiano subsea internet cable promises cheaper and faster internet in Africa.

Equiano has 20 times more capacity than the last cable built to serve the region. Once Equiano comes online, internet connectivity could be around 20% cheaper, according to Google Sub-Saharan Africa managing director Nitin Gajria. But how much cheaper data will become because of Equiano largely depends on the country and partnerships along the way.

The Equiano internet cable that landed ashore in Melkbosstrand outside Cape Town earlier this year could cut South Africa’s internet costs by around 20%, according to Google. Equiano arrived in South Africa in early August, its final destination Togo, Nigeria and Namibia.

Gajria says the submarine internet cable, stretching 15 000 kilometres from Portugal to South Africa along the west coast of Africa, features 12 fibre pairs and capacity of 150Tbps.

“Equiano has 20 times more network capacity than the last cable built to serve this region. There is a huge positive knock-on effect in terms of digital economies and job generation. For the end-user the knock-on effect is faster and lower cost internet. Depending on the country, geography and various partnerships, this would be somewhere in the range of 20% cheaper internet locally,” Gajria said.

Warning on procurement scam

Johannesburg - The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has warned the public of a scam doing the rounds around the country, where unscrupulous people circulate fraudulent tenders under the bank’s name.

In a statement SARB said the email address and tender documents attached to the email, calling on prospective suppliers to bid for 300 units of MRTX flashlights, is fake.

“All SARB email addresses end with res- bank.co.za. Suppliers are advised to scrutinise all bids they receive, including the email addresses of the SARB buyers, as well as other details. It should also be noted that all procurement at the SARB is centralised within its Procurement Division. If a potential supplier is unsure about a tender purporting to be from the SARB, they are encouraged to contact the SARB’s procurement support desk through email supplier@resbank.co.za,” SARB said.

Equiano will start feeding more network capacity through the west coast of Africa and South Africa in a phased approach, said Gajria, with the first phase to begin in December.

“The cable brings a lot more network capacity. We are working with partners to bring this capacity further afield. This involves us working with ISPs, telcos and other infrastructure players in the ecosystem to bring this capacity further afield. One of our objectives is to start driving more connectivity and getting more people online and getting faster, cheaper internet into more parts of Africa, including rural areas. In about 1.1 billion people in Sub-Saharan Africa only 300 million are online. Those people do not really have the full internet experience that many of us do. The problem in getting more people connected to the internet in Africa involves network availability, which is becoming less of an issue as telecommunication providers expand. So think of Equiano as bringing in a lot more supply of network capacity into Africa. That will make internet speeds faster and data cheaper,” Gajria said.

The landing of Equiano in South Africa coincides with the laying of the 2Africa cable, the longest subsea cable in the world, which recently arrived in Marseille, France. The cable will connect 33 countries and continents of Africa, Europe and Asia once live in 2023, further improving capacity in the regions.

Security guard shoots another dead

‘The security guards working for different companies were on duty at the time, and the motive for the murder is not yet known’

Johannesburg - On Sunday police arrested a 34-year-old security guard for murder at Prasa building, corner Carr Street and Central Road.

Police spokesperson Lt-Colonel Xoli Mbele said the man allegedly shot another security guard once in the upper body.

“The victim was taken to hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The security men working for different companies were on duty at the time, and the motive for the murder is not yet known. The firearm used in the shooting was confiscated and investigation is underway,” Mbele said.