Connecting Africa is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 3099067.

Connectivity

2Africa subsea cable makes another SA landing

Article Image
The highly anticipated 2Africa subsea cable – which will connect Africa, Europe and Asia – has made another landing in South Africa, this time at the Vodacom network facility in Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) in the Eastern Cape province.

The 45,000km subsea cable project aims to significantly increase the capacity, quality and availability of Internet connectivity between Africa and the rest of the world, with a design capacity of up to 180 Tbit/s.

2Africa was announced by Meta (Facebook) in May 2020, and is being rolled out through a consortium including eight international partners: China Mobile International, MTN GlobalConnect, Orange, center3 (stc), Telecom Egypt, Vodafone/Vodacom, the West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC) and Meta.

The Gqeberha landing is the 2Africa project's third on the coast of South Africa, following two recent landings in the Western Cape by MTN GlobalConnect. Vodacom is the designated landing partner, providing facilities for the cable's installation at an existing site in Gqeberha's Summerstrand area.

Vodacom Group Chief Officer for International Markets, Diego Gutierrez, said the cable will help drive digital inclusion in Africa by increasing access to quality Internet services. It will take investment in network infrastructure to support this goal, he said.

"We cannot achieve this alone, and collaboration between other industry stakeholders and the public sector is critical in enabling more citizens across the continent to be connected," Gutierrez added.

Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) is responsible for manufacturing and deploying the 2Africa cable, due for completion in 2024 via 46 landing locations in 33 countries.

Vodacom said the 2Africa East cable system, of which the Gqeberha branch is a part, will be ready for service by the fourth quarter of 2023.

Map of the planned 2Africa route and landings.  (Source: 2Africa Press Kit)
Map of the planned 2Africa route and landings.
(Source: 2Africa Press Kit)

2Africa will have 27 landings in Africa across 19 countries, including four landings in South Africa and two each in Mozambique, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia and Egypt.

In September 2021, it added a new segment – called the 2Africa PEARLS branch – that will connect the Arabian Gulf and South Asia. This will extend the original length of 37,000km to over 45,000km, making it the longest subsea cable system ever deployed.

A study from RTI predicts that 2Africa will catalyze between $26.2 billion and $36.9 billion in economic impact for Africa within two to three years of becoming operational.

Eastern Cape expectations

Vodacom said that through the 2Africa landing at Gqeberha, service providers will be able to obtain capacity on a fair and equitable basis, and direct international connectivity can be provided to data centers, enterprises and wholesale customers.

"Once the fiber cable system has been deployed, businesses and consumers will benefit from improved quality, reliability, and lower latency for Internet services, including telecommuting, high-definition video streaming and advanced multimedia and mobile video applications," the operator said.

The cable system's landing in the Eastern Cape – one of South Africa's poorest provinces – will also offer the potential for much-needed regional job creation in sectors that rely on direct international connectivity, such as data centers, call centers and software development.


Want to know more about connectivity in Africa? Check out our dedicated Connectivity content channel here on Connecting Africa.


Vodacom added that the 2Africa project underpins further growth of 4G, 5G and fixed broadband access by providing improved connectivity to underserved and rural areas and network resilience from the Eastern Cape to the rest of South Africa.

The 2Africa landings come after Google's Equiano cable – which will connect South Africa to Europe along Africa's west coast – also landed on SA shores in August 2022.

Related posts:

*Top image is of the 2Africa cable system coming ashore in Gqeberha in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. (Source: Vodacom)

— Paula Gilbert, Editor, Connecting Africa

Innovation hub

Story

Hot startup of the month: Nigeria's Tech Herfrica

Connecting Africa's hot startup is Nigeria's Tech Herfrica, a social impact organization that focuses on the digital and financial inclusion of women and girls in rural areas of Nigeria.

Story

Omdia View: February 2024

Highlights in February 2024 in the Middle East and Africa included 5G launches in Senegal and 5G trials in Egypt as well as Kenya's first 5G MVNO. Airtel also launched a new wholesale connectivity business while MTN and Huawei are planning a joint Innovation Technology Lab in South Africa – that and more in this month's Omdia View.

More Innovation hub

Latest video

More videos

Partner perspectives

All Partner Perspectives

Sponsored video

More videos

Industry announcements

More Industry announcements

Upcoming events

Africa Tech Festival 2024
November 11-14, 2024
Cape Town, South Africa
More Upcoming events

Africa Tech Perspectives

Story

Uber's Marjorie Saint-Lot on inclusion and sustainability in Africa

Uber's Country Manager for Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, Marjorie Saint-Lot, shares how the ride-hailing company is approaching public-private partnerships, environmentally friendly initiatives and gender inclusion in Africa.

Story

The 100 most influential African leaders in 2023

A new report from Africa Tech Festival and Connecting Africa puts a spotlight on the top 100 African leaders in the telecoms and technology sector in 2023.

Story

Deep dive into East Africa's tech startup ecosystem

New survey reveals a lack of access to investors, reliance on international VCs and global recession trends as the biggest barriers for East African tech startups to access funds.

More Africa Tech perspectives

Guest Perspectives

Story

Omdia View: February 2024

By Omdia Analysts

Highlights in February 2024 in the Middle East and Africa included 5G launches in Senegal and 5G trials in Egypt as well as Kenya's first 5G MVNO. Airtel also launched a new wholesale connectivity business while MTN and Huawei are planning a joint Innovation Technology Lab in South Africa – that and more in this month's Omdia View.

Story

Omdia View: January 2024

By Omdia Analysts

Highlights in January 2024 in the Middle East and Africa included a $200 million fintech deal between MTN and Mastercard as well as 5G network trials by Telecom Egypt – that and more in this month's Omdia View.

More Guest Perspectives

Like us on Facebook

Newsletter Sign Up


Sign Up
Tag id test-002