The telecommunications landscape in Sudan is set to experience a significant transformation thanks to a $3 million investment in advanced networking equipment and the recent activation of a new subcontinental undersea fibre optic cable. This development is particularly impactful for Sudan, a nation that has seen its telecommunications infrastructure severely damaged by the ravages of civil war.
The undersea fibre cable initiative, which has just been brought online, is an innovative venture led by the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). This project falls under the strategic Port Sudan to Douala (Cameroon) Corridor and is designed to connect landlocked nations in Central and West Africa to the global undersea cable network.
The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC), an international consortium of organizations dedicated to providing shared communications services during humanitarian crises, has made a substantial investment in the necessary networking equipment to support this project.
In alignment with the PIDA project’s goals, the ETC is in the process of launching a fibre internet service that will soon be available to users in Port Sudan by the end of the current week. The service will subsequently be extended to strategically important locations throughout Sudan, including Damazine, Dongola, El Gedaref, Kassala, and the capital city, Khartoum.
However, the deployment of this service to some areas, such as Kosti, has been temporarily suspended due to the escalation of conflict and the resulting evacuations in those regions.
Richard Egwangu, the ETC’s regional coordinator, emphasized that the shift to fibre optic technology represents a significant upgrade from the existing telecommunications infrastructure. It promises to deliver vastly improved high-speed internet connectivity, which is essential for facilitating communication and the exchange of data within the humanitarian sector.
Importantly, the new fibre network is expected to reduce the current heavy reliance on satellite communication services, which are often less efficient and more costly.
To further support the humanitarian efforts in Sudan, the ETC is also working on establishing multiple operational hubs across the country. These hubs will function as joint operation centers for various humanitarian organizations engaged in life-saving activities.
Since the outbreak of war in early 2023, Sudan’s telecommunications services have been severely disrupted, and much of the infrastructure has been left in a compromised state. The reliance on satellite communications has been a stopgap measure, stemming from the turmoil that began with the ousting of former President Omar Al-Bashir in 2019.
With the introduction of the fibre optic network, there is renewed hope for a more stable and robust communications framework to aid in the country’s recovery and humanitarian response.
