Sierra Leone is officially connected to the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) submarine cable following the launch of the connection, described as the country’s first direct link to global fibre network.
The launch was presided over by Ernest Koroma, the President of Sierra Leone. The cable was installed in the country approximately two years ago and the connection is the final step in the completion of the fibre optic cable in the country, ultimately providing faster Internet speeds and increasing penetration.
Koroma believes the project serves as an example of the public and private partnership model as set out by his government for moving the country forward in terms of prosperity. He believes Sierra Leone has reached a historical milestone with the installation and launch of the cable in the country.
“The available bandwidth gives Sierra Leoneans access to an array of Internet-based products including high-speed web surfing, video streaming, online education, video conferencing, cloud computing, business process outsourcing and many more,” said Koroma at the launch.
Since the cable is totally owned by the government, the main aim for the project is to boost the telecommunications industry in order to benefit the poor community in the West African country.
Siray Timbo, Chairman of the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM), said the project should increase Internet penetration by 20 percent.
HumanIPO reported in August last year the ACE cable, launched by France Telecom, had Sierra Leone sign a US$15 million loan agreement with China.
Once the ACE project is completed it will span 17,000 kilometers and will connect African countries through France, ending in South Africa.
