EASSY

The Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) is an initiative to connect countries of eastern Africa via a high bandwidth fibre optic cable system to the rest of the world. It is considered a milestone in the development of information infrastructure in the region.

EASSy is planned to run from Mtunzini in South Africa to Port Sudan in Sudan, with landing points in nine countries, and connected to at least ten landlocked countries – who will no longer have to rely on expensive satellite systems to carry voice and data services.

The project, partially funded by the World Bank, was initiated on January 2003, when a handful of companies investigated its feasibility. The cable is fully funded and will be ready for service in mid 2010.

 Contents

  1. Project Milestones
  2. Stakeholders
  3. Cable landing points

Project Milestones
  • MoU Signature – December 2003
  • Detailed Feasibility Study – March 2004
  • Data Gathering Meeting – June 2005
  • C&MA Drafting Finalization – March 2006
  • Supply Contract Award – September 2006
  • Registration / Incorporation of SPV – January 2007
  • Construction & Maintenance Agreement (Shareholders’ Agreement) Signature (C&MA) – 12 October 2006 to 12 February 2007
  • Financial Closure – March 2007
  • Supply Contract Signature – March 2007
  • Construction Started – March 2008
  • Cable Manufacture Complete – November 2009
  • Marine Laying commencing – December 2009
  • Construction Complete – April 2010
  • Planned RFS – June 2010

Project is currently slated for completion in and commercial service in the second half of 2010

Stakeholders
  • West Indian Ocean Cable Company WIOCC comprising: 
    • Botswana Telecommunications Corporation
    • DALKOM Somalia
    • Djibouti Telecom
    • Gilat Satcom Nigeria
    • Government of Seychelles
    • Lesotho Telecommunications Authority
    • Onatel Burundi
    • TDM Mozambique
    • Telkom Kenya
    • UCOM Burundi
    • Uganda Telecom Limited

    • Zantel Tanzania

  • MTN Group
  • Sudatel Sudan
  • Vodacom / Telkom South Africa
  • Botswana Telecommunications Corporation
  • BT
  • Comores Telecom
  • Telma Madagascar
  • Etisalat
  • FT
  • Mauritius Telecom
  • STC Saudi Arabia
  • Bharti Airtel
  • Neotel
  • Tanzania Telecommunications Company Limited
Cable landing points

 

The cable landing points are:

  • Port Sudan, Sudan
  • Djibouti
  • Mogadishu, Somalia
  • Mombasa, Kenya
  • Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
  • Moroni, Comoros
  • Toliary, Madagascar
  • Maputo, Mozambique
  • Mtunzini, South Africa
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