Botswana and Namibia tap into the new high-speed West African Internet connection

Botswana and Namibia finally launched their links to the 14,000-kilometre underground sea cable system yesterday. The sea cable is expected to provide speeds of up to 5.12 terabits per second.

The US$750 million fiber optic submarine West African Cable System (WACS), which will provide faster Internet connections, went live in Namibia last month, and stretches down the west coast of Africa.

“Information and communication technology is an important factor for Namibia and will open doors for socio-economic development,” President Hifikepunye Pohamba said at the ceremony in Swakopmund. He added that the WACS system was a great achievement. Botswana President Ian Khama, on a 3-day state visit in Namibia, said: “The WACS will be a great benefit for Botswana and also brings both our countries closer.”

The cable will be operated and managed by Telecom Namibia. This landing station is among 15 points where the cable runs up from Britain to South Africa. Botswana is a land-locked country, and shared the US$75 million local costs of the cable with Namibia.

Image credit: DeclanTM

This story originally appeared on HumanIPO.