Fiber and satellite are driving two very different business models for Ekinops and World Mobile that could boost connectivity in Africa.
Ekinops, an optical transport and network access specialist, has been selected by Bandwidth & Cloud Services Group (BCS), a pan-African wholesale telecommunications infrastructure provider, for an upgrade to its network backbone that the partners say will enhance connectivity across Africa.
The project involves a long-haul regional optical transport network capable of achieving 1Tbps capacity in Africa, as well as upgrading urban connectivity through 44 metro ring deployments, providing 10G traffic from points of presence and towers to network hubs.
By offering its Ekinops360 optical transport portfolio, Ekinops said it will increase the backbone capacity of the BCS with single- and dual-fiber capabilities, aggregating low-capacity circuits to high-bit-rate protocols to deliver speeds from 1Gbps to 1Tbps. The solution also addresses future demand for increased backbone capacity through the company's FlexRate coherent channel to extend network coverage and capacity across the region.
Meanwhile, World Mobility, which aims to provide affordable connectivity to rural and remote areas of the world through its blockchain-based mobile network, said it is expanding its network across the African continent after a series of successful pilot tests using low earth orbit (LEO) satellites In the United States and the United Kingdom.
Using innovative satellite and relay technology and stratospheric balloons, its initial effort seeks to provide connectivity in hard-to-reach areas of Tanzania, Kenya and Nigeria.
The World Mobile pilot tested the use of Starlink's satellite network as a backhaul option for delivering Internet to World Mobile's AirNodes, or Internet access points. The company said it expects further testing with other LEO satellite systems will allow the service to be rolled out more effectively in sub-Saharan Africa.
