South Sudan and Djibouti have reportedly signed an agreement to lay fiber optic cables in the three countries.
Earlier, South Sudan and Djibouti signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to lay a fiber optic cable from Djibouti to South Sudan via Ethiopia.
According to South Sudan's Ministry of Information, Communication Technology and Postal Services, the MoU will be followed by a technical team from both countries to consider the project. South Sudan also said it is working closely with the World Bank to connect the country with another fiber optic cable from Kenya. The deal dates back to 2015, when the East African News Agency reported on a memorandum of understanding between the two countries to lay a cable from Eldoret to Juba.
South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011, but years of civil war have made it difficult for the country to develop the infrastructure to provide high-speed Internet connections. As a result, South Sudan is trying to develop a fiber-optic network to connect the national capital, Juba, to the rest of the world and reduce the high cost of using the Internet.
