Left to right: H.E. Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo – Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Babajide Sanwo-Olu – The Executive Governor, Lagos State; Juliet Ehimuan – Director, West Africa, Google; Chris Wood – Chief Executive Officer, WIOCC.
Google and cable landing partner, WIOCC today announced the landing in Lagos, Nigeria, of the state-of-the-art Equiano subsea cable, which will become a critical element in meeting Nigeria’s current and future international connectivity demands.
The Equiano cable will start in Portugal in western Europe, run more than 12,000km along the West Coast of Africa and initially land in Lomé, Togo; Lagos, Nigeria; Swakopmund, Namibia; Rupert’s Bay, Saint Helena and Melkbosstrand, South Africa; establishing a valuable new high-capacity connection between the African continent and Europe.
Named after Nigerian-born writer and abolitionist, Olaudah Equiano, the Equiano cable will help support further digital transformation in Nigeria, a country which has produced five start-up unicorns (companies now valued at more than $1 billion).in the past five years.
Expected benefits to Nigeria from Equiano
A recent impact assessment study by Africa Practice and Genesis Analytics stated that once the state-of-the-art, high-capacity Equiano cable had become fully operational, anticipated later this year, it is expected to bring the following benefits to Nigeria:
Connectivity-related
- Increase internet speeds by a factor of six
- Reduce internet retail prices by 21%
- Increase internet penetration by six percentage points
Economic
- Boost GDP by USD 10.1 billion by 2025
- Boost job creation by 1.6 million jobs by 2025
Sustainability
- Save 2.8 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per annum
The Nigerian government has also stepped up its digital transformation programs since 2017. These initiatives have proven crucial to the success of many industries in the country, especially the startup space. But studies suggest that faster internet connections, better user experiences, and reduced internet costs will further accelerate these benefits.
Juliet Ehimuan, Director, West Africa at Google commenting on the landing of Equiano in Nigeria said: “Google is committed to supporting Africa’s digital transformation and we are excited to see the impact of the landing of Equiano in Nigeria. We’ve worked with established partners and in-country experts to guarantee that Equiano has the greatest potential effect in Nigeria and throughout Africa.”
“Equiano is set to make an enduring contribution towards the development of Nigeria’s communications infrastructure and today marks another major step in its development. We look forward to honouring our commitment to be part of Africa’s digital transformation,” Ehimuan added.
Chris Wood, Chief Executive Officer of WIOCC, stated: “We are proud to have been selected by Google as the landing partner for the Equiano cable in Nigeria, landing the cable directly into the OADC Lagos data centre. From there it will be extended to other data centres across Lagos.”
He added: “The Equiano cable will deliver improved internet quality, speeds and affordability to the people of Nigeria. However, for the benefits to be fully felt throughout Nigeria, hyperscale connectivity needs to be extended from the Lagos area to the rest of the country. To make this happen, WIOCC is also deploying a comprehensive, hyperscale national fibre network. The network will go live in phases, starting in June and continuing through to the end of the year. When combined with the Equiano cable this network will deliver transformational benefits across the country.”
Last month, the Equiano subsea cable made its first landing in Africa in Lomé, Togo, as a confirmation of the commitment made at the Google for Africa 2021 event to help increase internet access across Africa.
About Google
Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. Through products and platforms like Search, Maps, Gmail, Android, Google Play, Chrome and YouTube, Google plays a meaningful role in the daily lives of billions of people and has become one of the most widely-known companies in the world. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.
About WIOCC
WIOCC is the leading player in the deployment of carrier-scale, future-proofed network infrastructure into Africa. We have the flexibility and scale to meet the ever-growing demand for reliable, high-speed capacity throughout Africa, driven by end consumers, enterprise users and the ecosystem that supports them.
Our policy of continual investment in our network to create Africa’s first, truly hyperscale network infrastructure means ongoing investment for growth, ensuring our readiness to meet the future data volume demands of consumers throughout Africa.
Operating exclusively as a wholesaler, we have revolutionised the delivery of high-capacity connectivity between Africa and the rest of the world. Widely recognised as Africa’s carriers’ carrier, we offer carriers, content providers, cloud operators, ISPs and mobile operators reliable, seamless, high-capacity connectivity between more than 30 African countries and key global financial and commercial centres.
Our focus on building and maintaining strong, long-term relationships with each client enables us to develop bespoke solutions that meet their current requirements and have the capability to match future demands for growth, extra resilience and geographical expansion.
