In 2019, Google and Facebook announced plan to fund subsea internet cable dubbed Equiano in Nigeria. The project, as part of Google’s $1 billion investment in Africa, will help to boost internet connectivity in the West African country and help to enhance its digital economy.
On Thursday, the Director of Google West Africa, Juliet Ehimuan-Chiazor, disclosed Google’s readiness to kick off the project, which she said would create 1.6 million jobs in Nigeria.
She said this during a visit with a team from Google West Africa to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, on Thursday. The team visited the Minister to give him an update on the activities of Google in Nigeria.
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In a statement issued by the Technical Assistant (Research & Development) to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Femi Adeluyi, on Wednesday, Chiazor was quoted as saying that the project, which will be executed simultaneously with other Google digital investments in Nigeria, will start in April.
The statement reads: “She updated the Minister on Google’s commitment to invest $1bn in Africa over the next five years, from October 2021. The investment includes funding for the Equiano subsea cable.
“The Equiano cable is expected to enable a five-fold increase in average Internet speeds in Nigeria and create 1.6 million jobs. Equiano, whose name was inspired by a Nigerian, is being launched as it lands at different points on the continent, much like a road construction that is launched as construction progresses.
“According to the Director, Nigeria is a major landing point for the cable and the launch of this major milestone is expected to take place in April 2022.”
The subsea internet cable project was conceived as part of efforts by the Big Tech to see that the unserved and underserved, especially in Africa, have a high-speed affordable internet.
Google’s digital investment in Nigeria includes digital skills initiatives that already have about six million beneficiaries and a target to reach 10 million. The web search giant, knowing how much the teeming number of digital entrepreneurs will need fast internet, is working to launch the subsea internet cable just on time.
Equiano will be the first subsea cable to incorporate optical switching at the fiber-pair level, rather than the traditional approach of wavelength-level switching. Google said the idea will greatly simplify the allocation of cable capacity, providing the flexibility to add and reallocate it in different locations as needed.
“And because Equiano is fully funded by Google, we’re able to expedite our construction timeline and optimize the number of negotiating parties,” the company said.
Equiano is designed to connect Africa to Europe via Portugal. Google said once complete, Equiano will start in Western Europe and run along the West Coast of Africa, between Portugal and South Africa, with branching units along the way that can be used to extend connectivity to additional African countries.
The first branch was expected to land in Nigeria but landed in Togo in March. Togo became the first country in West Africa to launch a 5G network in 2020.
The new cable is expected to help Togo double internet speeds by 2025 and reduce Internet prices by about 14%, according to research from Africa Practice and Genesis Analytics commissioned by Google.