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Liquid introduces two new routes to drive intra-African digital trade

The Kenya to Ethiopia and Zambia to Malawi routes also aim to improve connectivity.

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by MELINDA KIRWA

News18 September 2023 - 12:28
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In Summary


  • • Complementing the existing terrestrial routes across this border, the Kenya-Ethiopia route will now have carrier-grade connectivity, which serves to rapidly expand data traffic on this important route.
  • • As Liquid doubles down on its investment in Ethiopia, it plans to expand on its long-standing commitment to igniting transformation, job creation, and growth on the continent.
Workers laying fibre cables. Image: Courtesy.

Liquid Intelligent Technologies (Liquid), a pan-African tech group of Cassava Technologies, has unveiled two new fully redundant terrestrial routes, Kenya to Ethiopia and Zambia to Malawi.

This comes four months after the company launched its first terrestrial fibre optic cable that connects Mombasa to Johannesburg.

The two routes are expected to provide greater efficiency and reliable regional connectivity, both key to the economic development of these countries.

According to a presser by Liquid, the fibre link which spans over 1000km offers businesses in Ethiopia access to data centres and cloud in Nairobi ensuring that data doesn’t leave the continent.

This link is further supported by the cross-border 711km link between Zambia and Malawi, providing a direct and reliable connection to content caches and data centres in South Africa,” the statement read in part.

The Kenya-Ethiopia route is in partnership with the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO) and Ethiopia Electric Power (EEP).

Liquid’s new link connects Nairobi and Mega, a town in southern Ethiopia, by providing a capacity of four terabytes per second.

Liquid’s CEO for the rest of Africa Adil El Youssefi said Kenyan and Ethiopian businesses are rapidly adopting digital technologies.

He added that this new link will enable trade and investment between these two countries in the region.

“For Liquid Kenya, we see this growing demand being catalysed by the Kenya Kwanza government’s digital superhighway initiative,” Youssefi said.

“This 1000km of newly lit fibre is our first contribution to the private sector investment into this flagship project.”

Complementing the existing terrestrial routes across this border, the Kenya-Ethiopia route will now have carrier-grade connectivity, which serves to rapidly expand data traffic on this important route.

As Liquid doubles down on its investment in Ethiopia, it plans to expand on its long-standing commitment to ignite transformation, job creation and growth on the continent.

Cassava Technologies president and group CEO Hardy Pemhiwa said all initiatives undertaken work towards realising the company’s vision of a digitally connected future that leaves no African behind.

The completion of these fibre links is yet another milestone achieved by Liquid as it continues to lay the foundations of economic growth through increased access to high-speed connectivity,” he said.

The fibre network will also provide Kenya and Ethiopia with measurable benefits in terms of connectivity performance and accessibility as it connects the underserved towns of Suswa, Sereolipi, Ndaragwa and Marsabit, as well as Nairobi and Mega.”

Liquid aims to catalyse African growth through its intelligent fibre backbone, providing cost-effective, regional internet connectivity that enhances digital transformation.

Pemhiwa noted that these milestones foster richer economic and technological ties across countries and the continent, helping African companies and individuals realise their potential within the digital economy on a local and global scale.

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