The number of African countries which have signed the protocol that is to govern the East African Submarine System (Eassy) is expected to increase in October, when the New Partnership for Africa`s Development (Nepad) e-Africa Commission`s working group meets, the Department of Communications says.
So far, seven out of the 23 countries involved in the project - Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Lesotho, Malawi, Madagascar and SA - signed the protocol in August.
Countries which have not signed the protocol will have the opportunity to communicate their concerns when the working group, which is made up of representatives of the 23 African countries, holds its next meeting next month, communications director-general Lyndall Shope-Mafole says.
She adds that the Eassy protocol does not seek to be prescriptive. However, when a country signs the protocol, it commits to aligning its legal and regulatory framework with the protocol. As a result, some of the countries involved in the Eassy project have been cautious about signing.
Protocol illegal
It is not clear whether the Kenyan government, one of the most outspoken critics of the Eassy protocol, will sign following the October meeting.
A recent article by Balancing Act says the Kenyan government has fundamental problems with the proposed protocol, and even regards it as illegal, as it would override national laws and overrule all regulatory agreements in Eastern and Southern Africa.
The article quotes Kenya`s permanent secretary of the Ministry of Communications and Information, Bitange Ndemo, who says the Kenyan government wants Eassy to stay private, governed by a shareholders` agreement.
"Nepad has no role in this project even when it defends the principle of open access to Eassy," he is quoted as saying.
Should the Kenyan government decide not to sign the Eassy protocol, it will build another redundant cable, the article states, adding the money for this would be raised on the Kenyan Stock Exchange.
Shope-Mafole says Kenya has not expressed these concerns on an official platform, where they can be dealt with.
The countries involved in the Eassy project have three months from August to sign the protocol.
Related stories:
Minister to sign ICT broadband protocol
Share