VSAT satellite connectivity between southern African countries is the only reliable means of cross-border connection, says Lieb Vermeulen, CIO of African Banking Corporation (ABC).
"VSAT is crucial to ABC, and how we do our work," he stated, on the final day of the Satcom conference in Sandton.
Vermeulen emphasised that with fixed-line connections one cannot get connectivity reliable enough to transport critical data for centralised purposes.
Listing various experiences of poor maintenance response and the resulting downtime ABC has endured, he informed delegates of the unwillingness of public service providers to sign a contract with a penalties clause.
He believes public service providers display no urgency in attending to problems. "You`re in their hands as to when you may get support," he said.
"For the next four or five years at least, VSAT appears to be the only effective connectivity between countries in Africa."
The key areas identified in developing VSAT in Africa include on-site support, standardisation of local government policies, component compatibility and speeding up the turnaround time for repairs to infrastructure.
VSAT technology connects ABC`s central site in Harare to Tanzania, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Swaziland and SA.
The central site will soon be moved to Mauritius, noted Vermeulen.
He closed by slating what he claims to be a R16 000 delegate fee for the three-day Satcom conference, excluding accommodation, adding that it discourages end-users from attending the event.
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