The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has deployed 25 satellite terminals to Zambian districts affected by severe flooding.
As many as 19 low-lying districts across the country have been affected and almost 36 000 people displaced. Destroyed roads and communication links have complicated efforts to assess damage and provide relief.
"The satellite terminals that ITU provided are critical for an effective response to this unprecedented rainfall which has inundated many parts of the country, destruction of infrastructure, damage to homes and the displacement of many people," says Shuller Habeenzu, CE for the Communications Authority of Zambia.
The ITU says the terminals are easily transported by road and air to the affected regions and have facilitated the coordination of relief operations by both government and humanitarian agencies to aid the victims of this disaster. It has also pledged to pay all associated expenses, including, "transportation of the equipment and its usage".
Thuraya satellite phones and Inmarsat global area network (GAN) terminals using GSM networks and global positioning have been transported to the country's aid workers. GAN terminals are primarily used for voice communications and, in some cases, high-speed data transfer.
"I can safely say that we are dedicated to reinforcing the support that we will put in place for first responders and victims of disasters," says Cosmas Zavazava, head of the ITU's emergency telecoms unit.
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