Uncertainty clouds the future of the Uhurunet undersea cable system as two of the funders named by the Department of Communications (DOC) have said they have not committed themselves to the project.
Sources within industry and the DOC itself have described the department's statement as either “unrealistic” or “laughable” that construction of the Uhurunet system will begin in the first quarter of next year and be ready by the end of 2010.
Uhurunet (Uhuru is the Swahili word for independence or freedom) aims to encircle Africa with a 3.84Tbps fibre-optic cable to link the continent with Europe, the Americas and Asia. It is a separate project from the other initiatives that are currently under way.
This includes Seacom and the East African Cable System (Eassy) on the East Coast and on the other side of the continent the West African Cable System (WACS) that is a consortium consisting of Telkom, MTN, Vodacom, Neotel and Broadband Infraco.
The Nigerian-led Main One Cable, that is being constructed to run from that country to Portugal and also aims to stretch down to SA, may become part of Uhurunet.
A project to build a terrestrial fibre-optic system to travel up the African spine and link the land-locked countries is called Umojanet (meaning “unity”). Both Uhurunet and Umojanet fall under the auspices of the e-Africa Commission, which is closely linked to the New Economic Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad), an initiative championed by former South African president Thabo Mbeki.
Noncommittal
The DOC statement says the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), Pan African Infrastructure Development Fund and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) have agreed to fund both West and East Coast cable construction.
However, the IDC and DBSA have since said neither had committed themselves to any funding, although they are interested in being part of the project. No response has been received from the Pan African Infrastructure Development Fund, which is controlled by the Public Investment Corporation.
A DBSA spokesperson says the bank, as a funder for infrastructure development in the Southern African Development Community region, has not committed any funding towards the submarine cable or cables.
“However, the DBSA will be interested in looking at such initiatives as it falls within the infrastructure mandate of the organisation,” he says.
The IDC says its Public Private Partnership (PPP) unit notes that funding for this particular project is under consideration and that a request has been received, but it stressed that it has not committed any money to it.
“The IDC's PPP unit is seriously considering funding for various undersea cables and views investment in submarine telecom cable infrastructure as a critical component in facilitating affordable access to telecommunications by the African population,” says Lindi Toyi, strategic business unit head of the PPP unit.
She says each undersea cable will be considered on its own merits, provided IDC criteria and strategic imperatives are met.
Open ended
The DOC statement says the finalisation of common equity will be concluded soon and construction of both cables will commence in the first quarter of 2009.
It goes on to say that, in November, an agreement was reached between the e-Africa Commission (on behalf of Baharicom Development Company - the entity that will operate Uhurunet) and Nigeria's Main One Cable system on joint collaboration and construction of the West Coast cable. A similar agreement was brokered with Kenya regarding the cable construction on the East Coast. (Bahari is the Swahili name for sea.)
However, ITWeb has obtained no independent verification of these agreements yet.
“The finalisation of common equity will be concluded soon and construction of both cables will commence in the first quarter of 2009. It is expected that the West Coast cable will be ready for service in the first quarter of 2010, and the East Coast cable ready by the third quarter of 2010. The full cable around Africa is on track to be ready for service Q4 2010,” the DOC statement says.
Both Seacom and the WACS have indicated they will remain independent of Uhurunet, but they have not shut the door on any cooperation.
“Although Seacom is an independent player, we welcome commercial proposals from any other industry players,” says Seacom president Brian Herlihy.
Future prospect
A DOC source says: “With the prospect of a new government taking over after the general elections, it is highly unlikely the projects will get the immediate green light.
“We will have to see what the new government wants to do and if they think this is a priority. Those timelines stated are somewhat unrealistic.”
Industry sources say the timelines are unrealistic from a practical point of view.
“To get all the parties to agree, to get all the finance bedded down and then to ensure construction begins very soon and runs smoothly, is somewhat ambitious. If this really goes ahead it will be good for a laugh.”
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