(Ecofin Agency) - In Seychelles, demand for broadband connection is accelerating. To meet those demands and support digital transformation, the government and telecom operators are investing to strengthen the national telecom infrastructure. 

Telecom operator Intelvision plans to introduce a new cable system in Seychelles. For that purpose, the operator signed a 15-year partnership agreement with British multinational Vodafone. 

The project is financed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), to the tune of US$20 million. It is expected to facilitate connectivity between Seychelles and Meta's (ex-Facebook) future 2Africa submarine fiber optic cable network that will be deployed in the second half of 2023. It will also enable Intelvision to provide 4G and 5G services in Mahé and all the inland islands.

According to Mukesh Valabhji (photo), CEO of Intelvision, the new cable will revolutionize the Internet experience in Seychelles and strengthen the local telecommunications infrastructure. Ultimately, the collaboration is expected to reduce internet costs and stimulate competition in the broadband and mobile data segment.

By contributing over 600 Gb/s of international bandwidth, the new cable system will complement the existing Seychelles East Africa System (SEAS).  It is announced three months after Seychelles connected to the Pakistan East Africa Cable Express (PEACE), the second similar infrastructure it was connecting to after SEAS in 2011. The investments reflect the government's efforts to limit the negative impact of the pandemic on the local economy and accelerate recovery by focusing on the digital economy.

Isaac K. Kassouwi