(Ecofin Agency) - During the Vienna summit, the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced, on December 18, 2018, the provision of €15.4 million to improve communications in East Africa. The fund will be used to extend the network and connect regions that do not actually have access to broadband internet.

According to the EIB, the investment made is justified by the rapid growth of data traffic in Africa.

The financial institution that mourns the fact of limited connectivity affecting economic development and innovation thinks that "a new network of 4,850 km long optical fibre cables, which will be built in the next two years, will transform communications for some 9 million people in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and in the Democratic Republic of Congo".

Once operational, the improved telecommunications infrastructure will contribute to the sustainable economic development of the whole region by allowing the local population access to financial, mobile health and education services as well as information on agriculture, notably, on the price of commodities and weather warnings, the bank explained.