Seychelles joins underwater fiber optics group
As a member of the Indian Ocean Commission, Seychelles has signed the SEGANET protocol which will provide member states with access to an underwater fiber optics internet connection. Putting pen to paper is very easy, but finding the money to pay for the connection is another story. With the acute shortage or foreign exchange and a huge external debt which the government is having difficulty to repay, it remains to be seen to whom will the country turn for the fund. Perhaps James Michel should go back to Abu Dhabi and ask for an additional $100 million on top of the $15 million grant Seychelles received in order to invest in the fiber optics connection.
Once complete, the fiber optics network will connect to African intercontinental cables including SAT3/SAFE and the East Africa Submarine cable system (EASSY).
With a connection to the fiber optics backbone, IT companies and consumers in Seychelles will see a marked improvement in the speed of their online communications. However, to prevent a total IT blackout in the event of a broken underwater cable the IOC countries will need to maintain their satellite connections. This will surely raise the total cost of internet connections. The SEGANET or SEACOM project is expected to cost at least $650 million or more. Mauritius is now poised to be connected to the SEACOM cable provided the local internet provider can come up with the $106 million that’s needed.
Contributed