(Ecofin Agency) - Bayobab is continuing its expansion of the fiber network across Africa. The company aims to reach 135,000 km of its own fiber optic network across the continent by 2025. As of December 2023, it had already achieved 114,000 km.

Bayobab, the digital subsidiary of South Africa's MTN Group, announced this week the completion of a new fiber optic route in East Africa worth about $13 million. Starting from Mombasa, Kenya, this new infrastructure stretches over 1,000 km and connects Kenya with Uganda. It will also serve Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

“This new route represents a significant milestone in enhancing reliability and ensuring low-latency connectivity between the East and West coasts of Africa. It is a crucial step towards improving the digital economy, trade, and economic growth within the region. Additionally, it links landlocked countries to subsea cables at the port of Mombasa via the shortest route, offering a unique pathway to safeguard and strengthen services for Bayobab Kenya’s current and future customers,” “said Bayobab.

In 2022, Bayobab launched the first phase of the Kenya-Uganda interconnection by deploying a route along the Kenya Pipeline between the Kenyan cities of Mombasa and Malaba. These two complementary routes form part of the “East-to-West Fiber” project, which aims to link the two coasts of the continent. The company plans to build 135,000 km of its own fiber optic network across Africa by 2025. By December 2023, the network had already expanded to 114,000 km.

Bayobab’s network expansion is expected to increase its revenue, especially by attracting new deals with internet service providers looking to improve their service quality and coverage. In 2023, the company added about 7,000 km to its network. In the first half of 2024, Bayobab secured fixed connectivity infrastructure contracts worth $9.4 million, representing an approximately 12% increase compared to the same period in 2023.