Airtel Taps Nokia to Build 38 Tbps Terrestrial Fiber Network Across East and Central Africa

Airtel Africa’s wholesale fiber arm, Airtel Africa Telesonic, has selected Nokia to deploy a transformative, high-capacity terrestrial fiber network spanning East and Central Africa.

The major infrastructure project, announced this week at the Africa Tech Festival in Cape Town, is strategically designed to meet the continent’s exploding demand for data.

The project’s primary aim is to connect multiple African countries to the massive capacity of new submarine cables, most critically serving as the terrestrial bridge for the 2Africa subsea cable. This will bring high-speed, reliable, and affordable connectivity from the coast to landlocked areas, providing a vital artery for wholesale data. The impact will be particularly significant for landlocked nations, with reports indicating this network will become Uganda’s primary, high-speed route to the global internet via the 2Africa cable.

This new backbone is a cornerstone of the strategy for Telesonic, which Airtel Africa launched in early 2024 to manage and monetize its extensive 75,000-kilometer terrestrial fiber network across 14 markets. By connecting these existing assets to new subsea systems, Telesonic is positioning itself as a dominant force in the wholesale data market.

Nokia will deploy its 1830 Photonic Service Switch (PSS) platform, equipping the new network to support up to 38 Terabits per second (Tbps) of data traffic. The Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) network will consist of 139 nodes and is “C+L Band Ready.” This “future-proof” feature means the network can use both C-band and L-band frequencies on the fiber, effectively doubling its potential data-carrying capacity as demand grows without needing to lay new cables.

PD Sarma, Chief Executive Officer of Airtel Africa Telesonic, emphasized the project’s economic importance. “Our collaboration with Nokia is a significant milestone in advancing Africa’s digital infrastructure,” Sarma said. “By leveraging Nokia’s cutting-edge fiber-optic solutions, we aim to meet the escalating demand for data across the continent. This network will drive economic growth, empower communities, and create new opportunities for businesses and individuals alike.”

The upgrade is set to provide a major boost for cloud-based services and high-speed connectivity for businesses, educational institutions, and healthcare facilities.

“Deploying Nokia’s 1830 Photonic Service Switch platform is a pivotal upgrade to our network infrastructure across Africa,” said Razvan Ungureanu, Airtel Africa’s Chief Technology Officer. “This will enable us to provide greater capacity and high-speed connectivity to efficiently handle webscale traffic.”

Samer Lutfi, Nokia’s Head of Growth Group for Network Infrastructure in Middle East & Africa, added, “We are proud to partner with Airtel Africa Telesonic in this ambitious project… Our advanced DWDM technology, with its high capacity and reliability, is built to help enterprises succeed in their mission to spark digital transformation and economic growth in the region.”

Go to TECHTRENDSKE.co.ke for more tech and business news from the African continent.

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