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DRC Signs Protocol to Roll Out NEPAD ICT Infrastructure Project To Connect Africa | 21 February 2008 |

Tshwane, South Africa, 29 November 2006. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) today signed the protocol on the NEPAD Broadband ICT Infrastructure Network Project, including the Eastern Africa Sub-marine System (EASSy) cable. The ceremony that took place at the DRC Embassy in South Africa, was hosted by The NEPAD e-Africa Commission, under the auspices of the African Union (AU).

Ambassador Bene M’poko, DRC High Commissioner to South Africa signed on behalf of his government, while Dr Edmund Katiti, accredited by the African Union, signed as AU observer.

“This ICT Infrastructure Project will greatly reduce the costs of telecommunications and increase the efficiency and effectiveness of how we do business. In DRC, we rely on cell-phone to do business and you can’t do business using a cell-phone. This project is for the whole of Africa and we should support it”, said Ambassador M’poko after signing the protocol.

The Democratic Republic of Congo becomes the eleventh country to sign the protocol after Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Dr Henry Chasia, of the NEPAD e-Africa Commission stated that “we now have a critical mass of countries that have signed the protocol, to allow us to start the planning of the construction of the NEPAD ICT network, including the EASSy cable.”

The inaugural signing of the NEPAD Broadband ICT infrastructure was held in Kigali, Rwanda in August, where seven countries including South Africa signed the protocol.

Two other countries, Botswana and Zimbabwe, put their signatures to the protocol at a ceremony in Cape Town in October, while Mauritius signed the protocol last week Monday.

The signing of the protocol will enable a Project Steering Committee to be set up to fast track the implementation of the NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network that among other things, involves the construction of a 9900 km long submarine (EASSy) cable from Mtunzini, South Africa to Port Sudan in Sudan.

The 23 countries involved in the network are Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Djibouti, DRC, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Samuel Mikenga
Communications Manager, NEPAD e-Africa Commission
Tel: +27 72 529 6769 (South Africa)
E-mail: smikenga@eafricacommission.org