TOGO – CSquared, an open-access wholesale broadband infrastructure company, has landed Google’s Equiano in Togo to transform the broadband landscape in the country.

Google’s Equiano is a subsea internet cable running through Portugal to South Africa, connecting the continent with Europe.

This makes Togo the first landing point of Google’s Equiano in Africa. The subsea cable will have a direct impact on Internet connectivity in Togo, resulting in high-speed improved, and affordable internet access for millions of Togolese and West Africans in the region.

Representing the State, Société d’Infrastructures Numériques (SIN), a public telecommunications asset company, has strategically partnered with CSquared to create a joint venture – CSquared Woezon.

CSquared Woezon is a Togolese company with a minority public shareholding, 56% owned by CSquared and 44% owned by SIN.

The entity will be in charge of maintaining and operating the Equiano submarine cable as well as the existing e-Government and Communauté Electrique du Bénin (CEB) terrestrial optic fiber networks located on the Togolese territory.

Equiano once switched on, will offer 20 times more bandwidth than any other cable currently serving West Africa, helping the country attract even more investments and further boosting its vibrant startup culture.

According to an economic impact assessment of Equiano in Togo from Africa Practice and Genesis Analytics, it is estimated that the subsea cable will add approximately 37,000 new jobs between 2022 and 2025.

In addition, it will also increase Togo’s economic output by an additional US$351 million during the same period.

Equiano’s landing in Togo will not only strengthen Togo’s ability to successfully build and support digital infrastructure but also will yield benefits for its West African neighbors.

Despite having the lowest Internet connectivity, Africa has the greatest potential for growth. According to a report by industry trade group Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA), nearly 20 million more Africans subscribed to a mobile connection during the pandemic period in 2020.

Last year, Google issued a joint report with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation with a forecast of Africa’s economy to be worth US$180 billion in value by 2025.

The tech giant said that there was a need to create an internet that one can interact with through voice or products that can work in local languages, based on the fact that the next one billion people will use the Internet for a different purpose than the current.

Equiano is one of two submarine cables expected to land in Africa within the next few years. Facebook-backed subsea cable project, 2Africa, is also expected to connect 26 countries in the continent.

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