The Central African Republic (CAR) will be connected via a fibre-optic network with Cameroon by the end of July 2021, ITWeb reported. CAR's Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Justin Gourna Zacko said the project was originally scheduled to begin immediately after its official launch in October 2019, but the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in delay. According to official figures, CAR has recorded almost 5,000 cases, with 63 deaths.
The connectivity project is expected to cover 1,100km between Bangui and Gamboula. To date, only 200 km has been completed. Zacko said administrative red tape exacerbated by the pandemic had hampered progress of the project, but measures are being taken to minimise further delay.
Zacko assured the general public and stakeholders that the country’s forthcoming elections, scheduled to last until March 2021, will not affect the project. The interconnection project is a component of the EUR 33 million national fibre-optic network that is co-financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the EU. AfDB said its overall objective with the network is to help diversify the Central African Republic’s economy.
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