Avanti Communications, the leading provider of high throughput satellite capacity across EMEA, today announces a partnership with Clear Blue Technologies International Inc., the Smart Off-Grid™ company, to enable Mobile Network Operators and Telco Tower Companies to deliver rural network coverage to areas across sub-Saharan Africa. Within the next three to five years, the partnership is expected to deliver mobile network coverage to the 400 million people that currently cannot access mobile broadband services.
Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to become one of the largest telecom markets in the world. Sub-Saharan Africa has a young population with a projected high population growth, at a rate of 2.7 percent per year, more than double the rate of growth in South Asia and Latin America. As a result, telecom operators are expected to invest US$52 billion in infrastructure from 2019–2025, much of which will be in rural deployment.
“We are thrilled to partner with Avanti to provide key telecom services to rural regions in sub-Saharan Africa, ultimately connecting the billions worldwide who lack telecom and internet access,” says Miriam Tuerk, CEO and Co-founder of Clear Blue Technologies. “With only 26 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa already connected through mobile Internet, we’re looking forward to bringing connectivity to areas where costs and lack of infrastructure make internet services prohibitive.”
This partnership will accelerate the rural rollout of low-cost connectivity solutions in areas where network coverage and broadband services have been limited or non-existent. Avanti and Clear Blue have already successfully provided these connectivity solutions in significant deployments across Africa’s largest economies.
Avanti’s rural network coverage solution supports 2G, 3G, 4G and Wi-Fi connectivity across Africa. As part of this joint rural deployment effort, Avanti will provide critical, high throughput Ka-band satellite connectivity and VSAT equipment. At the same time, Clear Blue will deploy its smart off-grid solar-powered solutions with remote management and control.
Libby Barr, Chief Operating Officer at Avanti, commented: “Our core belief is that everyone deserves the socioeconomic benefits of a more connected life, and this partnership with Clear Blue will bring life-enhancing coverage to rural communities in remote areas. Together with Clear Blue, we will be able to deploy thousands of sites across Sub-Saharan Africa, connecting a population that is growing at 2.7 percent per year. We expect the remote telecom market to continue to take off and we are looking forward to being at the forefront of the rural network coverage expansion.”