NEWS
Niger takes a major step towards high-speed connectivity with handover of over 1,000 km of fibre-optic cable
Niger has taken a major step towards strengthening national broadband connectivity and regional digital integration with the provisional acceptance of fibre-optic sections built under the Trans-Sahara Optical Fibre Backbone Project( TSB), financed by the African Development Bank Group. The ceremony, held on 14 November in Niamey, was attended by the Minister of Communication and New Information Technologies, Adji Ali Salatou, Bank representative Mamadou Tangara, TSB Project Coordinator Abdoulkarim Soumaila, Niger Telecoms Managing Director Idrissa Djibo Maïga and project partners.
Valued at € 43 million, with funding from the African Development Fund and the national government, the project comprises a 1,031-km national and cross-border fibre-optic network and the installation of a Tier III national data centre. The fibre-optic backbone spans five critical routes connecting Niger to Algeria, Chad, Nigeria, Benin and Burkina Faso, alongside an 88-km urban loop linking key administrative sites to the future data centre.
Minister Salatou highlighted that the imminent commissioning of these links marks progress towards President Abdourahamane Tiani’ s vision of a high-speed national infrastructure connected to the wider sub-region. Tangara noted that the backbone represents a strategic lever for regional interconnection, reduced connectivity costs and improved digital inclusion.
The project is expected to boost Niger’ s digital resilience, accelerate public-service digitisation and create new economic opportunities. Soumaila added that it will help reduce the digital divide, support services such as e-commerce and mobile finance, and has already generated significant local employment.
Africa Tech Festival 2025 concludes with a call for policy harmonisation and collaboration to secure Africa’ s digital future
The closing day of Africa Tech Festival 2025 delivered a clear message: Africa is on an unprecedented technology trajectory, driven by the world’ s youngest population and a rapidly expanding digital economy. Across the programme, speakers emphasised that the continent is charting its path toward digital sovereignty.
embedding digital literacy and AI skills across education systems. Panellists stressed the need for critical thinking, problem-solving and adaptable AI-enabled workers, noting that scalable talent models and partnerships will be essential for preparing Africa’ s youth for emerging digital careers.
The headline keynote, Closing the Talent Gap to Power Africa’ s AI Economy, highlighted that Digital Transformation hinges on
At the AI Summit, Building Africa’ s Data Backbone focused on governance, infrastructure and interoperability as foundations for continental growth. Experts underscored that harmonised regulation, interoperable systems and aligned standards are vital to unlocking innovation, supporting AI development and strengthening digital resilience.
Policy’ s role in advancing African startups took centre stage at AfricaIgnite, where speakers called for gender-equitable investment, cross-border regulatory alignment and wider access to capital beyond major hubs.
Elsewhere, the AfricaCom panel on telco collaboration explored how partnerships are driving digital inclusion, while the Next Gen Talent Summit celebrated young innovators shaping Africa’ s technological future.
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