NEWS
Telecom Egypt to launch HARP , a new subsea system circling the African continent
Telecom Egypt , Egypt ’ s first integrated telecom operator and one of the largest subsea cable operators in the region , has announced plans to launch Hybrid African Ring Path ( HARP ) by 2023 , a new subsea system that will outline the African continent , forming the shape of a harp . It will connect coastal and landlocked African countries to Europe through the company ’ s widespread terrestrial and subsea infrastructure .
Through HARP , Telecom Egypt will offer a wide range of capacity solutions , up to dark fibre , based on a layer two and layer three architecture that can connect multiple points on the system to one another . The system will connect Africa ’ s East and West bounds to Europe , from South Africa to Italy and France along the continent ’ s east coast and to Portugal along its west coast . Highly reliable terrestrial routes will connect the landing points within South Africa , Europe and Egypt , forming a complete ring around the continent .
The HARP system will leverage its diverse and resilient subsea segments to branch out to multiple potential landing points .
Adel Hamed , Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer , Telecom Egypt , said : “ I am very proud of the upcoming launch of this new system as it will provide seamless connectivity services to the African continent by integrating Telecom Egypt ’ s current and planned projects to offer endto-end connectivity solutions .”
Solutions for sustainable living in Africa sought
South Africa-based manufacturer of home appliances Defy , last month hosted the ‘ Hack The Normal ’, online hackathon from March 5th to 7th , 2021 . According to the company , the initiative aimed to explore how technology can be leveraged for sustainable living and economic development in Africa .
Supported by Defy sister company Beko , hackathon participants had the opportunity to develop new products , services and business models with commercialisation potential to address one of the following challenge areas : financial solutions , sustainable living and healthy living .
In addition , over the three-day hackathon , participants were trained in a myriad of areas ranging from problem discovery and solution development , to prototyping and storytelling . They also got a chance to refine their ideas with the help of expert coaches and mentors from the fields of business , technology and design .
According to Defy , projects that met its impact , applicability and commercialisation criteria were selected for further development .
“ We invited people from across multiple disciplines to come together to innovate new solutions to ensure a sustainable life in Africa , stimulate economic growth and improve the state of our world ,” said Evren Albaş , CEO , Defy Appliances . p
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