Gilat Satcom, Microlink boost Zambia fibre

INTERNET

Gilat Satcom, a leading communication solution provider offering satellite and fibre-based connectivity services in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, has announced that it has entered into a joint venture with Microlink to enhance affordable high-speed fiber and satellite connectivity services throughout Zambia.

Microlink, a leading Internet service provider, provides affordable broadband communication solutions to individuals and enterprises throughout Zambia. The ISP offers reliable connectivity to large corporates, small-medium enterprises (SMEs), Internet cafes, WiFi hotspots and other locations. The new joint venture extends high-capacity, fiber-based Internet access throughout the country.

“We are very excited about this opportunity,” said John Taylor, CEO of Microlink. “It provides Microlink not only with the renowned international expertise and technical support of Gilat Satcom, but also gives the JV the ability to provide global data solutions on an MPLS platform that can extend a Zambian MPLS network to any location in the world.”

As a shareholder in WIOCC, the carrier’s carrier bringing fiber cable to land-locked countries in Africa, Gilat Satcom is able to offer a full suite of fiber connectivity solutions in addition to its highly regarded C-band and Ku-band, pan-African satellite links. The company can offer attractive pricing on the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy), the highest capacity system serving sub-Saharan Africa with 5 terabit-per-second capacity and nine landing points. The joint venture has already acquired STM1 capacity on EASSy to serve Microlink’s current subscribers as well as the new subscribers of the JV.

“Gilat Satcom has ambitions of becoming a full ISP in Africa,” stated Dan Zajicek, CEO. “As a leading provider of satellite connectivity solutions throughout Africa, and as a shareholder in WIOCC, we are in the unique position of being able to offer all levels of managed connectivity solutions with guaranteed SLA and satellite backup to everybody everywhere.”

The joint venture in Zambia is a major step in achieving Gilat Satcom’s ambitions. With already-deployed, dedicated sales resources in the country, the new JV deals directly with end users.  With considerable bandwidth on EASSy, Gilat Satcom will be able to replicate its achievement in Zambia to other countries in Africa. The company is also able to offer wholesale fiber capacity on the West Africa Cable System (WACS) that runs along the western coast of Africa reaching numerous additional African countries.