A top management staff of Globacom who spoke to NEXT on conditions of anonymity explains the cause of the delay. He said: “We currently have challenges with the Glo-1 submarine cable. These challenges ranges from licensing issues and government policies, delay on the part of the vendor and customer (Glo) and point of termination. The challenges are being worked upon as we speak.
“The company also does not have the proper manpower to work on the project in Nigeria. As such we sent some staff for training in France. The company cannot afford to bring the cable into Nigeria without the appropriate staff.
Consequently, analysts then wonder why the telecoms company would embark on the submarine cable project when it was least prepared for it. Besides, they also wonder how Globacom managed to lay the cables in the cities and countries listed above.
Running cables in Nigeria
Globacom spokesman, Tunde Babalola, told NEXT that the cables would land in Nigeria soon, although, he did not provide further details.
“The Glo-1 Submarine cable is still in Ghana and is to land in Lagos soon,” he said.
Other company sources say the cables will run along the coastal lines in Lagos from Bar Beach and terminate in Lekki and onwards to Port Harcourt, in Rivers State.
However, when NEXT visited the proposed site at the Lekki beach, Lagos, there was no evidence of preparations to receive the cables “soon”.
Frank Udoh, a resident in the area said; “I have not seen or heard anything about Glo constructing a project here.”
Enhance ICT services in Nigeria
In July, 2009 some damage to Nigeria’s SAT-3 cable (which runs from Portugal and Spain to South Africa, through to West Africa) affected Internet access and mobile connections in countries like Benin, Togo, Niger and Nigeria.
The development challenged private companies like Globacom, MTN and Main One Cable Company to launch submarine cables in Nigeria.
Reports say Main One Cable plans to start laying its own submarine cables in Nigeria from May 2010, and launched for operations by June next year.
A source in Main One, who did not want to be identified, told NEXT in an interview, “The company is working to improve bandwidth service in Africa, and will provide ICT/Telecoms industries added capacity to expand connectivity and activate a broader range of service.”
He expressed optimism that the company would be able to deliver on its promise by next year. “We are building our cable stations and getting ready to lay the cable, we are on track to deliver by next year,” he said.
There is no word from MTN Nigeria on how far they have gone with their own project, in spite of numerous calls to the company.