Regional encounter on telecommunication held in Rabat

A regional meeting on telecommunications is held in Rabat March 20-22 with the participation of telecommunications experts from North Africa and the Middle East.

The meeting is moderated by Patricia Bagnell, chairwoman of Africa One.Ltd, who briefs the participants on the prospects of the development of the sector in the continent.

Participants are to probe the results of a study on the telecommunications market in Africa and examine how their countries can participate in Africa One network.

According to the study, the demand for telecom service in Africa will considerably increase due to a growing use of internet, e-mail and e-commerce all over the continent.

The study revealed that data traffic between Africa and the rest of the world is expected to increase by 75% this year and by 150% in 2002 and 2003.

Set up in December 1999 as a private company, Africa One.Ltd will develop a 32,000 km-long undersea fibre-optic cable network that will cover the continent. The network, which will be connected to the world system through Global Crossing cables, will allow Africa to be linked to over 200 cities all over the world.