The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) for Sudan reports that it has installed a new dedicated subsea fibre connection in Port Sudan to boost internet connectivity for humanitarian operations in the war-torn country.
The ETC is a global network of organisations under the World Food Programme (WFP) who collaborate to provide shared communications services in humanitarian emergencies. According to a situation report published on Monday, ETC activated the dedicated subsea fibre connection in Port Sudan on August 21 to enable high-speed internet connectivity for humanitarian operations.
ITWeb Africa reports that the fibre connection was provided under a project by Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) that leverages its Port Sudan to Douala (Cameroon) Corridor to help landlocked countries in Central and West Africa get access to subsea cables.
ETC said the new subsea connection “drastically enhances internet connectivity” for its operations, and reduces its reliance on VSAT satellite communications.
Port Sudan is a landing point for five international subsea cables, including 2 Africa, EASSy, Falcon, SAS-1 and SAS-2. However, ETC said, telecoms services have been severely disrupted across the country since civil war broke out in early 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Telecoms infrastructure remains compromised, and what services do exist from mobile operators Zain and Sudani are frequently interrupted due to power cuts, infrastructure damage and enforced blackouts.
The dedicated fibre service became accessible to users in Port Sudan this week. ETC said the service will be expanded to key accessible locations in Kassala, El Gedaref, Dongola, Damazine, and Khartoum. However, some planned locations, such as Kosti, are on hold due to intensified fighting and evacuations.
“The ETC continues to use advanced connectivity kits, fibre, and VSAT networks to provide data connectivity across Sudan,” the report said. “ETC internet connectivity services are provided in five common operational areas: Port Sudan (41 sites), Kassala (17 sites), Kosti (one site using the WFP office premises), Damazine (one site using the WFP office premises), and El Gedaref (one site).”
The ETC also said it has purchased US$3 million worth of networking equipment, and will hold training workshops will in October in WFP training rooms in Dubai that will focus on use and implementation of this equipment for deployment in Sudan in the future.
The ETC report added that the Sudan project is still being funded mostly by funds carried over from 2023. It has set a budget of US$6.3 million to continue provision and expansion of shared ICT services across Sudan, but to date has only managed to raise around US$316,000 – 5% of the total required budget – via a contribution from the UK Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO). ETC has extended grants from The Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and the US Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), but doesn’t expect those extensions to cover the shortfall for the rest of the year.
Meanwhile, ETC said no major security issues have been reported in Port Sudan in the past month, but the overall security situation in Sudan remains “highly volatile as clashes between the SAF and RSF continue in El Fasher, with significant conflict persisting across most of Darfur and Kordofan.”
The security situation in Damazine is increasingly unstable, the report added, as the surrounding areas are controlled by RSF, “which raises concerns about potential new security incidents.”
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), a coalition of humanitarian NGOs in Sudan, said in May that the relentless warfare and indiscriminate violence has led to Sudan becoming the world’s worst displacement crisis and is on the brink of becoming the world’s worst hunger crisis. In total, nearly 25 million people – more than half of Sudan’s population – need humanitarian aid.
The NRC also said that enforced shutdowns of telecoms services in the midst of the civil war is making the massive humanitarian crisis even worse.
