SEACOM celebrates 13 years of ICT excellence

SEACOM was officially launched on 23 July, 2009, when the first subsea internet cable landed on the coast of south and east Africa, connecting the continent to Europe and Asia. After 13 years of leading the way in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry, we look back at some of our achievements and the changes in our sector.

The company first connected South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Djibouti via the SEACOM subsea cable, but has since expanded its terrestrial network to many other countries in southern and eastern Africa. In 13 years, SEACOM has built one of Africa’s largest networks of ICT infrastructure, including subsea and fibre optic cables, and today is a leading pan-African IT and telecommunications company.

The company now offers a wide range of digital solutions to African enterprises, including connectivity, cloud, cyber security and wholesale services. Looking to the future, SEACOM has launched an ambitious five-year strategy to expand its on-net capabilities and reach. The company has already successfully acquired network assets in both Kenya and Uganda, which are essential for connecting enterprise customers.

SEACOM’s South African division is poised to acquire EOH Network Solutions, which will provide the business with managed services capabilities that will allow SEACOM to offer more ICT services across Africa.

Internet growth in Africa

According to the World Bank statistics, just 6% of Kenya's population had access to the internet in 2009. The latest data from 2021 reveals that this number has grown to over 40%. A survey conducted by Statista also reveals that three-quarters of Kenyans agree that it’s important to have internet access at any time, while just under 60% of the population state that they can no longer imagine daily life without the internet.

Similar growth can be seen in the number of fixed internet subscriptions in Kenya. In 2009, there were just 18 200 fixed internet subscriptions in the entire country. Today, there are around 700 000. The biggest spike in these figures occurred between 2016 and 2021.

The massive growth in internet usage, both for business and personal reasons, can be attributed to the ever-evolving technologies that enable connectivity. Smartphones, internet-enabled devices, fibre optics and 5G are some of the ICT technologies that have helped to shape the current digital landscape; not only in East Africa but throughout the world.

SEACOM milestones from the past 13 years

• 2009 - SEACOM goes live in South Africa, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania and Djibouti after its first subsea cable is connected to Asia and Europe.
• 2010 - Internet Protocol (IP) services launched, providing internet connectivity for customers.
• 2011 - SEACOM establishes point of presence (PoP) in Teraco Isando; Africa’s largest data centre.
• 2012 - SEACOM’s West Africa Cable System (WACS) goes live, providing a redundant cable ring around Africa.
• 2013 - SEACOM upgrades its submarine network capacity to boost internet connectivity on the continent. SEACOM also gives 100Mbps internet access to four innovation hubs in Nairobi, Kenya.
• 2014 - SEACOM establishes PoP in Uganda.
• 2015 - SEACOM Business is established in South Africa to provide numerous IT services to companies.
• 2016 - SEACOM adds peering points in Europe and Africa to boost the customer’s internet experience. It also establishes PoP in Rwanda and launches SEACOM Business in Kenya
• 2017 - SEACOM launches PoP in Botswana and acquires MacroLan to extend fibre reach in South Africa.
• 2018 - SEACOM upgrades the Subsea Cable System to 1.5Tbps and acquires FibreCo, completing the ‘African Ring’ with 3500km of trans-South African fibre.
• 2019 - SEACOM provides the first 100G international service to a customer between South Africa and Europe. SEACOM Business is launched in Uganda.
• 2020 - SEACOM South Africa launches WonderNet, an internet service provider (ISP) that offers fibre to the home solutions.
• 2021 - SEACOM acquires Hirani telecom’s Metro Fibre Network in Nairobi. This allowed the company to grow its on-net capabilities.
• 2022 - SEACOM is set to acquire EOH Network Solutions to diversify its delivery of enterprise and managed service solutions across Africa.

SEACOM has succeeded in connecting Africa to the rest of the world. These milestones reveal the success and expansion of our international ICT network that delivers world-class services to African businesses. We strive to continuously evolve and pioneer the ICT industry across the continent. For more information or to get a quote for our various cyber security solutions, email us at marketing@seacom.com or leave us a message.

SEACOM owns Africa’s largest network of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure, including fibre optic networks and subsea cables. We offer a wide range of industry-leading scalable ICT solutions for large companies that operate throughout the region.

SEACOM is privately owned - making it adaptable to the needs of the client. We are the preferred ICT and internet connectivity supplier for African enterprises. We can guarantee fast, reliable and secure internet and networking services at affordable prices.

For‌ ‌more‌ ‌information‌ ‌on‌ these solutions, ‌follow‌ ‌us‌ ‌on‌ ‌‌LinkedIn‌,‌ ‌‌Facebook‌ ‌or‌ ‌‌Twitter.‌ ‌Keep‌ ‌an‌ ‌eye‌ ‌on‌ ‌our‌ ‌‌news‌ ‌section‌‌ ‌for‌ ‌industry news and announcements on African ICT, internet connectivity, cloud services and security solutions.