Intelsat S.A. joined Smart Africa during the Transform Africa Summit held in Kigali last month. The initiative is aimed at accelerating sustainable socioeconomic development on the continent and ushering Africa into the knowledge economy through affordable access to broadband and usage of ICT.
Dr. Hamadoun Toure, Executive Director of Smart Africa Secretariat, said: “Satellite technology has played an integral role in providing broadband connectivity throughout Africa. Intelsat has worked tirelessly over the past four decades to ensure that the people of Africa have access to high quality, affordable and reliable broadband connectivity. Their technology has supported the growth of businesses in the more remote areas of the continent as well as ensuring that communities have access to government services, such as education and healthcare. We welcome Intelsat to Smart Africa and look forward to partnering with them to advance, accelerate and promote Africa’s digital transformation and further economic growth across the continent.”
The Smart Africa initiative is geared towards connecting, innovating and transforming the continent into a knowledge economy thereby driving global competitiveness and job creation. The initiative also aims at enabling Member States to become more competitive, agile, open and innovative smart economies with the most favorable business climates that attracts large-scale investments, rewards entrepreneurship and enables fast growth and exports, leveraging ICT innovations to transform African nations into smart societies.
“Since our founding, Intelsat’s core mission has been to build a more digitally inclusive society and by doing so, positively transform the communities that we serve,” Stephen Spengler, Intelsat’s Chief Executive Officer, said.
“While much has been accomplished, much more needs to be done and that is why we are excited to be part of Smart Africa. It is only by working closely with local governments, partnering with other stakeholders throughout the ICT landscape and sharing our knowledge through training programs, that we will be in a strong position to provide all of Africa with high quality, affordable broadband connectivity. By partnering with all the key stakeholders, I am confident that we can continue to narrow the digital divide and create a sustainable broadband network that accelerates Africa’s digital transformation and spurs further economic development across all areas of Africa—urban, suburban and rural.”
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