Djoliba connects eight countries to each other and to the rest of the world. A first in the region.

In Mandinka, one of the local languages of West Africa, the Niger River is called Djoliba. He gave his name to Orange's first pan-African fiber optic network. Djoliba combines 10,000 km of submarine cables to connect West Africa to the other continents and 10,000 km of land cables to ensure communication between eight countries (Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal).

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Orange is betting heavily on this infrastructure, which has cost it 150 million euros. In addition to its economic interest, this link between telecoms has a symbolic, almost political character in the sub-region. Digital unity is one of the milestones in the construction of a developing local ecosystem. One of the objectives of this cable link is to “support the growth in usage under good security and quality conditions”, explains Jérôme Barré, CEO of Orange Wholesale and international networks.

However, internet traffic is expected to double in Africa between 2019 and 2021, i.e. a faster increase than in Europe or the United States. To cope with this growth, Orange already had three accesses on the Atlantic coast, with the SAT 3, ACE and Main One submarine cables. A fourth, 2Africa, should be completed by early 2024 at the latest. It is built by Facebook and a consortium of telecom operators including Orange, and will allow the French to further strengthen its traffic capacities in the area. Faced with this submarine network, a terrestrial interconnection was missing. "Internet stopped at the borders of the countries", summarizes Jean-Luc Vuillemin, person in charge for the international networks of Orange.

A company that wanted a link between Bamako and Abidjan had to negotiate with at least two different operators. From now on, it can have a single offer, on the Orange network. “The construction of Djoliba is also a human adventure. Our teams left in 4 × 4, sometimes in the jungle, to install equipment, routers. They had to meet real challenges and sometimes even build roads,” says Jean-Luc Vuillemin. The game was worth the candle, the first customers have already shown up.

Chinese pressure

The group is already thinking about what to do next. He plans to extend Djoliba to other countries in the region. Orange could use its networks or enter into agreements with local players. "We continue to look at the opportunities for takeovers that could arise in the region", slips Stéphane Richard. The CEO of Orange does not exclude other operations in West Africa. The Djoliba model could also be duplicated in other regions of the world, in the Middle East for example.

Orange is thus taking care to consolidate its positions in fiber networks, while Chinese operators and equipment manufacturers are very present in the region. They do not hesitate to negotiate contracts at very aggressive prices to deploy their infrastructures, or even to exchange the construction of networks for access to fishing areas, in Cameroon for example. However, fiber networks are used not only for terrestrial connections but also to ensure the interconnection of mobile antennas and, therefore, to develop these services!

In addition to geopolitical issues, there are societal issues. These Internet connections will make it possible to provide redundancy between data centers located in different countries, and therefore provide more security to financial players, for example. “It will also help promote local content. We must not forget the importance of Nollywood in Nigeria”, mentions Stéphane Richard, who sees in Djoliba a necessary element for the construction of a digital ecosystem in this sub-region of Africa.

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“Inclusion goes through digital in Africa even more than elsewhere. It is a way to fight against inequalities, to bring education to as many people as possible. It is estimated that by 2030 Africa will need 230 million digital jobs,” adds Elizabeth Tchoungui, Executive Director, CSR, Diversity and Solidarity at Orange. Mobile is a vector of progress and improvement of living conditions in Africa. "The French anti-wave subjects are off the ground here," she adds.