Niger and Algeria have launched a new fibre-optic connection linking the two countries across their shared border, in a move aimed at improving digital connectivity and access to telecommunications services.
The link was inaugurated in Assamaka, Niger, by the two countries’ communications ministers, Hamani Kargné and Sidi-Ali Zerrouki.
The project connects In Guezzam in southern Algeria with Arlit and Agadez in Niger. It is designed to provide faster and more affordable internet and telecommunications services for communities, businesses and public institutions.
The Algerian minister said the connection will operate at an initial capacity of 100 gigabits per second, allowing greater data exchange between the two countries.
The project is also expected to support wider fibre-optic links along the Trans-Saharan Road and strengthen Niger’s connections with Nigeria, Chad, Burkina Faso and Benin. It includes plans for a national data centre.
The two countries share a 950-kilometre border and have recently sought to deepen bilateral cooperation, including following Nigerien President Abdourahamane Tiani’s visit to Algeria in February.
