Intelsat and Africa Mobile Networks (AMN) have revealed plans to deploy 1,340 new satellite-connected cellular towers in Madagascar, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The project is an expansion of an existing partnership with Intelsat and AMN that kicked off in 2018 to extend mobile services to remote or isolated locations by combining Intelsat’s satellite backhaul with AMN’s solar-powered tower solution.
Madagascar, Rwanda and the DRC are the newest markets where Intelsat and AMN will deploy satellite-connected towers. Intelsat says AMN has already deployed more than 3,000 rural base satellite antennas across several countries in Africa since 2018, providing new telecoms services to more than eight million people.
In Nigeria alone, AMN has deployed over 1,350 such sites, with more than 450 added since June 2023, bringing voice and internet services to over 3.5 million people in previously unconnected Nigerian communities, Intelsat says.
AMN, which builds, owns, operates and maintains mobile network infrastructure for Africa’s largest mobile network operators, currently has operations across Africa in Benin, Bissau, Cameroon, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, DRC, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sudan, and Zambia.
“Through this commitment to bridging the digital divide, we’ve made a significant impact and we look forward to furthering our mission of connectivity, ensuring that more communities can access the benefits of telecommunication services,” said Jean Philippe Gillet, global sales SVP for Networks and Media at Intelsat.