Paratus Zambia has expanded its fibre and microwave infrastructure in the north of the country to meet an increasing demand for quality network coverage.

According to the company, refineries and mines between Kitwe and Chambishi have driven demand for increased reliable network coverage in Zambia’s Copperbelt region.

This coverage is being extended along the border with the DRC.

After the DRC, Zambia is the second largest copper mining country in Africa and is highly dependent on mining as its major productive industry, with the extractives sector contributing about 10% to the country's GDP.

In 2019, the country's mining sector accounted for 28% of the government's revenues and 77% of export earnings, with copper accounting for over 90% of the sector's exports, according to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative's Zambia EITI Report 2019 

Paratus Zambia Country Manager, Marius van Vuuren adds: “The Copperbelt is vitally important to the country’s economy. As we service one of the country’s largest copper producers, we have taken the initiative and are now leading the charge to deliver quality connections in the area and extending our coverage where it is most needed. Our strategy of thinking big will see this route being extended to the Congo border with a link back to our fiber ring in Lusaka.

“We now have a full microwave and fibre solution in the region. Our clients in Chambishi are benefitting from this network which will soon be extended to Kitwe. Furthermore we have the capability to cater for any business in the region that also needs a high quality, fast and secure network connection – with unrivalled uptime and 24/7 technical support.”

Expansion in the east

Paratus Zambia also announced that it is providing microwave connectivity in Mfuwe, in the eastern province.

“To address these challenges, we created and rolled out a robust network solution to cover most of the area”, explains van Vuuren. “Our commitment is to be always prepared to provide industry sectors with what they need to be able to run their businesses at optimum efficiency and speed. We are driven by what our customers’ need, no matter where they are in the country.”

In 2019 Paratus activated additional capacity on the WACS (West Africa Cable System) cable from Namibia to the Sesheke border. This high-speed data highway coupled with the Lusaka and Copperbelt fiber rings offer more network capacity and redundancy.

The connectivity provider launched a 100Gig Metro Fibre Ring in Lusaka recently, described as progress on its local expansion strategy.

In early October this year the company unveiled its new datacentre and said the timing of the introduction of this resource could not be better - given the country’s new administration’s position on technology and its role in society.

In April the company confirmed its intention to open up the resource, adding that the 1-megawatt (MW) facility will leverage the latest physical and virtual security to ensure the secure storage, protection, and management of data.