Sub-sea broadband cables have taken root along Africa’s coastlines in recent years.

But satellite broadband providers have also been expanding their operations in Africa, in a bid to meet the continent's growing demand for internet services.

One such firm looking to boost satellite and even fibre connectivity on the continent is global communications service provider Gilat Satcom.

Gilat Satcom says it has over 22 years experience in Africa, with about 85% of its revenues generated from the continent.

The company is also among the first in Africa to offer both East to West coast and international connectivity. Its MPLS network connects to both the WACS and EASSy undersea cables via fibre local loops across Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia and Mozambique.

Editor of ITWeb Africa, Gareth van Zyl, has posed a number of questions to Eran Yoran, marketing director of Gilat Satcom.

GARETH VAN ZYL: Gilat Satcom has been operating in Africa for over 20 years. Can you give me a brief overview of how your operations here started?

ERAN YORAN: Gilat Satcom is a leading communication solutions provider offering satellite and fiber-based connectivity solutions throughout Africa, Asia and the Middle East. With hundreds of successful deployments in over 50 countries, the company delivers high quality, cost-effective and efficient communication solutions to telcos, ISPs, governments, enterprises and international organisations.  At first we provided only satellite capacity to undeveloped countries, but over the years we extended our business portfolio to include other means of communications, such as fiber, with a view to becoming a global communications provider.

GARETH VAN ZYL: Where in Africa does Gilat have an office presence?

ERAN YORAN: Gilat Nigeria, is the local office of Gilat Satcom. We have joint ventures with MicroLink in Zambia and Raga in DRC and very close relationships with major players in other countries.
 
GARETH VAN ZYL: What differentiates you from the likes of other satellite firms with African operations such as Intelsat?

ERAN YORAN: Gilat Satcom is not a satellite company. We are a global communications provider. As such we provide solutions and services. So if Intelsat will always recommend an Intelsat solution, Gilat Satcom will recommend and provide the best solution available that meets the specific needs of each customer. In some cases we will recommend a satellite solution over Intelsat in another case the best solution can be over Amos 5 or other satellites,  and in many cases the right solution will be over fiber and an MPLS network. The myriad combinations of solutions enables us to reach out to all kinds of customers in any location around the globe. We are shareholders in WIOCC and can offer affordable solutions over the Eassy and WACS cables.   
 
GARETH VAN ZYL: You offer both fibre and satellite connectivity. Can you explain briefly the rationale behind offering both services?

ERAN YORAN: Actually the rationale behind it is very simple. Because Gilat Satcom is a service provider we are always on the lookout for new technologies and ways to provide better user experience to our customers. In the past, the only way to provide the global communication to Africa was via satellite so, you could make the mistake of thinking that Gilat Satcom is still only a satellite provider (add to it our sister company Gilat Satellite Networks that manufacture satellite equipment). But since the fiber is becoming widely used in Africa we see it as another service/solution we can provide to our customers. It’s all about providing the best solution that meets the customer’s needs with the highest quality of service .
 
GARETH VAN ZYL: What is your view on the state of terrestrial connectivity in Africa in particular? Do you think it is improving?

ERAN YORAN: It’s a challenging question about a challenging matter. I don’t think it’s right to talk about it in terms of Africa as a whole but rather break it into countries, since different countries are in different stages of development. Even within the countries, we find a big difference between provinces and cities, and between the last mile fiber providers. If we look back a year or two, then of course we see huge growth and a lot of progress has been done. I can tell you from meetings that I had with colleagues that provide last mile solutions that they are investing a lot in order to become better and better. And they are making good progress. So it is improving. However my concern is that with the POWER AFRICA project coming, so many new users would like to go online, that the local network will not be able to support them. The numbers are 20 million households in five years… that is a big challenge for the last mile providers and I hope that the respective governments will make it a #1 priority.