PTA takes steps to improve telecom connectivity
PTA said that many companies are failed to renew their licenses. PHOTO: APP
In a major step towards improving Pakistan's telecommunication, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) began the installation of the Pre-Lay Shore End (PLSE) in the first phase of the project to link the 2Africa submarine cable, it was learnt on Tuesday.
The installation of the PLSE during the first phase of the project began on December 1, 2024 and the cable landed at Hawkes Bay in Karachi. In the second phase, the deep-sea cable laying process will begin on April 1, 2025 and likely to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2025.
The 2Africa is an international submarine telecommunications cable that circumnavigates the coastline of Africa to interconnect Europe and the Middle East. The system is one of the first to use spatial division multiplexing (SDM1) and has a design capacity of 180 Tbps across 16 fibre pairs.
When complete, 2Africa will be the largest subsea cable in the world, at 45,000 kilometres long, connecting 46 cable landing stations across 33 countries. It passes from Europe through the Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean, and then back into Europe via the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.
A global consortium of eight partners, including Meta and Vodafone, is carrying out the project. The project will not only improve Pakistan's international telecommunications infrastructure but also strengthen its connectivity system.