GHANA, BURKINA DISCUSS FIBRE OPTIC CONNECTIVITY (PAGE 43)

GHANA and Burkina Faso have resolved to work together towards achieving their fibre optic interconnectivity by the end of 2010.
Consequently, the two countries at the weekend signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Tamale to facilitate the process. The interconnectivity is expected to bridge the communication gap and open up enormous business opportunities between the two countries, as well as in the West African sub-region.
Ghana’s Minister of Communications, Mr Haruna Iddrisu and Burkina Faso’s Minister of Posts, Information Communication and Technology, Mr Noel Kabore, signed the MoU. The Northern Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Nayina, witnessed the signing ceremony.
The MoU, among other things, spelt out the need for both countries to fulfil their part of the bargain to ensure a successful connectivity before the stipulated completion period of the project.
The Government of Ghana is contributing $40 million towards the project while the Burkinabe government is providing 300 million CFA to enhance connectivity between the two countries.
Ghana’s National Communications Backbone Company (NCBC) will continue with its plan to bury its fibre connection from Bolgatanga to Kulungungu via Bawku in the Upper East Region and provide a back-up solution while ONATEL of Burkina Faso would extend its fibre optic connection from Bittou to Bawku urgently.
Under the agreement, NCBC would construct Optic Fibre Ground Wire (OPGW) over power grid from Bolgatanga to Bawku and extend the network through buried fibre to Kulungungu.
Burkina Faso on its part would accelerate its plan to construct fibre optic from Ouagadougou to Po to connect with Ghana at Paga.
Both countries agreed that Bawku-Kulungungu in Ghana remained the most practical point to achieve interconnection between the two countries.
The two ministers observed that due to the terrain challenges around the tributary of the White Volta at Mognori, the two countries should rather focus on the Bolgatanga-Bawku-Kulungungu-Mogande-Bittou route.
The two ministers equally pledged to “maintain regular dialogue and report on the agreement reached to regional economic communities like the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Mr Iddrisu for his part noted that “Ghana cherishes bilateral relations with countries such as Burkina Faso; President Atta Mills has therefore put in place the necessary measures to enhance such a co-operation”.
He underscored the importance of expanding fibre optic connectivity to facilitate trade and reduce cost of doing business in the sub-region. According to him, it is the government’s vision to use such interconnectivity to improve security, education and international trade among other sectors.
Mr Kabore expressed optimism that the agreement would yield positive results to enable the two countries to derive maximum benefits from the project. “However, we have to critically look at the technical constraints to make this project successful“ he further observed.
Earlier, technical experts from both countries had embarked on site visits to assess the practical feasibility of the interconnection of the fibre optic network and the possible time frame for its implementation.
The fibre optic interconnectivity has become necessary because of the decisions and commitments made at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and the summit on the need to connect Africa, which entreated governments to develop broadband linkages connecting the main towns and capitals of Africa by the year 2012.
The summits also observed that there were some missing linkages of fibre optic interconnectivity between Ghana and Burkina Faso; Ghana and Togo, and Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.