Bangladesh has officially joined the SEA-ME-WE 5 consortium of 15 telecommunications companies, which is laying an undersea cable link between Europe , Singapore and East Asia.
Offering speeds of up to 100-gigabit-per-second, the new 20000km link will be a welcome addition to the country’s communications infrastructure.
Undersea cables are vital as a complement to satellite networks and terrestrial connections, and for helping to overcome bottlenecks that slow down the internet.
The country’s existing sole submarine cable link (SEA-ME-WE-4,) secured in 2006, has already demonstrated the value to the economy of linking into global networks in this way, with BSCCL currently being able to export surplus internet bandwidth to other countries.
It is welcome news that BSCCL has shown foresight by opting in early to this new consortium, because it is important to plan for a future when the economy will need much more access and secure connectivity than today. In the early 1990s, the country missed an earlier opportunity for a undersea link (SEA-ME-WE-3,) so it is encouraging to note lessons have been learned from the past.
The second submarine cable will provide the country with an additional bandwidth of 1,400Gbps and ensure back up if the older connection goes down.
By offering faster speeds, it will help the whole economy and will be a boon for call centres, software firms and businesses working in global outsourcing. The government should also encourage further improvements to internet connectivity by continuing to enable private firms to invest in new terrestrial and satellite links.
