Orange and Liquid Intelligent Technologies to offer end-to-end high-speed connectivity and services across Africa

Orange and Liquid Intelligent Technologies to offer end-to-end high-speed connectivity and services across Africa

(PRESS RELEASE) PARIS, 28-Oct-2021 — /EuropaWire/ — Orange S.A. (EPA: ORA), a French multinational telecommunications group, has announced a new partnership with Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a pan-African technology group active in more than 20 countries across the continent, aimed at leveraging each other’s existing networks in Africa.

This partnership will give Liquid access to Orange’s extensive network in West Africa, including the new Djoliba network. Likewise, it will give Orange access to Liquid’s pan-African network. As a result, the two organizations will offer end-to-end high-speed connectivity and services across their networks, allowing existing and new customers in over 20 African countries greater access and opportunity to build their businesses.

“We are excited about embarking on this partnership with Orange, becoming a major customer on Djoliba as we continue to grow our existing relationship. We’ve long been committed to providing digital services that allow our customers to grow their businesses and the larger African economy. Partnering with a provider like Orange strengthens this offering. Our customers are the real winners in this partnership. Not only do they get access to the networks, but also the benefit of working with two carriers with proven track records of building African business and digital technology,” said David Eurin, Liquid Intelligent Technologies international wholesale CEO (Liquid Sea).

Orange is a worldwide telecom player offering extensive submarine, terrestrial and satellite connectivity with 450,000km of submarine cables, 45,000km of fiber across Europe, the US, Africa and Asia, and more than 450 Points of Presence. In West Africa, Orange has a substantial presence across many countries including Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Guinea and Liberia. Djoliba is the first unified superfast broadband network in the region that provides seamless connectivity with better availability thanks to network redundancy, security and excellent quality of service. Operated and maintained from Dakar, Senegal for greater efficiency, responsiveness and proximity, it has a dedicated supervision centre. Djoliba is also the first network to offer complete security in West Africa with more than 10,000km of terrestrial fiber optic network, coupled with 10,000km of undersea cables, superfast broadband provision (up to 100 Gbit/s) and a 99.99% availability rate. This network covers 16 points of presence with a grid of nearly 155 technical sites and offers connections with Europe, America and Asia. It is based on Orange’s Tier 1 network and therefore provides a seamless connection to the Group’s international networks.

“I am very happy to announce this important partnership with Liquid Intelligent Technologies which will enable Orange to expand its broad portfolio of convergent solutions across Africa. It further demonstrates Orange’s commitment across Africa to deliver highly reliable connectivity to its customers. Furthermore, this partnership also clearly illustrates Orange’s unique expertise in cybersecurity and our crucial role in building a safer digital society,” said Emmanuel Rochas, CEO of Orange International Carriers.

The ‘One Africa’ network from Liquid has 100,000km of fiber backbone and covers most of sub-Saharan Africa. The network development plans include extending the organization’s reach into the North African countries like Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria. “We already have access to Egypt and Morocco, but now we want to close the loop, thus ensuring that the entire continent has access to high-speed fiber connectivity,” said Eurin. “Our association with a provider like Orange fortifies the offering and supports the business demands of our growing continent. We view this partnership as a real game-changer for Africa.”

“The cybersecurity threat landscape has grown substantially in the last year, which is true globally, and the African continent is no exception,” commented Rochas. In addition to providing extensive and reliable connectivity, Liquid customers will also benefit from gaining access to state-of-the-art cybersecurity solutions from Orange as both organizations work in tandem to manage risks to build a safer digital society.

This partnership represents another critical milestone for Liquid as it continues on its mandate to become a premier African digital services provider. Orange’s networks have been the backbone of its success in the region for more than 20 years and this partnership will serve to strengthen its ability to make digital services more accessible as well as its contribution to the continent’s development as a whole.

About Liquid Intelligent Technologies
Liquid Intelligent Technologies is a pan-African technology group present in more than 20 countries, mainly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Liquid has firmly established itself as the leading provider of pan-African digital infrastructure with an extensive network covering over 100,000 km. Liquid Intelligent Technologies is redefining Network, Cloud, and Cyber Security offerings through strategic partnerships with leading global players, innovative business applications, smart cloud services and world-class security on the African continent. Liquid Intelligent Technologies is now a comprehensive, one-stop technology group that provides customised digital solutions to public and private sector companies across the continent under several business units including Liquid Networks, Liquid Cloud and Cyber Security and Africa Data Centres. www.liquid.tech

Press contacts Orange

Ibtissame Nafii ; ibtissame.nafii@orange.com; 06 37 38 60 50
Tom Wright; Tom.Wright@orange.com; 06 78 91 35 11

Press contact Liquid Intelligent Technologies

Angela Chandy ; Angela.chandy@liquid.tech

SOURCE: Orange