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Liquid Technologies and Facebook have announced a partnership to build an extensive metro fibre network in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The network is expected to improve internet access for more than 30 million people and help meet growing demand for regional connectivity across Central Africa.

In the partnership, Facebook will invest in the fibre build and support network planning, while Liquid Technologies will own, build and operate the fibre network. The network will help create a digital corridor from the Atlantic Ocean through the Congo Rainforest, East Africa, and the Indian Ocean. With Liquid Technologies’ expertise in the digital corridor, the company aims to connect DRC to its neighbouring countries including Angola, Congo Brazzaville, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

The new build will stretch from Central DRC to Rwanda and extend the reach of 2Africa, an undersea cable to the East and West African coasts, the Middle East and Europe. Additionally, Liquid will employ more than 5,000 people from local communities to build the fibre network.

Commenting on the partnership, Nic Rudnic, Group CEO of Liquid Intelligent Technologies said, “This is one of the most difficult fibre builds ever undertaken, crossing more than 2,000 kilometres of some of the most challenging terrain in the world. Liquid Technologies and Facebook have a common mission to provide affordable infrastructure to bridge connectivity gaps, and we believe our work together will have a tremendous impact on internet accessibility across the region.”

“This fibre build with Liquid Technologies is one of the most exciting projects we have worked on. We know that deploying fibre in this region is not easy, but it is a crucial part of extending broadband access to under-connected areas. We look forward to seeing how our fibre build will help increase the availability and improve the affordability of high-quality internet in DRC,” said Ibrahima Ba, Director of Network Investments, Emerging Markets at Facebook.