SEACOM has deployed direct points of presence (PoPs) in Uganda to strengthen its pan-African presence. The move has been facilitated by the Uganda Communications Commission by issuing the public Infrastructure licenses which will ensure full provision of telecom services in the country.

The deployment of the PoPs will unleash their associated benefits to Ugandan network operators and service providers this will further enable onward access to other neighbouring countries such as Burundi, Rwanda and South Sudan.

"Our new license allows us to own and operate our network all the way between Kampala and our international network.  This will help bring more global connectivity to Uganda while improving the quality of the broadband experience for Ugandans," said Byron Clatterbuck, Chief Commercial Officer at SEACOM.

Through these connections, Uganda will have more direct and resilient access to global communications interconnection points and the global Internet.  SEACOM's IP network offers global connectivity to Europe and Asia, interconnection to multiple Tier-1 network operators, as well as more and more African-hosted content.

The deployment of the two PoPs will improve Internet access for Ugandans by 50 per cent, enabling users to access popular content such as video, music and software updates through SEACOM's partnerships with global content development networks such as Level 3, Akamai and others.

Furthermore, Ugandan service providers will now also be able to use SEACOM's remote peering service. This product provides access to more than 1,100 members of exchanges such AMS-IX, LINX, FRANCE-IX and NAP Africa through a single port solution on the SEACOM network. The result is that Ugandan operators will be able grow and optimize their networks more efficiently.

Since its establishment in 2007, SEACOM has launched the first broadband submarine cable system along the East African coastline linking South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Mozambique with major internet connection hubs in Europe and Asia.

It has evolved from being a single cable operator into Africa's foremost network service provider and ICT enabler. The company offers resilient and scalable data services across multiple submarine cable systems and diverse terrestrial networks to mobile and fixed-line network carriers, ISPs and other ICT service providers.

Ugandan operators and service providers will benefit from the company's highly resilient and redundant submarine cables with immediate effect. They will enable rapid activation of services and upgrades through our flexible and scalable network platforms this will give better quality of service for their end-customers.

The roll out will further boost the company's expansion into the East African region adding to the Kenyan and Tanzanian offices.