Data traffic from all Ugandan government departments and agencies is expected to be switched over to the network within weeks.
The project was started as long ago as 2006, but has since suffered setbacks including a dispute between the government and contractor Huawei Technologies over costs.
The government said it is now hopeful that the network will deliver the required level of performance to support next-generation data services, and that cheaper and better internet connectivity will soon be at the disposal of consumers and businesses in all corners of the country.
Uganda’s National Information Technology Authority (NITA) has set up 17 network nodes from which data can be transmitted around the country.
The reliance of Uganda on satellite communications for long distance telephony was ended in July 2009 with the launch of the SEACOM cable network, landing on several east African shores and extending inland to connect landlocked countries like Uganda directly to the world’s major commercial hubs. Since that time, work in a number of east African countries has been underway to match this subsea cable capacity with inland fibre build.
Damage to the SEACOM cable disrupted services earlier this year, but has now been repaired, said the company.
