The United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is accelerating the deployment of trusted US-made wireless infrastructure in West Africa.
The goal is to connect off-grid communities in a region dominated by Chinese-made wireless systems. In the meantime, the USTDA has announced funding for a feasibility study to install approximately 1,500 turnkey mobile communications base stations from Massachusettsbased company, Vanu Inc. (Vanu), across Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria.
USTDA’s Deputy Director, Thomas Hardy said: “USTDA is bringing private sector solutions to unlock widespread, affordable, trusted internet access in off-grid communities across West Africa.
“By helping American companies compete in these critical markets, we are offering an alternative to insecure infrastructure while creating export opportunities that make America more prosperous.”
According to him, USTDA’s assistance will fund the study for Vanu Côte d’Ivoire, which has selected Georgia-based Vernonburg Group LLC to provide US expertise to assess the commercial viability of large-scale deployment and help mobilize financing for implementation.
The study, he said, will evaluate existing network infrastructure, analyse market conditions across all four countries, assess legal and regulatory frameworks, and develop a comprehensive financing plan.
The project will generate substantial opportunities to deploy trusted US wireless solutions, network management systems, and other digital infrastructure throughout the project’s implementation.
The deployment of Americanmade mobile base stations will address West Africa’s urban-rural connectivity gap and provide millions of West Africans with faster, more reliable mobile access, supporting economic activity in areas that have historically been offline or limited to outdated 2G and 3G networks.
Andrew Beard, CEO of Vanu Inc., said: “Vanu is proud to partner with USTDA to demonstrate how our systems enable mobile network operators in West Africa to deliver broadband Internet and voice services in some of the most economically and operationally challenging markets and prove that connectivity in these markets can be profitable, sustainable and scalable.”
The USTDA study will help catalyse new investment, expand US exports, and accelerate deployment of trusted, secure digital infrastructure to connect billions of people worldwide.
