The Horn of Africa Gateway Development Project is funded by the World Bank and intended to boost digital access in the region and strengthen its economic integration
Kenya’s ICT Authority is looking for partners to develop a regional fibre infrastructure project to connect northeastern Kenya with Somalia and Ethiopia. Through the ICT Authority, the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy launched a consultation under the Horn of Africa Gateway Development Project (HoAGDP).
World Bank programme
HoADGP is a programme funded by the World Bank, part of a larger initiative to expand digital access and build greater economic integration across the Horn of Africa, notably digital trading across borders. HoAGDP was approved in 2020 with $750 million funding. Its purpose is to improve the movement of people, goods, and trade facilitation across Kenya’s North Eastern region.
The project’s goal is to build a 740km fibre backbone, from Isiolo to Mandera, the two counties border Ethiopia and Somalia.The project also includes 200km of metro and last-mile fibre cables to connect schools, hospitals, markets and government premises. In combination, this infrastructure is intended to directly benefit more than 3.2 million residents by improving access to social services, the internet and economic opportunities.
First step
As a first step, the ICT Authority is to conduct an early market engagement to test the level of interest and possible commitment from contractors, technology and power companies, and other potential stakeholders. The engagement is non-binding but will help the authority to define procurement strategies, technical standards and delivery models for the project.
“This engagement offers stakeholders a critical opportunity to shape Kenya’s digital future and to build infrastructure that strengthens regional ties,” said Stanley Kamanguya, former CEO of the ICT Authority.
The Kenya Times says the procurement is expected to include the fibre backbone fibre infrastructure along the Isiolo–Mandera corridor plus cross-border links connecting to Ethiopia and Somalia, and installation of metro and last-mile fibre networks.
It will cover Wi-Fi rollout in schools, markets, hospitals and other public premises, the supply and deployment of networking kit like routers, switches and uninterrupted power supply systems. The scope of the project involves the civil work and solar powered back-up systems for network resilience.
