China Mobile International (CMI) and seven global partners — Bayobab, center3, Meta, Orange, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone Group, and WIOCC — completed the core 2Africa submarine cable system, creating a continuous east-west link around Africa within a single system. Stretching more than 45,000 km and connecting 33+ countries across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, the open-access system introduces 180 Tbps of design capacity to one of the world’s fastest-growing digital regions. Early economic assessments estimate that 2Africa could add up to USD 36.9 billion to Africa’s GDP in its first few years of operation.
CMI has already begun optimizing traffic flows and capacity along the Arabian Sea and Africa’s eastern and western coasts, integrating 2Africa with systems such as PEACE, Equiano, and the IAX-IEX Eurasia routes. This expands a multi-ring topology connecting Djibouti, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and major European nodes. CMI plans to use these routes to deliver international private lines, cloud connectivity, and interconnection services deeper into African markets, supported by its global footprint of 100+ cables, 380+ PoPs, and more than 1,270 data centers.
With 2Africa in place, CMI is pairing the system’s bandwidth and latency advantages with its mCloud platform to support AI-enabled services in sectors such as energy, mining, and smart campuses. CMI has operated in Africa since 2015 and says the new system will help expand high-quality connectivity for education, healthcare, finance, and other essential sectors across the continent.
• 2Africa spans more than 45,000 km and connects 33+ countries.
• Design capacity reaches 180 Tbps.
• Partners include Bayobab, center3, Meta, Orange, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone Group, and WIOCC.
• Integrates with PEACE, Equiano, and IAX-IEX for Eurasia-Africa connectivity.
• Supports CMI’s portfolio of 100+ cables, 380+ PoPs, and 1,270+ data centers.
• Focus areas include AI-driven industrial, energy, and smart-park applications.
“2Africa will significantly enhance international connectivity for Africa and surrounding regions,” CMI said.
🌐 Analysis:
2Africa marks one of the largest subsea deployments ever undertaken and arrives as African markets accelerate cloud, mobile data, and AI-driven digital services. CMI’s deeper integration with PEACE, Equiano, and IAX-IEX positions the company as a central bandwidth provider for east-west Eurasia-Africa routes, complementing similar moves by Meta, Orange, and regional carriers seeking low-latency access into emerging AI and cloud hubs. The system also expands options for hyperscalers and infrastructure operators that increasingly rely on diverse, multi-ring subsea topologies for resilience and scale.
