Coming Soon: Faster Internet for Africa-EU Research, Education Communities
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According to an announcement published 8 December 2015 on the UbuntuNet Alliance website, “AfricaConnect2 will develop high-capacity internet networks across the entire African continent and connect them to the European GÉANT network, allowing students, researchers and academics in Africa and beyond to collaborate.”
It also says: “The connectivity boost will not only advance research and education locally with opportunities like e-learning and cloud computing, but it will equally benefit scientific studies the world over in areas such as climate change, biodiversity, food security, malaria and other infectious diseases.”
The European Commission’s Directorate-General International Cooperation and Development teamed up with the pan-European research and education network (GÉANT) and three African internet associations in developing the initiative. The Africa partners are the UbuntuNet Alliance (representing east and southern African national research and education networks), ASREN (representing northern Africa networks), and WACREN (representing West Africa).
AfricaConnect2, which builds on a predecessor project AfricaConnect, has received €20 million from the EC over a three-and-a-half year period. The project is expected to be co-financed by the Africa partners in the amount of €6.6 million over its lifespan.
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Disclaimer: CAAST-Net Plus is funded by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement n0 311806. This document reflects only the authors’ views and the European Union cannot be held liable for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.
