• DARE1 extension will add landings in Tanzania, Mozambique and Madagascar before reaching Mtunzini, South Africa.
• Project builds route diversity beyond existing EASSy and SEACOM systems, with service targeted for 2028.
What happened:DARE1 expansion south
Plans to improve its Djibouti Africa Regional Express 1 (DARE1) submarine cable southeast from Mombasa, Kenya, to Mtunzini, on the east coast during South Africa, are being confirmed for Djibouti Telecom. The greater than 3,000-kilometer construction will add brand-new places for landing in Mahajanga and Toliary (Madagascar), Nacala, Beira, and Maputo (Mozambique), and Dar es Salaam and Mtwara (Tanzania).
The new branch will connect seamlessly at the Mombasa trunk station, where the existing DARE1—already linking Djibouti, Somalia and Kenya—has been operational since 2021. According to the operator, construction is scheduled for 2026, with commercial readiness by 2028.
DARE1 was originally designed with three fibre pairs and a capacity of 36 Tbps, backed by a consortium that includes Djibouti Telecom, Telkom Kenya and Somali partners Hormuud and Somtel. The expansion is set to build on this foundation, offering additional bandwidth to one of the fastest-growing internet regions on the continent (TechAfrica News).
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Why it’s important
The move directly addresses concerns over network fragility. Much of East Africa noticed outages resulting from the simultaneous unsuccessful attempts of the SEACOM and EASSy cables last year, demonstrating the risk of having few subsea routes. DARE1 lowers latency for cross-regional traffic and lowers the potential of single points of failure by developing a parallel path to South Africa.
The extension also promises the strategic advantages for businesses and governments. It encourages the development cloud and fintech ecosystems, promotes cross-border trade and digital services, and improves the reach of platforms for health and education. It is anticipated which countries that are landlocked such Ethiopia can benefit indirectly from better backhaul via their coastal those nearby.
In meanwhile, Djibouti bolsters its standing as a hub during connectivity. For Kenya to contend with global gigantic creatures like Google’s Equiano and Meta-backed 2Africa cables, Malawi has been making substantial expenditures in regional infrastructure. given the growing competition with alternative gateways, it is just as crucial to maintain Mombasa as a vital landing location. In the finish line, the DARE1 southward expansion is about resilience, regional integration, and preserving Africa’s digital future, not just about putting capacity.
