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LANDING PERMITS FOR
TRANS-CONTINENTAL
UNDER-SEA OPTIC CABLES IN
WEST AFRICA: CHALLENGES
FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS
OUTFITS
JANUARY 2009 Vol. 13: Issue 1
There is a paucity of fibre optic capability in
the West African telecommunications
industry. In addition to widening the digital
divide between Africa and the rest of the
world, this situation has resulted in slower
internet connections and expensive
telecommunications facilities in the sub-
region.
Companies investing in improving Africa’s
bandwidth access through undersea optic
cable linkage have faced mounting
challenges from the bureaucracies of African
states. Generally speaking, three types of
operational permits are required by
companies wishing to lay undersea optic
cables.
The first permit is the survey permit which
allows such companies access to the
territorial waters, contiguous zones, and
economic zones, depending on the route the
cable is going to take. In order to obtain the
survey permit, the applicant must furnish the
country in question with certain information
including route positioning that will lead to
the actual positioning of the fibre optic
cables, vessel details, contact phone
numbers, emergency procedures, overview
of the cable route, and the method that will
be used in the survey, and all other such
©Blackfriars LLP 2008. All rights reserved. This document is for general guidance only. Definitive advice
should be sought from counsel if required. Blackfriars LLP is a Nigerian law firm with a representative
office in Toronto, Canada.
information that the affected state may
require.
The second permit is the installation. The
requirements are also very similar to those
of the survey permit. It is often helpful for
companies involved in undersea optic cable
business to liaise with the embassies and
permitting authorities of state. In Nigeria
and Ghana, the permitting agencies are the
Nigerian Communications Commission
(NCC) and National Communications
Authority (NCA), respectively.
In the past month, both permitting agencies
have granted telecommunications companies
such as Main One Cable Company the right
to land its intercontinental undersea fibre
optic cable in Nigeria and Ghana.
Main One Cable Company has since begun
work on erecting an undersea fibre optic
cable from Portugal to Africa. The first
phase of this project spans 6,900 Kilometres
and will extend from Portugal to Ghana and
Nigeria with an additional 6,000 kilometres
extension to South Africa and Angola in the
second phase of the project.
The permits represent a major landmark for
the African continent, as this is the first time
ever that a private sector driven undersea
cable network is receiving landing licences.
The development sets the stage for Main
One to land its undersea fibre optic cable, in
both countries, even while negotiations are
ongoing with other countries along the
coastal route earmarked for the undersea
cable.
The technological benefits are enormous.
For example, it is expected that Main One
Cable Company will employ the
combination of Dense Wave Multiplexing
Technology of 1.28 Terabits per second and
 WWW.BLACKFRIARS-LAW.COM
two fibre pairs. The granting of landing
rights for undersea optic cable operators
would provide open access to regional
telecommunications operators and Internet
Service providers.
In addition to providing a major boost to
Internet access on the continent, undersea
optic cable connection will help to
considerably minimize the difficulties of
switching traffic between African countries
and eliminate the inconveniences and added
costs of first routing traffic to Europe.
The additional benefits in terms of job
creation and local content development
through skills transfer in ICT and
particularly networking technologies should
not be under-estimated. Beyond these direct
benefits, the granting of landing licenses to
operators of undersea optic cables represents
a sea change for the continuing growth of
telecommunications regulatory capacity on
the continent.
Notwithstanding these obvious benefits and
milestones, some problematic issues arise
from the challenges faced by applicants for
landing rights. The most pressing issue is the
risk of non-approval of the applications for
the landing rights. States in the West African
sub-region have been slow to realize the
benefits of an expeditious approval of
applications for landing rights. The delays in
processing and approving the applications
have implications on financial costs and the
economy in general.
The second challenge arises from a
misconception on the part of the authorities
on the nature of the permits sought. The
permits sought are better construed in
international law as permissions by states
rather than legal permits. Under the United
©Blackfriars LLP 2008. All rights reserved. This document is for general guidance only. Definitive advice
should be sought from counsel if required. Blackfriars LLP is a Nigerian law firm with a representative
office in Toronto, Canada.
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
(UNCLOS), state-parties to the convention
are required to grant permissions on landing
rights. More importantly, African state
parties to the UNCLOS ought to realize that
granting the requisite permissions to
applicants for landing rights is beneficial to
the economic and technological needs of
African States.
For further inquiries, please contact:
Ms. Nkeiru Onyeaso
Tel: +234 808 718 0833
Email: Nkay@blackfriars-law.com
Fax: +234 1 2694781
Ms. Clara Ndive
Email: Clara@blackfriars-law.com
Tel: +234 803 323 1868
Fax: +234 1 2694781
Dr. Pius Okoronkwo
Tel: +647 831 7487
Email: pius@blackfriars-law.com
Fax: +234 1 2694781
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