Patrick Hilbert

The LION (Lower Indian Ocean Network) cable inauguration by Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam over the weekend marked a milestone in the history of telecommunications and ICT in the Indian Ocean.

This submarine fiber cable system links Madagascar, Mauritius and Reunion Island. It is some 1,070 kilometers in length and consists of 2 fiber pairs. It's designed for a total bandwidth capacity of 1.28T bps (bits per second), but for a start, capacity will be 20G bps.

Google is offering training to IT professionals Thursday and Friday at the G-Mauritius 2009 at the Ebène Cybercity, situated in the heart of this small, independent, developing state off the east coast of Madagascar. The forum is the first of its kind on the African continent and it is expected that Google will hire some employees there as a result.

One of the main objectives of the forum, organized by Google and the local Board of Investment (BOI), is for Google to offer intensive technical knowledge to local developers and entrepreneurs. Approximately 100 people in Mauritius' ICT sector will have the opportunity to learn from Google.

As part of the Pan African e-Network project, Mauritius has been selected to host a Super Speciality Regional Hospital, which will link to other hospitals in the region and offer telemedicine services.

Former Indian president Abdul Kalam initiated the project in 2004. The plan aims to connect the African Union's 53 nations through satellite and fiber-optic networks.

Mauritius, a small developing island nation off the east coast of Madagascar, will be the second African country to host Google Cache Servers.

Already installed and configured, the servers will be put into operation from September.

Outremer Telecom's plans to expand into Mauritius by the end of the year have been dashed after the country's Information & Communication Technology Authority (ICTA) refused to grant the company a mobile license.

Outremer Telecom is appealing to the ICT Appeal Tribunal. "We don't agree with this decision. We didn't expect the ICTA would reject our demand," said Michel Rigot, Outremer Telecom's CEO for Mauritius. The company planned to invest in a 3G network and was ready to recruit about 200 workers to support the new service.

It was a battle that lasted for more then a decade but at long last the Mauritian government has the .mu Top level Domain (TLD) back under government control.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed last week between the .mu TLD manager, Yan Kwok of Internet Direct, and the Information & Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA) of Mauritius. With the agreement, the small independent developing state off the east coast of Madagascar becomes the second African country to win back its Top Level Domain (TLD). The process went faster only for South Africa.

After establishing a presence in Mayotte and Reunion Island, Outremer Telecom now plans to start its mobile telephony services in Mauritius by the end of this year, reinforcing its presence in the Indian Ocean.

Also present in other regions of the world, more precisely in Guadeloupe, French Guiana and Martinique, Outremer Telecom is waiting for the green light from the Information & Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA) to go ahead with the project.

Internet access will become cheaper in Mauritius as the dominant operator, Mauritius Telecom, through its Internet provider, Orange, takes advantage of new prices on the SAFE (South-African Far East) cable.

Orange has submitted new tariff proposals to Mauritius' Information & Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA). If the regulator accepts the proposals, as expected, Internet prices will drop from March in the small independent developing state off the east coast of Madagascar, company sources say.

Mauritius has reduced its international bandwidth tariffs to 22 percent from 36 percent, depending on bandwidth and destination.

The Information & Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA), the Mauritian regulator, approved the reductions in December and Mauritius Telecom, the main provider, applied them Jan. 1.

Mauritius launched its Community Empowerment Program (CEP) last week with the aim of facilitating ICT use in order for citizens to fully participate in the country's socioeconomic development.

Conceived by the National Computer Board (NCB) and financed by the United Nations Development Program, one aspect of the project involves equipping all youth centers in the country with cybercafés. With 22 centers currently being equipped, the program is already reaching the majority of the country's youth centers.

Mauritius, a small island off the east coast of Madagascar, is working hard on its smart card identification system. The Ministry of ICT is looking forward to phasing in the introduction of electronic identity cards by mid 2009.

The eID card will contain various personal details of its owner. Besides the basic identity information in visual form, it will also be used as a health card, pension card, buss pass and even a pass to access governmental services, be it on- or off-line. The card will procure access to secured areas, payment of pensions and social security benefits, electronic purses, and driving licences.

The government of Mauritius is establishing a Universal Service Fund (USF) that aims to give citizens in poor regions of the country better access to ICT.

Regulations under the ICT Act of 2001 have been finalized, and the fund should come into operation in several weeks time.