West Africa Advances Digital Integration Through Mali–Senegal Fibre Link

Public telecommunications operators SMTD-SA of Mali and Sénégal Numérique SA officially commissioned a direct cross-border fibre-optic link connecting their national backbone networks on Monday, October 5, providing landlocked Mali with an additional high-capacity route to international digital infrastructure.

Formally inaugurated at the Kidira Bridge along the Kidira-Diboli border crossing by SMTD-SA CEO Cheick Oumar Traoré and Sénégal Numérique SA CEO Isidore Diouf, the physical connection directly integrates the two state-owned data transmission networks to enhance regional bandwidth capacity for telecommunications operators, internet service providers, and public administrations across both nations.

The strategic link secures Mali’s connection to submarine cable systems terminating in Senegal—routing onward through Cape Verde and Portugal—while establishing critical redundancy to mitigate service disruptions in the event of outages along alternative corridors.

Connecting into SMTD-SA’s national network of over 3,500 kilometers of domestic fibre, the project implements a bilateral agreement finalized during a regional workshop in April 2026 under the umbrella of the West African National Backbone Network (ROA-BN).

By progressively linking public infrastructure across member states—including Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Mali, and Senegal—the regional alliance aims to expand redundant transmission routes and build long-term digital network resilience across West Africa.