Bayobab Uganda, a subsidiary of MTN Group, has officially launched its latest fibre optic route — a 260-kilometre stretch from Malaba to Kampala — aimed at enhancing digital connectivity and positioning Uganda as a strategic hub in the East African digital ecosystem.
The new Uganda Railway National Long Distance (NLD) fibre link was unveiled on May 6 in Kampala and runs parallel to the existing railway infrastructure, linking communities from the Kenya border through Tororo to the capital. The development is part of Bayobab’s broader mission to power Africa’s digital economy by strengthening regional interconnectivity and enabling access to high-speed internet.
Bayobab Uganda Managing Director Juliet Nsubuga highlighted the project’s transformative potential during the launch event. “By partnering with Uganda Railways, we’re deploying fibre along existing transport corridors to deliver reliable, high-speed internet to underserved communities while creating a seamless digital corridor from Kampala to Mombasa,” she said.
Constructed between December 2024 and February 2025, the new route directly connects to Bayobab’s subsea cable landing stations in Mombasa, Kenya, forming a critical part of the regional digital backbone. It supports over one terabyte of capacity and offers low-latency, high-speed connectivity to key data centres in Kampala, including Raxio, Airtel House, and MTN Uganda.
The infrastructure is expected to significantly improve service delivery for telecoms, internet service providers (ISPs), cloud providers, and hyperscalers, providing a faster, more reliable alternative to existing fibre paths. The route also strengthens MTN’s existing fibre corridors such as Busia–Jinja–Kampala and Malaba–Lira–Masindi–Kampala, ensuring better redundancy and network reliability for Uganda — a landlocked country that depends on cross-border digital infrastructure.
Julianne Mweheire, Director of Industry Affairs and Content Development at the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), praised the milestone. “This fibre route aligns with our national agenda to expand digital services, bridge the rural-urban divide, and ensure resilient and redundant connectivity across the country,” she stated.
Bayobab’s investment reflects its strategy to meet the growing demands of Africa’s digital market. With a current network of 114,000 km of fibre infrastructure and plans to extend it to 135,000 km by 2025, the company is positioning itself as a leading connectivity provider across the continent.
The Malaba–Kampala fibre route not only boosts Uganda’s digital transformation but also enhances Bayobab’s competitive edge by offering shorter, less congested routes, improved latency, and cost efficiencies — key factors for global technology partners seeking dependable regional connections.
