WIOCC AND CABLE&WIRELESS WORLDWIDE PARTNER TO ENHANCE NETWORK CONNECTIVITY IN AND OUT OF AFRICA

WIOCC is first to provide seamless low-latency network from Africa to Europe

Nairobi, Africa, 1^st December, 2011 – Africa’s carriers’ carrier WIOCC has entered into a strategic partnership with Cable&Wireless Worldwide, a global mission critical communications provider, to improve the reliability, performance and reach of international connectivity in and out of Africa. This initiative will enable WIOCC to provide the first truly seamless low-latency network from Africa to Europe and reinforces its position as the carriers’ choice for high-bandwidth, low-latency, EASSy capacity.

Through C&W Worldwide, WIOCC has invested in two new submarine cable systems – the Europe India Gateway (EIG) and West Africa Cable System (WACS). These additional investments enable WIOCC to create a unique, diversity-rich, high-capacity ring around Africa and into Europe, delivering the highest capacity at the lowest possible cost base – thereby extending its existing end-to-end managed regional and international services the length of Africa’s western seaboard.

“This strategic investment in new high-capacity submarine cable systems strengthens our existing ‘east+west coast diversity’ proposition and provides our carrier clients with even greater network resilience and redundancy. C&W Worldwide is an ideal partner as we share a similar vision of investing in strategic telecom infrastructure to support the growth of Africa,” said WIOCC CEO Chris Wood, who was recently named as one of the 100 most powerful people⁽¹⁾ in the global telecoms industry.

WIOCC already offers telcos and internet service providers (ISPs) affordable, reliable connectivity to over 400 locations across 20 southern and eastern African countries, utilising more than 50,000 km of shareholder and partner-owned terrestrial fibre. This new agreement will enable WIOCC to reach up to 10 additional countries on Africa’s west coast, extending its seamless end-to-end connectivity offering between Africa and Europe to maximise WIOCC’s EASSy investment.

C&W Worldwide Managing Director for Global Wholesale & Carrier, Diarmid Massey, added: “C&W Worldwide provisioned its first submarine cables in Africa more than 100 years ago and our commitment to this market has only increased over the years. We are committed to working with partners like WIOCC to foster the infrastructure needed for both international and local businesses to prosper in the burgeoning African market.”

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⁽¹⁾ In the 4^th annual GTB Power 100, WIOCC CEO Chris Wood was the highest-ranked executive from an African business and rose to number 46 (up from 76 in 2010) in the publication’s list of the 100 most powerful people in the global telecommunications industry.

Contacts:

Adrian Linden	PR Consultant, WIOCC	+44 7919 967 865 adrian.linden@btopenworld.com
Michele Soon	Corporate Affairs Manager, Cable&Wireless Worldwide	+65 9321 3191 michele.soon@cw.com

About WIOCC – www.wiocc.net

Nairobi-based WIOCC has firmly established itself as Africa’s carriers’ carrier, providing international and African telcos and internet service providers with unrivalled high-speed, resilient and diverse capacity into, within and out of Africa.

Operating exclusively as a wholesaler, WIOCC offers carriers affordable, reliable connectivity to over 400 locations across 20 southern and eastern African countries – utilising more than 50,000km of terrestrial fibre and 40,000km of submarine fibre-optic cable.

WIOCC’s international network reach currently extends to 100 cities in 29 countries in Europe and more than 700 cities in 70 countries globally.

WIOCC owns 30% of the 10,000km EASSy (East African Submarine System) fibre-optic submarine cable, which has landing points in every coastal country from South Africa to Sudan – as well as landings in Madagascar and Comores. At 4.72 Terabits per second, EASSy is the largest system serving Africa and represents two-thirds of all the international submarine cable inventory available to sub-Saharan Africa.

The rapid uptake of capacity since EASSy went live (at the end of July 2010) has led to an earlier and larger than expected upgrade which will be ready for service in January 2012.

EASSy has been the cornerstone for WIOCC creating a unique high-capacity ‘ring around Africa’, extending seamless regional and international services the length of Africa’s eastern and western seaboards and into Europe and North Africa.

An ‘east+west coast diversity’ proposition has been implemented to address customers’ immediate demands for improved resilience, and WIOCC continues to add diversity through strategic investments in new submarine cable systems.

WIOCC offers carriers a one-stop-shop solution that delivers seamless connectivity to Africa, within Africa and from Africa to the rest of the world. Its 24/7 Customer Service Desk provides end-to-end management of WIOCC services from customer site to customer site, and WIOCC customers can choose from a wide range of commercial terms.

About Cable&Wireless Worldwide

Cable&Wireless Worldwide (LSE: CW.) is a leading global telecoms company providing a wide range of high-quality managed voice, data, hosting and IP-based services and applications to large multinational companies, governments, carrier customers and resellers across the UK, Asia Pacific, India, Middle East & Africa, Continental Europe and North America. Established in the 1860s, Cable&Wireless Worldwide helps more than 6,000 organisations deliver their goals. The Group’s vision is to be the first choice for mission critical communications.

Reaching 20,500km in length, Cable&Wireless Worldwide owns the UK’s largest fibre network dedicated to business users of telecoms, and provides ubiquitous nationwide access through a combination of fibre, digital, microwave, radio and leased circuits. The network has presence in over 400 towns and cities in the UK, with 864 unbundled exchanges covering 56% of the population.

Internationally, Cable&Wireless Worldwide’s global next-generation network (NGN) stretches to more than 425,000km, including interests in 60 global cable systems, enabling connectivity to more than 150 countries. The Group’s IP-based Multi-Service Platform operates at the core of our NGN, offering a single environment on which voice and data applications can be converged to drive business efficiencies. Cable&Wireless Worldwide’s network is uniquely designed with inbuilt resilience.

With more than 6,000 colleagues globally, Cable&Wireless Worldwide is committed to delivering exceptional customer service and developing long term partnerships with its customers

To find out more, visit www.cw.com