One year after signing a milestone public-private partnership (PPP) agreement, Powertel Communications and Paratus Zimbabwe have switched on the first phase of a landmark cross-border fibre project.

Under the PPP, signed in June 2025, the parties are jointly investing in, and developing, a new high-capacity, long-distance fibre digital corridor to connect Zimbabwe to Botswana, Zambia, South Africa and the wider Paratus network across Southern Africa.

The first phase, connecting Plumtree and Bulawayo, in Zimbabwe, marks another step forward in delivering on the original vision of a connected regional corridor.

Powertel, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA), and Paratus Zimbabwe, a subsidiary of Paratus Group, are combining their strengths in the rollout of the infrastructure.

The project leverages Powertel’s extensive national fibre backbone and Paratus’ continental network reach, technology, technical expertise and experience in building resilient telecommunications infrastructure across Africa.

The operational section between Plumtree and Bulawayo represents the first active Paratus-connected fibre route into Zimbabwe, linking the country into Africa’s quality network while strengthening cross-border connectivity. It is an important step in building deeper regional integration to enhance digital inclusion and support long-term economic growth across the region.

The newly operational route leverages the latest dense wavelength division multiplexing technology, capable of delivering capacities in excess of 10 Tb/s.

The first phase, already live with an initial equipped traffic capacity of 800 Gb, will be followed by the second phase, connecting Bulawayo and Livingstone, in Zambia, which is due to go live in September 2026, completing the strategic three-country, cross-border connected corridor.

“This is a defining moment for Powertel, as the project is planned, built, owned and operated by Powertel, as the licensed national carrier under the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe and the telecommunications arm of ZESA,” says Powertel Communications MD Willard Nyagwande.

“The indefeasible right of use (IRU) with our partner Paratus is the commercial vehicle that this project’s success rides on that allows us to lead this corridor with the financial backing of a renowned and reputable continental partner, while retaining the operational primacy over the asset, the regulator-facing relationship and accountability to ZESA and the people of Zimbabwe.”

“When we announced the PPP and this project last year, we set out a clear vision to create the first high-capacity digital corridor linking Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Today, we are delighted that the first phase is live,” adds Paratus Group chief commercial officer Martin Cox.