Q-KON and Rivada Partner to Bring Outernet Connectivity to Africa

Insider Brief

• Q-KON and Rivada Space Networks have signed an MoU to deliver secure, high-speed satellite connectivity across Africa via Rivada’s Outernet.
• The partnership aims to enhance digital transformation in sectors requiring resilient and private data infrastructure, such as banking and government services.
• Rivada’s optical mesh LEO satellite network enables gigabit-speed, low-latency communications without routing through terrestrial infrastructure, supporting Africa’s evolving connectivity needs.

PRESS RELEASE – Q-KON, a leading provider of satellite solutions and services, and Outernet provider Rivada Space Networks have signed an MoU to provide next-generation connectivity to power network expansion and digital transformation across Africa and beyond.

Q-KON will leverage Rivada’s Outernet to provide resiliency for specialized data networks across Africa and a new level of cybersecurity to enterprises that require secure infrastructure, such as banking and financial services. The Outernet’s fast, seamless and secure connectivity will ramp up network performance and enable true digital transformation and new business opportunities through multi-gigabit bi-directional performance, combined with worldwide reach.

Data sovereignty and data resiliency are becoming paramount and whilst the availability of LEO satellite services are now coming of age in the African connectivity landscape in terms of high-speed, low-latency connectivity, the Outernet will now deliver a unique layer of resiliency and security for data communications providing a future-ready infrastructure that adheres to the highest standards of safety and privacy and enhancing trust in these networks and applications.

The Rivada Outernet is a next-generation Low-Earth Orbit satellite constellation designed to provide gigabit-speed connectivity to any point on the globe, without needing to touch the public internet or any third-party infrastructure. Combining inter-satellite laser links with advanced onboard processing and unique routing and switching capabilities, this optical mesh network, in which data stays in space from origin to destination, creates an ultra-secure network with pole-to-pole coverage, offering end-to-end latencies much lower than terrestrial fiber over similar long distances.

Dr Dawie de Wet, Group CEO of Q-KON, said: “We are pleased to start working with Rivada to develop specialized LEO solutions for the advanced enterprise, industry and government markets in Africa and to complement our growing Twoobii LEO Smart Satellite Services portfolio. We view the Outernet as an evolution on the LEO architecture roadmap that will follow-on and advance the industry from the classic broadband LEO services currently being deployed in Africa, to unlock bespoke applications and high security service-specific user applications.” 

Declan Ganley, CEO of Rivada Space Networks, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Q-KON supporting the development of communications across Africa. Rivada’s Outernet is what data communications has been waiting for – a game-changing constellation which re-defines connectivity in terms of security, latency, capacity, efficiency, and coverage. As a completely new type of LEO constellation, the Outernet can provide Africa with a next-generation digital infrastructure for secure, resilient communications and network expansion.”