The ACSCS is a major regional ICT infrastructure project under development, coordinated by the ECOWAS Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU) on behalf of a consortium of six participating countries. Key milestones include: the first Ministerial Steering Committee meeting held in Praia, Cabo Verde in December 2022; the MoU signed in Freetown, Sierra Leone in April 2023; the third Ministerial Steering Committee held in Banjul, The Gambia in September 2023; and the fourth Ministerial meeting held in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau in June 2024, which approved a phased implementation approach. In October 2024, a Committee of Experts met in Conakry, Guinea to examine the consortium MoU and assess detailed implementation studies, fiscal frameworks, and SPC setup. In February-March 2025, an expert committee meeting in Banjul validated the Phase 1 feasibility study report and analysed the consortium MoU. Liberia's Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications also initiated site assessments for the cable landing in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County in early 2025. In July 2025, Liberia, in partnership with ECOWAS and the World Bank, officially launched the Second Submarine Cable Project, with ECOWAS engaging TACTIS consultancy to conduct a detailed feasibility study with site visits in Buchanan. The Gambia and Guinea have secured financing through the World Bank's West Africa Regional Digital Integration Program (WARDIP). The total system cost is estimated at USD 91.3 million. Construction is expected to commence in late 2026 pending financial close and consortium agreement signing.
The Amilcar Cabral Submarine Cable System (ACSCS) is a 3,555 km submarine fibre optic cable project connecting Cabo Verde, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The system comprises a 2,955 km main trunk and includes four branching units to the mainland countries and two stubs for future expansion to the north and south respectively. It is designed with a minimum capacity of 12 Tbps per fibre pair and a 25-year operational lifespan. The cable will land in Praia, Cabo Verde, and connect to the EllaLink submarine cable system, providing a direct link to Brazil and Europe. The project is a key component of the ECOWAS broadband backbone programme and aims to provide a redundant, high-capacity international gateway for the participating countries, which currently rely predominantly on the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) submarine cable. The project has been in development since 2018 and is led by a consortium of national operators and public entities from the six participating countries, coordinated by the ECOWAS Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU). The full system cost is estimated at USD 91.3 million, with Liberia's portion estimated at USD 14.29 million.
The Amilcar Cabral submarine Cable Project is part of the ECOWAS broadband Backbone infrastructure programme aimed at connecting the island nation of Cabo Verde to its nearest neighbors on the mainland namely Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Sierra Leone and The Gambia.
1. Strengthen international ICT connectivity and guarantee redundancy for six West African countries (Cabo Verde, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, and Sierra Leone) by providing a single connection to several international submarine cables. 2. Increase international broadband capacity in the beneficiary countries, supplementing existing landing stations and reducing dependence on the ACE cable. 3. Reduce wholesale international bandwidth costs in participating countries. 4. Increase the average international internet bandwidth per inhabitant in the region. 5. Facilitate Cabo Verde's role as a regional digital hub by linking the system to the EllaLink submarine cable connecting Brazil to Europe. 6. Enable expansion of digital services (e-government, e-learning, e-health) across the sub-region. 7. Contribute to socio-economic growth and regional integration within ECOWAS. 8. Establish Special Purpose Companies (SPCs) in each participating country to manage and operate the cable infrastructure.
Original PIDA PAP 2 submission - Objective and Rationale
The project aims to:
- Strengthening the international connectivity of the countries concerned by linking them to the submarine Cable Ella Link which connects Brazil to Europe
- Interconnecting Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Liberia