KABUL: Afghanistan started using its first ever satellite yesterday in a bid to boost its national broadcasting and telecommunications infrastructure as well as its international connectivity.
Afghanistan’s telecommunications sector and a growing digital media industry are among the Afghan government’s biggest achievements since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001.
The new satellite, AFGHANSAT 1, will support a wide range of services including broadcasting, mobile telephony and IP connectivity, officials said.
“We can say it is a historical move, because for the first time Afghanistan is renting a satellite,” Amirzai Sangin, Minister of Information Technology and Telecommunication said in Kabul as Afghanistan started to use the satellite. The Afghan government has signed a multi-year deal with European satellite operator Eutelsat to deploy the in-orbit satellite, which the company said would provide full national coverage and extensive reach across Central Asia and the Middle East.
“We are renting this satellite for $4m per year, and based on our calculations, we can earn $15m annually from it,” Sangin added.
The boom in Afghan media in the past 12 years is one of the most visible bright spots to foster a stable democracy, even as the Nato troops are preparing to withdraw from Afghanistan.
The country remains wracked by war with Taliban insurgents and mired in corruption and poverty. AFP
