The cable that changed Kenya: How TEAMS helped open the country to the digital world

Before Kenya became a mobile-first digital economy, internet access was slow, expensive and heavily dependent on satellites. The East Africa Marine Systems (TEAMS) cable was conceived in that difficult era—and its journey to Mombasa involved political negotiations, corporate scepticism, regional frustrations and even the threat of piracy.

In June 2009, when news broke that an undersea fibre-optic cable had landed at Mombasa, the significance of the moment was difficult to grasp.

The headlines spoke of faster internet, cheaper communications and a new digital future. But for many Kenyans, an undersea cable was an abstract piece of infrastructure hidden beneath the Indian Ocean.

More than a decade later, the transformation it helped enable is easier to see.

The cable was part of the foundation on which Kenya's rapidly expanding internet, mobile data and digital economy would be built.

The story of the East Africa Marine Systems (TEAMS) cable, as recounted by people involved in the project in The Safaricom Journey documentary, is also a story of frustration, political will, commercial risk and a decision by Kenya to move ahead rather than wait for a wider regional project.

At the centre of the government's push was then Information and Communications Minister Mutahi Kagwe, who, alongside officials, regulators and private-sector players, helped drive the project from an idea into infrastructure.

From satellite dependence to the internet age

Before the arrival of submarine fibre, Kenya's international communications depended heavily on satellite links.

That system was expensive and limited in capacity.

According to accounts in the documentary, international internet traffic could travel from Nairobi to London and back before reaching its destination. Satellite connectivity also introduced latency—the delay created by the distance data had to travel into space and back.

As internet use increased, the limitations became more obvious.

Then came 3G.

Safaricom introduced 3G technology in 2007, opening a new chapter in mobile connectivity. Kenyans could increasingly browse the internet, access social media and consume online content from their phones.

But there was a problem.

The more people used the internet, the more pressure was placed on the limited international bandwidth.

One former Safaricom executive recalled that there was initially little commercial justification for the 3G investment. Yet the company went ahead after recognising that Kenyan demand for telecommunications was growing faster than earlier projections had anticipated.

The arrival of 3G, in effect, created an appetite for an internet infrastructure that Kenya did not yet adequately have.

The regional cable that was taking too long

The idea of connecting East Africa to global fibre networks had been discussed for years.

One major initiative was the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System, commonly known as EASSy, which involved multiple countries and operators.

But coordinating governments, companies, financing arrangements and technical decisions proved difficult.

In the documentary, participants describe repeated meetings and delays as countries and companies attempted to agree on the project.

For Kenya, the waiting was becoming increasingly problematic.

The country was already preparing for a surge in demand for data. Waiting indefinitely for a regional solution risked holding back the emerging digital economy.

The answer was audacious: build a Kenyan-led cable.

That decision ultimately gave birth to TEAMS.

A name coined on a bus

The origins of the name are almost as remarkable as the infrastructure itself.

Kenyan officials had travelled to the United States with counterparts from Uganda and Rwanda to learn more about fibre-optic technology.

They visited a company involved in the technology and travelled together afterwards.

During a bus journey, they began discussing the possibility of working together as an East African team.

That conversation produced the name TEAMS — The East African Marine Systems.

The idea was bigger than simply laying a cable.

The officials viewed connectivity as development infrastructure: something that would enable economic activity rather than simply generate revenue from the cable itself.

One explanation used in the documentary compared the project to building a road.

The road itself does not necessarily generate the economic value. Its importance comes from what people and businesses are able to do because the road exists.

The same logic was applied to TEAMS.

The cable would become a platform for economic activity.

Taking the idea to the UAE

Kenya eventually looked towards the United Arab Emirates for a connection.

The plan was to link Fujairah in the UAE to Mombasa.

But getting the deal moving required political intervention.

According to the documentary, Kenyan officials sought President Mwai Kibaki's backing to approach the UAE leadership.

A letter from the President was obtained, allowing the delegation to approach the leadership in the UAE.

The response was swift.

The documentary recounts that once the letter reached the relevant authorities, the Kenyan delegation secured approval to proceed with discussions.

Etisalat, the UAE telecommunications operator, became an important partner in the project.

The breakthrough transformed TEAMS from an idea into a project with a viable international connection.

Convincing a sceptical industry

The next challenge was money.

The project required significant investment, and potential participants initially had reservations.

According to the documentary, the target was to raise about $100 million.

Safaricom and other telecommunications operators were approached.

The companies were unwilling to shoulder the entire cost but agreed to participate if other players came on board.

The result was a public-private structure involving the Kenyan government and telecommunications companies.

Safaricom became one of the major investors, while Telkom Kenya and other operators also participated. The government, through the relevant institutions, provided financial support.

The documentary describes the arrangement as an early example of a public-private partnership in Kenya's telecommunications sector.

There was scepticism beyond the boardrooms.

Some critics questioned the cost of the project and alleged that the cable could become another avenue for corruption.

Project proponents had to explain not only how much the cable cost but why Kenya needed it.

There was also a more basic challenge: many people simply did not understand fibre-optic technology.

Kagwe recalled carrying a piece of fibre-optic cable around and appearing on radio and television to explain what Kenya was trying to build.

His simplest explanation was a bridge.

The cable would become a bridge connecting Kenya to the rest of the world.

The cable at the bottom of the sea

The physical construction was itself a feat of engineering.

The fibre-optic cable would not simply sit on the ocean floor.

As explained in the documentary, specialised equipment was used to bury the cable beneath the seabed in vulnerable areas.

The cable was manufactured and loaded onto a specialised vessel before beginning its journey towards Kenya.

For those involved, seeing the cable marked for the East African Marine Cable System was a moment of validation.

But another major obstacle was waiting: getting the vessel safely to Mombasa.

A race against piracy

The cable's journey coincided with a period when piracy posed a serious threat in waters around the Horn of Africa and Somalia.

The planned voyage from Fujairah to Mombasa faced security and regulatory complications.

The documentary recounts how the UAE authorities took measures to enable the vessel to make the journey, including arrangements involving an Arab flag.

Security and insurance arrangements were also made, while the Kenyan Navy was involved in escorting the vessel once it reached waters where protection was required.

The cable eventually reached Mombasa.

Its arrival marked the physical beginning of a new era.

From one cable to a connected Kenya

Once TEAMS was operational, the significance went far beyond the cable itself.

International bandwidth expanded. The bottlenecks associated with satellite connectivity began to ease, while the cost and quality of internet access could improve.

Kenya was no longer looking at the internet primarily as a slow and expensive international service.

It was becoming infrastructure for everyday life.

The growth that followed would encompass mobile banking, e-commerce, online media, digital advertising, remote work, social media, streaming and a generation of businesses built around connectivity.

The documentary's participants describe TEAMS as a project that helped set other developments in motion.

And that may be its most important legacy.

When the cable landed in Mombasa in 2009, it was easy to see it as a piece of telecommunications equipment.

What was harder to see was the ecosystem that would grow around it.

Today, Kenyans can stream video from a mobile phone, send money digitally, run businesses online, work remotely and communicate instantly with people thousands of kilometres away.

None of those developments can be attributed to one cable alone. Kenya's digital transformation has involved successive investments in mobile networks, data centres, terrestrial fibre, smartphones, software and digital services.

But TEAMS was part of the foundation.

Its story is therefore not simply about fibre beneath the Indian Ocean.

It is about a moment when Kenya's policymakers and private sector players recognised that connectivity was no longer a luxury.

It was infrastructure—and whoever built the infrastructure would help determine the country's digital future.