Today’s telecom news includes announcements on Akanda, First Towers & Fiber, ZICTA, MTN Zambia, Nokia, among others.
Powering Central Mexico: First Towers & Fiber Commands the Region’s Largest Dark Fiber Network
Akanda Corp. and its subsidiary First Towers & Fiber (FTF) highlighted their approximately 700-kilometre dark fiber optic network across Central Mexico, the largest in the region. Built under a 20-year lease agreement with Spanish telecom giant Telefónica, which serves as anchor tenant by leasing two fiber pairs, the network also provides capacity to Mexican carrier Marcatel. Spanning major industrial corridors and fast-growing economic zones, the infrastructure delivers scalable, high-capacity connectivity designed to support multiple tenants while generating stable, recurring lease revenue.
Zambia Powers Up Digital Future with Solar Telecom Towers
Zambia has launched a major initiative to expand internet coverage, targeting 80 percent of its population by 2026 through solar-assisted telecom towers. On February 24, 2026, a new renewable-energy tower was inaugurated in Kapungwe, Eastern Province, by the Minister of Technology and Science, Hon. Felix Mutati, as part of a nationwide rollout by the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA) with MTN Zambia. The solar-powered towers aim to bring mobile broadband to rural areas, supporting e-learning, mobile banking, e-health, and agricultural information services, with dozens of similar towers already being commissioned across the country to reinforce Zambia’s push for improved digital connectivity.
Canada Moves Toward Quantum-Safe Networks with Nokia’s Breakthrough
At the Kirq quantum-safe testbed in Canada, Nokia, Numana, and Canadian partners validated “Blueprint 7,” a practical network architecture designed to secure critical infrastructure against future quantum computing threats. The tests demonstrated how post-quantum cryptography, secure key generation, and quantum key distribution can be integrated into real, multi-vendor networks without replacing existing systems. This approach reduces cost and operational risk while aligning with emerging international standards. The collaboration included Crypto4A, evolutionQ, and NowQuantum, which showed that live applications can run securely in a quantum-safe setup, marking a significant step toward quantum-resilient digital security.
SHAFANA FAZAL
