A small village in the mountains of southern Afghanistan. Photo: USACE Photo/Mark Ray

SpeedCast International announced that it is connecting residents in remote villages in Afghanistan through a partnership with one of the country’s largest Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) operators, Wasel Telecom. The two companies provide connectivity through a fully managed, off-grid small cell end-to-end solution that includes satellite communications, solar panels, Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) and accompanying towers.

An off-grid small cell solution is a radio access network that includes outdoor small cells (low-powered radio access nodes that operate in licensed and unlicensed spectrum supporting 2G, 3G and 4G LTE) and a base station controller. Satellite backhaul completes the solution. A solar power system and battery bank with a self-supporting tower enables the network, which has a range of up to 5km.

After completing a successful proof of concept with Wasel Telecom to connect three rural villages, SpeedCast and Wasel Telecom agreed to collaborate on a bid for an upcoming project for the Afghan government. The work would extend the solution to more than 200 villages in the hardest-to-reach areas of the country.

“The arrangement has the potential to bring broadband, cellular services, e-health services, e-learning and telemedicine to the most remote areas of the globe,” said Speedcast Chief Executive Officer PJ Beylie.