Liquid telecom on Monday announced that it is building a new fibre network link in Zambia between the capital Lusaka and Victoria Falls.

The US$5 million project will be undertaken by Liquid Telecom's local unit, which is part owned by power company Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC).

The new 500-km stretch of network will begin in Lusaka and terminate in the town of Livingstone, close to Victoria Falls and on the border with Zimbabwe. It will connect eight towns and at Victoria Falls it will interconnect with the Liquid Telecom group's fibre network in Zimbabwe.

It is expected to be completed by June this year.

CEC Liquid Telecom Zambia already runs a 5,000-km fibre network in the country – it provides services to business customers, government bodies, and telcos and ISPs - but the new link will provide additional capacity, as well as increased route redundancy and diversity, the company said.

"The southern part of Zambia, along the economic zone from Lusaka via transit towns to Livingstone, has lagged behind in terms of access to quality ICT services," said Andrew Kapula, managing director of CEC Liquid Telecom Zambia, in a statement.

"Our new fibre link will provide much needed capacity in the area," he added, noting that his company's investments in Zambia are part of its aim to connect as many people in Africa as possible.

Indeed, CEC Liquid Telecom Zambia said that once the Lusaka-Victoria Falls link is completed, it will continue its build to the border towns of Kazungula and Sesheke to connect with Namibia and Botswana.