Melbourne broadband firm helps Darfur refugees

Broadband provider Multiemedia has won a deal to provide satellite broadband communications to United Nations relief teams helping refugees in Sudan's Darfur region.

Victoria-based Multiemedia said in a statement that its NewSat satellite broadband division had won a contract with Sudanese national telco SudaTel Co.

The deal would provide broadband services to UN staff working in Darfur refugee camps, in western Sudan.

The contract was initially for 10 sites over 12 months and was expected to increase to 40 sites during the year. Pricing was confidential, Multiemedia said.

Adrian Ballintine, CEO at Multiemedia, said he was delighted at the deal. “NewSat [will] contribute to the ending of this humanitarian crisis that has seen thousands killed or driven from their homes,” Ballintine said.

Paul Seaton, an Austrade Trade Commissioner based in Dubai, said Multiemedia's “leading edge” technology was solving communication problems and making a meaningful difference. 

There was a great deal of interest in the product and Austrade was confident Multiemedia – which had been involved in various projects across the middle East and north Africa – would succeed in future projects, he said.

“Access to Multiemedia services by the UN does stand out as a particularly rewarding contribution helping so many in need,” Seaton said..

Multiemedia would provide broadband communications services such as internet, data and NewSat's newly-launched satellite VoIP using its existing two-way broadband satellite infrastructure, Multiemedia said.

More than one million refugees are currently eking out an existence in camps scattered around the Sudanese province of Darfur, in north Africa. The main camp in Darfur, Abu Shouk, reportedly houses some 57,000 people in 8,000 plastic sheet huts near the town of El Fasher.

The refugees have been gradually fleeing to Darfur following rebel attacks against the Sudanese government in Khartoum that began in February 2003, according to UN reports.

It is believed the fighting stems from years of clashes between Arab tribesmen and African farmers over shrinking resources and that the rebels blame the government for the problems, news media reports have said.