Living in a hyper-connected world has transformed the ways in which we interact with each other and exchange information. Search engines open up worlds of knowledge that were never before so easily accessed. Social media enables us to stay involved in each other’s lives and interact with brands and organizations. People can stream and download entertainment at their homes, and enjoy it with friends and family around the world.

However, challenges with connectivity still remain. The World Economic Forum acknowledged these challenges, and included them pertaining to affordable data and devices, using and navigating products and services, as well as a lack of access. The majority of people who face these challenges reside in ‘low-income’ countries, where access to the internet is more expensive, and where more advanced generations of technology are too costly for people to afford. To address and tackle these hurdles, the EDISON Alliance, consisting of both private and public sector leaders, brings together the ICT industry to improve today’s digital infrastructure.

There have been evident efforts to offer greater access to the internet within the private sector as well. Examples include the efforts of Facebook, connecting 16 African countries to Europe and the Middle East for greater connectivity with a submarine cable titled 2Africa, a $1 billion project. Another example is that of Elon Musk’s Starlink looking to offer access to the internet and internet services via satellites to places where a fiber cable won’t help or reach.

Improving existing infrastructures and creating new ones between nations for greater connectivity and security has become a priority among several countries. As the Global Connectivity Report indicates, “universal and meaningful connectivity, the possibility for everyone to enjoy a safe, satisfying, enriching, productive, and affordable online experience, has become the new imperative for the 2020-2030 decade.”

Recently, an agreement in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Cyprus, has solidified and commenced, known as the East Med Corridor (EMC) to facilitate greater regional and global digital connectivity, which will cost an estimated $850 million to deliver.

The EMC is essentially a submarine fiber optic cable system further connecting Europe to Asia. It will start from Singapore and connect to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, and ultimately ending in France. The entities carrying out its development include the MENA HUB, owned by Saudi Arabia, Greece’s Telecommunication Telephony Satellite Applications (TTSA), the Public Power Corporation of Greece (PPC), and Cyprus’ leading telecommunications provider, Cyta. Cyta will employ its strategic business unit, Cytaglobal, which is responsible for Cyta’s Wholesale Market activities.

According to Christos Limnatitis, Cyta’s National and International Wholesale Market Manager, Cytaglobal has an already extensive fiber optic network connecting it to the region, “taking advantage of the island’s strategic geographical position, Cytaglobal has developed an extensive undersea fiber optic cable network, which connects Cyprus with its neighboring countries of Greece, Italy, Israel, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt and thereafter with the rest of the world.”

With the addition of the EMC, Cyprus will be further connected not only to the region, but with Asia as well. As a TTSA press release highlights, the EMC project will be “delivering the much-needed new data corridor for the world economy, positioning the countries at the epicenter of transferring, storing, and creating data in Eurasia, by creating a digital connectivity infrastructure… which is the cornerstone of the digital transformation era.”

The EMC project will be putting Cyprus on the global economy map, rendering it a powerful node of information and data transfer, providing greater access and digital connectivity between regions. The project will ensure that future access to digital services will be more affordable, safer, faster, and with greater bandwidth than what is currently available. Additionally, it will improve connection speeds, quality, and security with Asia, garnering prospective opportunities between the two regions.

Cyprus’ participation in efforts to improve regional and global digital connectivity may further establish the island as a significant contributor to the region's technology, business, and data hubs. Shifting into the digital transformation era, Cyprus is utilizing its good relations and geographical position to act as a bridge between worlds, enabling greater interaction for people across borders.