President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday allowed Google Loon balloons to provide internet across the country amid directive for workers to work from home and students to study online.
The Google Loon and Telkom-Kenya partnership will enable learners across the country to do their assignments from home, said President Kenyatta.
“I am pleased to announce that the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), has signed an agreement with Google Loon that allows Loon Balloons to fly over Kenyan Airspace. These balloons, which will hover well above our commercial airspace, carry 4G base stations and have the capacity to provide wider signal coverage,” said President Kenyatta.
The President said the two firms would provide internet services without any charges.
Google’s Project Loon was hatched in 2018 with a mission to bring internet access to rural Kenya.
According to the BBC, the Google balloons float high in stratosphere about 20km above sea leave, a range the company said is out of reach of air traffic, storms and wildlife.
The balloons are the size of a tennis court and are made from polyethylene which is then filled with helium and powered by a solar panel.
The balloons can stay float for months at a time and move by surfing wind channels are intelligent enough to predict speeds and directions they need to travel.
Each balloon can relay internet signals transmitted from the ground and cover an area of 5,000 square kilometres.
Coronavirus updates
In his press briefing, the Head of State said updates about the coronavirus outbreak in Kenya will be issued later in the day by the Ministry of Health.
