Speaking during the official Halotel launching ceremony, the Minister for Communication, Science and Technology, Prof Makame Mbarawa, said communication services in rural areas were among the challenges that Tanzania has faced for a very long time.
“As in many other African countries, thousands of people in Tanzania remain unconnected to mobile communications,” he said. Prof Mbarawa said the Tanzanian government has for a long time been trying to push operators to connect their networks to remote rural areas in order to meet the growing demand for inclusive and effective communications, but with little progress.He said the decision by Halotel to roll out its network to remote rural areas is in line with the Tanzanian government’s objective of making sure that all rural areas of the country are connected to mobile networks in order to ease communication problems.
Halotel is a brand name for Viettel Group, a Vietnam’s largest mobile network operator. It is a state-owned enterprise wholly owned and operated by the Ministry of Defence.
The minister revealed that it was not easy for the company to invest in the country as they had their terms including right of ways for them to raise their towers in the country, also fasten the process to obtain permits from various organisations like National Environment Management Council (NEMC). Prof Mbarawa said that for a long time, operators in Tanzania just like other African countries have just been fighting for customers in urban areas. Viettel’s focus on rural areas will now force other operators also to spread their networks to rural areas or lose out.
Vice-President, Mohamed Gharib Bilal, said establishments of Viettel networks in Tanzania and in some neighbouring African countries demonstrate the commitment of the people of Vietnam in building strong nation with a commendable economy which is not just limited to its borders.
“Their investment in the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector opens opportunities to further encourage more business communities from Vietnam likewise from Tanzania to explore more investment possibilities,” he elaborated.
The VP stressed that ICT sector in Tanzania was expected to grow to seven per cent by the year 2016/2017. Chief Executive Officer for Vietell Group, Major-General Nguyen Manh Hung, said they were determined to transform Telecommunication Company in Tanzania and make sure more people become innovative. “Through ICT development solutions to various problems in any country can easily be found, we expect every Tanzanian to become an application developer,” he said.
The CEO further said poor people were not poor forever if only were given access to knowledge which will transform their mindset. Adding Halotel will be a catalyst to development in rural Tanzania. It added that 1,500 villages are now connected for the first time.
The company will also provide free internet connectivity to 450 public schools over the next three years. In addition, Viettel has provided optical cable to 150 committees, 150 public hospitals, 150 police stations and 65 post offices within the first half of the year.
/Daily News.
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