COUNTRY FOCUS : TANZANIA
In addition , the arrival of the fourth international submarine cable , 2Africa will boost the global bandwidth connectivity . There are 6 IXPs within the country that ensure all local traffic remains locally as well as connected to the IXPs of East African Countries .
Projects like the transformative Julius Kambarage Nyerere Hydroelectric Power Project , gain economic potential with the support of digital technologies . The policy also emphasizes the importance of nurturing an innovation and entrepreneurial culture , supported by reskilling and upskilling programs to equip employees with the digital competencies .
Investments in broadband
In Tanzania , broadband connectivity covers mobile , fixed and satellite technologies . Currently , on average , the coverage of 3G networks is 72 % of population while 4G coverage reaches 55 % of the population . Smartphone ownership is about 27 %. As of December 2022 , there were 31 million Internet subscriptions in the country and the number of mobile phones subscriptions stood at 60 million .
The current situation is attributed to progress made over the past few years to expand and strengthen digital infrastructures . Such progress includes the 13,000 km coverage of the National ICT Broadband Backbone , NICTBB that connects regional headquarters and several townships . The NICTBB is also set to be extended to other towns and district centres .
There are 5 data centre infrastructures , namely National Internet Data Centre – NIDC , Government Data Centre , GDC , TiGO Data Centre , Vodacom Data Centre , and Wingu Data Centre which qualify to host mission critical systems .
Other critical ICT infrastructures include the National Identity platform which provides a comprehensive digital identification registry for every Tanzanian . Up to February 2023 the National Identification Authority , NIDA had issued close to 20 million , unique personal identification numbers .
There are payment platforms such as the Tanzania Interbank Settlement System , that facilitate payment clearing amongst the banks . These are Tanzania Instant Payment System , which is an interoperable digital payment platform operated by the BoT ; the Government Electronic Payment Gateway ; and interoperable mobile payment services operated by MNOs including M-Pesa , Tigo Pesa , Airtel Money , T-Pesa , Ezy-Pesa , and Halo Pesa which together have registered close to 41 million money users by December 2022 .
A fibre optical cable manufacturing company , Raddy Fibre Manufacturing has been established in Pwani region with a capacity to produce 24,000 km of fibre per year . The company provides an opportunity for cost reduction in the investment of fibre network infrastructure .
The Government has also formed a consortium with Mobile Network Operators , to support the construction of metro and last mile broadband infrastructure that covered 27,912 km of fibre optic cable . Other achievements include the deployment of last mile infrastructures to hospitals , schools , and other government offices .
While the broadband infrastructure provides the backbone of the digital infrastructures and is an enabler of the economy , a significant proportion of the population does not yet have access to broadband , 4G network , and related services . Tanzania is still missing critical elements necessary for the deployment of 5G for commercial purposes .
Excerpted from the draft National ICT Policy 2023 ,
Ministry of Information , Communication , and Information
Technology , Tanzania
Tanzania ’ s NICTBB is terminated at 10 border points of Kenya , Uganda , Rwanda , Burundi , Malawi , Mozambique and Zambia to fulfil the Government ’ s commitment to become a regional hub and connect neighbouring landlocked countries to the international submarine cables for global connectivity .
Progress for connectivity with DRC via a submarine is underway . Tanzania is connected to three active submarine cables which land in Dar es Salaam : SEACOM , Eastern African Submarine Cable System , and Seychelles East Africa System .
5G requires high density networks , implying that significant investment would be required to build additional sites and towers . However , Tanzania is committed to pushing 5G deployment . TCRA has successfully conducted an auction to assign spectrum licenses in the 700MHz , 2300MHz , 2600MHz , and 3500MHz bands which enable provision of 5G services .
However , the lack of basic infrastructure such as roads and electricity , is indirectly impacting investment cost , quality , reliability of telecommunication and technology infrastructure . p
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