Tanzania to improve internet access with new sites

25 September 2024

The Tanzanian government plans to install 636 new telecommunications sites from October to improve internet access across the country, according to Jerry Silaa, Minister of Information and ICT.

In May 2023, the Tanzanian government signed a partnership agreement with Tanzanian telecom operators for the deployment of 758 telecom sites in rural areas. The initiative is expected to cost about 265.3 billion Tanzanian shillings and is funded through the Universal Communication Services Access Fund (UCSAF), created in 2007 to facilitate access to communication services.

The densification of the telecom network is expected to lead to an improvement in internet coverage in the country. However, the effective use of the service could be hampered by challenges such as the population's limited access to smartphones.