NEC To Introduce High Speed Internet In Rural Tanzania

Tanzania Telecommunications Company Limited (TTCL) and NEC (Nippon Electronic Company) will be expanding network capacity in six rural areas of Tanzania.

The project, worth USD 1.6 billion, will consist of upgrading microwave links to support the high demand for telecommunication services of local habitants, businesses and tourists.

The six key locations affected will be: Dar er Salam, Zanzibar, Shinyanga, Maswa, Mikumi, Kidatu.

This new project will offer telecommunications services in remote locations where fiber optic technology is not an option.

NEC will be providing TTLC with high technology that will drastically improve mobile communications, high speed internet and data exchange.

LTE network will also be provided in addition to the already existing 3G Network.

Furthermore, NEC will be overseeing the system to guarantee quality of service and performance.

Nec is being providing services and technological solutions to TTCL since 1972.

According to Nec, the Dar es Salaam link supports Fast Ethernet (FE) and Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) interfaces with packet switching capacity of 40 to 48 Gigabits per second (Gbps) for rapid mobile data transfer with smart bandwidth and capacity utilization and management.

It is estimated that 80% of the Tanzanian population leaves in rural areas and only 14% has internet, while mobile internet penetration s 60%, according to the Tanzania, Communications Regulatory Authority.

Makame Mbarawa, Minister of Communication, Science and Technology of Tanzania, said, “Our latest mobile infrastructure upgrades are a key part of the important work the Tanzanian government is undertaking to deliver our Vision 2025 programme and use the latest communication technologies as a tool for sustainable development. We’re pleased to continue our long-standing relationship with NEC to support the needs of communities and entrepreneurial businesses throughout the country.”

Eugene Le Roux, Managing Director at NEC Africa, commented, “Tanzanian citizens will see a noticeable difference in the mobile network’s capacity to handle even more web browsing and m-commerce transactions as a result of this upgrade. NEC has been providing innovative technologies to Tanzania Telecommunications Company for over forty years and we’re delighted their customers will continue to benefit from our latest high speed, future-proofed mobile backhaul solutions.”