Zimbabwe’s state-owned telecoms operator TelOne is seeking funding for a fibre network installation to reach 100, 000 homes in the next five years under the National Broadband Phase II project. Intriguingly, the project is reported by Bulawayo News 24 as a move to counter network vandalism.
“It is with much delight that I share our plans to roll out fibre network and LTE (long term evolution) service which, besides countering network vandalism, will also improve service quality,” said TelOne chairman Douglas Zimbango as the firm launched a new client experience centre in Bulawayo.
TelOne another one
Zimbango said the launch of the Bulawayo Data Centre was a profound and unique contribution as the only such facility in Bulawayo. The company has invested more than $4 million on the project. TelOne’s customers are mostly banks and financiers, telcos, private companies, government departments and a range of information technology service providers. “Each will enjoy highly customisable, fully managed, and secure disaster recovery hosting for carrier-grade IT resiliency,” said Zimbango. The company has also partnered with 12 banks to arrange more convenient online payments for clients whose activities are being frustrated in the face of a severe economic disruption caused by Covid-19.
Zim plea the best
Zimbabwe’s Information Communication Technology minister Jenfan Muswere said the upgraded data centre should help TelOne grab 25% revenue market share, develop 10 new data centric products and services and slash its overheads. It will also inject greater urgency into the infrastructure expansion and create confidence in others in the prospect of sharing infrastructure.
Targets
“Specific to market share growth, I am sure your renewed focus on client experience will be helpful together with other key investments that are required,” said government minister Muswere, addressing Zimbango, the telco’s chief executive. “I want to urge you to continuously be on the hunt for modern strategies to market TelOne and surpass all your targets. The convenience that you are bringing to clients is one such strategy.”
Chinese funding
In the first phase, TelOne invested $98,6 million through a facility from China Exim Bank. “TelOne has positioned itself for the future with a robust backbone infrastructure. It is now essential that we continue to consolidate and strengthen service provision using the network to offer more value-added services and explore more around the internet of things (IoT),” said TelOne’s chairman Zimbango.
