News / National
Mobile subscription surges by 73.2%
30 Mar 2012 at 12:14hrs | Views
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) says mobile subscribers have increased by 73.2% over the past 10 years, a development which has been attributed to a conducive regulatory environment.
Rural community usage stands at 42.5%.
With the world becoming a global village in terms of communication technology, Zimbabwe has seen an increase in the use of technological gadgets, hence the increase in teledensity over the past decade.
In an interview, POTRAZ Director General, Mr. Charles Sibanda said teledensity has increased significantly from low levels of 314 000 mobile subscribers in 2001 to over nine million subscribers in 2012.
At the turn of the new millennium, there were no internet subscribers in Zimbabwe. However, internet subscribers now stand at over 2 million.
Sibanda further noted that the telecommunications sector plays an important role towards economic growth with contribution figures standing at 6% of the gross domestic product.
The telecommunications regulatory board is currently embarking on an expansion programme which is anticipated to cost $20 million.
Despite the increase in teledensity, the rural communities are still facing constraints as only 42.5% of rural households have access to mobile phones.
Only 0.44% of the people in rural areas have access to fixed telephones while only 0.07% of rural households have access to the internet.
Rural community usage stands at 42.5%.
With the world becoming a global village in terms of communication technology, Zimbabwe has seen an increase in the use of technological gadgets, hence the increase in teledensity over the past decade.
In an interview, POTRAZ Director General, Mr. Charles Sibanda said teledensity has increased significantly from low levels of 314 000 mobile subscribers in 2001 to over nine million subscribers in 2012.
At the turn of the new millennium, there were no internet subscribers in Zimbabwe. However, internet subscribers now stand at over 2 million.
Sibanda further noted that the telecommunications sector plays an important role towards economic growth with contribution figures standing at 6% of the gross domestic product.
The telecommunications regulatory board is currently embarking on an expansion programme which is anticipated to cost $20 million.
Despite the increase in teledensity, the rural communities are still facing constraints as only 42.5% of rural households have access to mobile phones.
Only 0.44% of the people in rural areas have access to fixed telephones while only 0.07% of rural households have access to the internet.
Source - zbc
