Opinion / Columnist
Infrastructure sharing to improve telecoms services
26 Mar 2018 at 07:12hrs | Views
Infrastructure sharing is increasingly becoming a necessary requirement and the most viable business model in the telecommunications industry. Its benefits for both consumers and service providers are now impossible to ignore.
The Minister of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) and Cyber Security, Supa Mandiwanzira has revealed that the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) is now in the final stages of disbursing a USD200 million grant that will see all telecommunication service providers embarking on an infrastructure sharing drive. This should be a welcome development as it will see a significant increase in the quality of service delivery.
The ICT Minister was responding to questions on poor mobile reception experienced in some remote parts of the country in Parliament. Mandiwanzira said it was no-longer business as usual under the new dispensation led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa as POTRAZ has now accelerated most of its developmental projects including infrastructure sharing.
In 2015, POTRAZ released its first draft on how telecoms service providers will be sharing resources.
Regulatory framework from POTRAZ is key in the development of a viable infrastructure sharing model as it ensures service providers cooperate with each other while at the same time guarantee maximum benefits for the consumer.
According to POTRAZ, infrastructure sharing could cut costs by 15 to 30 percent and reduce individual companies' capital outlay by 60 percent which would result in a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
Consumers and Government have for long expressed concern over high costs of telecommunication services resulting from duplication of investment in infrastructure. Therefore, it is expected that once implemented, the infrastructure sharing rules will bring down the cost of telecoms services and promote investment into the sector.
Infrastructure sharing will eliminate unnecessary duplication of telecommunication infrastructure which increases costs on the side of the service provider. These costs are then transferred to the consumer making it very expensive to access services, making Zimbabwe one of the most expensive countries to make a call or get internet access.
If major telecoms companies in Zimbabwe including Econet Wireless, Telecel and State-owned mobile operator NetOne, which are mobile networks and TelOne were to share infrastructure like cell towers, this would maximize the use of existing and future telecommunication infrastructure. The end product of this would be better service delivery and lower costs for the consumer as maintaining and upgrading of infrastructure would be a shared responsibility.
The positives of infrastructure sharing are not only limited to monetary benefits as the development would ensure minimal negative public health; safety and environmental impacts caused by the proliferation of telecommunication infrastructure installations.
Installations such as cell phone towers use backup generators and some emit harmful toxins which are harmful to the environment and the people who reside around them, therefore, the few the better. It will similarly make it easier and cost effective to maintain environmental standards that are ecofriendly if the sites are few and costs are shared by the service providers.
As the country witnesses the growth of current settlements and new ones emerging, infrastructure sharing will promote the orderly and effective town and country planning in terms of telecommunication service provision. It will put an end to the sporadic unorganized erecting of telecoms installations which might make it difficult for town planners to allocate land for other developmental programs and institutions.
It is this writer's view that if POTRAZ and the Ministry of ICT and Cyber Security expedite the infrastructure sharing program, the country's economy will feel the positive effects as communication is key to national development for both locals and foreign investors willing to invest in the country.
The Minister of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) and Cyber Security, Supa Mandiwanzira has revealed that the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) is now in the final stages of disbursing a USD200 million grant that will see all telecommunication service providers embarking on an infrastructure sharing drive. This should be a welcome development as it will see a significant increase in the quality of service delivery.
The ICT Minister was responding to questions on poor mobile reception experienced in some remote parts of the country in Parliament. Mandiwanzira said it was no-longer business as usual under the new dispensation led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa as POTRAZ has now accelerated most of its developmental projects including infrastructure sharing.
In 2015, POTRAZ released its first draft on how telecoms service providers will be sharing resources.
Regulatory framework from POTRAZ is key in the development of a viable infrastructure sharing model as it ensures service providers cooperate with each other while at the same time guarantee maximum benefits for the consumer.
According to POTRAZ, infrastructure sharing could cut costs by 15 to 30 percent and reduce individual companies' capital outlay by 60 percent which would result in a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
Consumers and Government have for long expressed concern over high costs of telecommunication services resulting from duplication of investment in infrastructure. Therefore, it is expected that once implemented, the infrastructure sharing rules will bring down the cost of telecoms services and promote investment into the sector.
Infrastructure sharing will eliminate unnecessary duplication of telecommunication infrastructure which increases costs on the side of the service provider. These costs are then transferred to the consumer making it very expensive to access services, making Zimbabwe one of the most expensive countries to make a call or get internet access.
If major telecoms companies in Zimbabwe including Econet Wireless, Telecel and State-owned mobile operator NetOne, which are mobile networks and TelOne were to share infrastructure like cell towers, this would maximize the use of existing and future telecommunication infrastructure. The end product of this would be better service delivery and lower costs for the consumer as maintaining and upgrading of infrastructure would be a shared responsibility.
The positives of infrastructure sharing are not only limited to monetary benefits as the development would ensure minimal negative public health; safety and environmental impacts caused by the proliferation of telecommunication infrastructure installations.
Installations such as cell phone towers use backup generators and some emit harmful toxins which are harmful to the environment and the people who reside around them, therefore, the few the better. It will similarly make it easier and cost effective to maintain environmental standards that are ecofriendly if the sites are few and costs are shared by the service providers.
As the country witnesses the growth of current settlements and new ones emerging, infrastructure sharing will promote the orderly and effective town and country planning in terms of telecommunication service provision. It will put an end to the sporadic unorganized erecting of telecoms installations which might make it difficult for town planners to allocate land for other developmental programs and institutions.
It is this writer's view that if POTRAZ and the Ministry of ICT and Cyber Security expedite the infrastructure sharing program, the country's economy will feel the positive effects as communication is key to national development for both locals and foreign investors willing to invest in the country.
Source - Charles Motsi
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