Vodacom KZN
Vodacom to Invest $58-Million into Rural KZN, South Africa- The Details
Image sourced from SABC News. South African telecommunications group Vodacom said on Thursday that it is seeking to invest R1-billion, or around $58.2-million, into improving its mobile network in the country’s eastern coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). In a statement seen by Developing Telecoms, Vodacom KZN managing executive Imran Khan detailed the planned billion rand investment and that it would include the deployment of more infrastructure sites and upgrades to existing networks in the area all in an effort to increase reliable connectivity in KZN’s deepest rural regions. “This significant investment into the region’s mobile network drives our goal of building an inclusive, digital society,” said Khan via the announcement. Vodacom is planning to inject $26-million of the total i...
Vodacom Launches Widest 5G Network in KZN
Vodacom has announced its plans to roll-out the widest 5G network in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its 5G network is currently available on 156 live 5G sites across the KwaZulu-Natal province and supports both mobile and fixed wireless access services. To launch the 5G network in KZN, Vodacom used the temporary spectrum assigned by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), including 1×50 MHz in the 3.5 GHz, 2x10MHz and 700MHz. Vodacom has decided to use the 700 MHz band for wide-scale mobile, 5G coverage and is supplementing network capacity with 3.5 GHz where required. “Vodacom now offers the widest 5G network coverage in KwaZulu-Natal and we expect to expand our national 5G footprint significantly once we get access to new spectrum. We are confident that the r...
Vodacom to Invest R320 Million into Rural Broadband Connectivity
Vodacom has revealed its plans to invest just over R320 million into network across KwaZulu Natal during 2020/2021. The lion’s share of the capital expenditure will go towards building new LTE base station sites in both urban and deep rural areas of the province. This network acceleration is expected to aid in removing barriers to communications, provide access to fast internet and help in driving digital inclusion among communities in deep rural areas of the province. The availability of high-speed broadband is critical to deep rural development, but research shows that deep rural communities are lagging behind in terms of broadband connectivity, excluding many from digital transformation. “We have always maintained that the key differentiator for us is the quality, strength and reliabili...
