Vodacom Connects 3G Internet Cafes

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania -- Vodacom, supported by the GSMA Development Fund and by Qualcomm, through its Wireless Reach™ initiative, has connected Internet cafes in three of Tanzania’s cities to its HSPA mobile broadband network, enabling locals to gain high-speed access to the vast repository of information and multimedia services on the World Wide Web. Run by local entrepreneurs, each Internet cafe is equipped with several computer terminals connected to Vodacom’s HSPA network, which can provide download speeds of up to 7.2 megabits per second.

Tanzanians will be able to pay a small fee to use the computer terminals, which will enable them to access the Internet to find important information about everything from education to health to commodity prices to weather forecasts.

The initial three Internet cafes, in Dar es Salaam, Dodoma and Arusha, will be followed by more cafes in other parts of Tanzania. Housed in converted shipping containers, the cafes also will sell other Vodacom products and services, such as airtime vouchers, payphone calls and handset recharging, as well as acting as an agent for the M-pesa mobile money transfer service. In a country where fixed lines and computers are scarce, the cafes will enable many ordinary Tanzanians to enjoy Internet access and the many associated benefits for the first time in their lives.

Tanzania is one of the fastest developing countries in Africa today with an average GDP growth of 6.5 percent per year. Availability of information and communications are key to fostering this growth. Vodacom Tanzania, through its voice and data services for the last eight years, has been in the forefront of ensuring meaningful access to communications for the people of Tanzania.

”We are very proud to add to our bid as a total communication solutions provider to the people of Tanzania, our new alliance with the GSMA and Qualcomm will bring high-speed Internet cafes to this country,” said Mr. Dietlof Mare, managing director of Vodacom Tanzania. ”These Internet cafes will ensure fast, affordable and reliable access to information for students, the business community and all Tanzanians who need to communicate and stay in touch with what is happening in the country, in Africa and the rest of the world.”

Vodacom Pty. Ltd.