Tanzania Daily News

Last week Tigo Tanzania launched HSPA+ and were describing it as 4G.

"We recognize our customers' ever changing demands and need for better, faster and quality internet services and are constantly seeking to provide them with the best user experience in all our products in the most affordable way possible.

This innovation is part of our on-going network upgrade programme," Tigo's General Manager, Diego Gutierrez said over the weekend.

Service providers who provide poor services without explanation to consumers risk a penalty of 5m/- or six months imprisonment, the Minister for Communication, Science and Technology, Prof Makame Mbarawa, has said.

He told the Parliament here yesterday that the companies on entering the country to invest, usually sign service level agreements, where they should be held accountable in case they provide poor service to customers.

Better structured training on Information Communication Technology (ICT) would lead to more skilled ICT manpower in the country, the just awarded ICT innovators have said.

The Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) managed Innovation Fund for ICT was set up and financed by TANZICT-project. The fund is a competitive grant focusing on supporting ICT innovators. One of the awardees, Taha Jiwaji of Bongolive bulk SMS innovation identified private ICT training institutions as some of the area that needs to be well equipped to offer quality training.

In a bid to improve provision of information on flights schedules and other related issues at major airports in the country, the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) will soon introduce a new digital method.

The new method will send the information using ATS Message Handling System (AMHS) to cut down on time and human costs that were deployed using analogue system of Aeronautical Fixed Telecommunication Network (AFTN).

Ericsson has donated computers worth 30m/- to KADEA Secondary School in Kagera Region.The donation was presented to the school's administration by Echezana Ozumbe, Ericsson's Project Manager in Tanzania over the weekend.

Ozumbe said at the presentation ceremony held at the school that this is part of the company's corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme for 2013. Ericsson has an annual programme of assisting the community in its development efforts, with emphasis to marginalised rural areas.

Over 100 schools have been provided with computer labs while 1000 others are expected to benefit in the next five years, thanks to an international organization known as Camara.

The Organization's Founder, Cormac Lynch, said in Dar es Salaam that the mission (of his organization) was to make sure that in ten years, all Tanzanians at all levels of education are computer literate.

Telecoms interconnection rates between mobile service providers drop from 115 to 34.92 shillings per minute effective today. Meanwhile, the government plans to build a monitoring telecommunication system by June, this year.

Speaking to the 'Daily News' on Thursday, the Deputy Minister for Communication, Science and Technology, January Makamba, hailed the move to reduce interconnection charges, noting that the government plans to build a Telecoms Traffic Monitoring System by June to control and improve telecommunication in the country.

Tanzania faced a breakdown in Internet connections for the better part of Thursday afternoon after two submarine cables linking the country to the outside world experienced technical problems.
In an interview with the 'Daily News' on Thursday, the Acting CEO of the TTCL, Dr Kamugisha Kazaura, said the hitches occurred at Alexandria in Egypt where the cables are connected to others linking the continent to Europe.

Vodacom Tanzania is conducting trials on Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology which will enable the firm's customers to enjoy ultra-fast internet speed.

Speaking at a ceremony to launch the trials in Dar es Salaam, Vodacom's Managing Director Rene Meza, said the LTE would make the country at par with the rest of the world in terms of technology.

Vodacom’s M-Pesa service continues to spread its wings across various sectors in the country, with the latest development being education.

"From today, students, parents and guardians in Kipawa Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA) in Dar es Salaam will be able to pay school fees through the service, after Vodacom entered into an M-Pesa agreement with the college, said Vodacom Head of M-Commerce, Mr Jackson Kiswaga.