Tigo Tanzania (Millicom) and the Ministry of Communications, Works and Infrastructure announced on the 14th of July 2016 the signature of a MoU to facilitate the roll-out of internet access points in the country’s secondary schools for a period of 2 years.

As part of the agreement, the ministry will identify and provide a list of schools without computer labs to be connected and also guide the implementation of the project, while Tigo will sponsor the infrastructural development in schools across the country that will include wiring classrooms and the installation of wireless LAN with internet access points.

It is the first time in Tanzania that the government and a mobile network operator are cooperating on an ICT project of such a large scale and scope. The GSMA Connected Society programme congratulates both parties in this new partnership that will allow school children across the country to have a safe and reliable access to the wide source of information provided by internet. The GSMA encourages all parties to intensify their cooperation in expanding mobile broadband coverage.

13 million people are still under-served across rural areas of Tanzania. While mobile growth in Tanzania has been substantial, large sections of society are still left out of the digital realm. Tanzania’s population of 49 million people is widely dispersed, with 69 per cent of the population living in rural regions. As population density in rural wards varies significantly, operators have so far been able to deploy their 2G networks to up to 85 per cent of the population, while 3G network deployment is mostly limited to urban areas, resulting in only 35 per cent of the population being covered and able to access the mobile internet.