ZICTA HAILS MTN, AIRTEL ON 5G NETWORK

By Lumbiwe Mwanza

WE commend MTN and Airtel for rolling out the 5G network in the country and there is a need for other sector players to come on board and utilize the technology, the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA) has said.

MTN Zambia became the first telecommunications entity to launch 5G in Zambia with Airtel Zambia officially launching 5G connectivity on their network last week.

Airtel Zambia 5G network which is a state-of-the-art infrastructure will provide data speeds up to 10 times faster than 4G, incredibly low latency, and the ability to seamlessly connect billions of devices.

And speaking to The Scoop, ZICTA Public Relations officer Hanford Chaba said it was commendable that the mobile service providers, in collaboration with the Government, had embarked on the ambitious project of rolling out the 5G technology in phases as it was important for the country and the economy.

Mr. Chaba said that although the roll out was still in the early stages, the development had potential to drive unprecedented inclusive growth in Zambia as it would transform many sectors and offer exciting new opportunities for citizens.

He said that despite investments in the ICT sector being very expensive, the infrastructure would continue to be built and developed in due course.

“5G is currently the new norm in the ICT sector. It is what is trending now. So it really does not matter how many phases it will be implemented but what is important is to start and ensure that the infrastructure will continue being built on.

“Infrastructure is there but there is still more that needs to be done. But I can assure you that currently the infrastructure is there and that is why as ZICTA, we developed the universal access service master plan that tells us how many towers we need, the money needed, and how much fibre is needed to cover the country. I can comfortably tell you that currently, we are starting very ambitiously and infrastructure is there but we will entirely depend on the universal service plan,” Mr. Chaba explained.

He said that so far, MTN 5G was doing well hence the need for other sector players to emulate and utilize the new technology with the view to help revolutionize various sectors and help in shaping the future of Zambia’s ICT landscape.