By Ogova Ondego
Published December 3, 2015
A mobile telephony service provider, Tigo, has extended an internet technology that is said to be about five times faster across Tanzania.
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Initially launched in parts of the capital, Dar es Salaam, in April 2015, the new fourth generation technology, dubbed 4G LTE, has now been extended across East Africa’s fastest growing economy in which digital infrastructure is taking shape and 67% of the population is reported to possess mobile phones.
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Diego Gutierrez, General Manager of Tigo Tanzania, told a press conference in Dar es Salaam that his company is committed to improving the quality and coverage of its network and bring world-class digital products and services to Tanzania whose GDP growth rate of 7.6% promises bright prospects for continued growth of the communications sector which, at 20% annual growth rate, is ranked as the fastest in the country’s economy.
Saying “Tigo once again demonstrates its commitment to promote digital lifestyle transformation and its leadership in delivering cutting-edge technology and innovations in its market,” Gutierrez noted, “The Tigo Tanzania 4G LTE means that Tigo customers will, unlike with the currently available 3G network, be able to surf at faster speeds, download content from the internet and make skype calls from their mobile phones and laptops. It will further enable Tigo customers to wade through high-data connection because it ensures real-time sharing of large files and media streaming. More so, it has a near-immediate delivery of time-sensitive data such as real-time interaction or transactions.”
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In early 2015, the company announced an increased annual investment of US$120 million per year on infrastructure improvement and expansion which is 20% higher than Tigo’s annual spend in the past three years.
Besides pioneering the 4G LTE, says a Tigo press statement says, “Tigo Tanzania boasts several ‘firsts’ in digital innovation technology. They include the first Facebook in Kiswahili (the country’s national language), Tigo-Pesa (mobile money) App for Adroid and iOs users, Tigo Music (Deezer), Tigo Back up and East Africa’s first cross-border money transfer with currency conversion.”
