The Zambian government is intensifying a rollout of new telecommunication towers and upgrading existing ones in order to enhance connectivity in the country.
Zamtel, the government-owned operator, and the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Regulatory Authority (ZICTA) are driving the exercise, particularly in remote areas.
In the coming weeks, ZICTA is set to construct 51 towers, as part of the third phase of its infrastructure rollout initiative.
Concurrently, Zamtel is upgrading 165 sites to 4G to improve the quality of service for customers.
The latest towers have been commissioned in the Muwele and Mwelushi areas in the Muchinga and the Copperbelt provinces respectively.
Felix Mutati, minister of Technology and Science, officiated at the launch of the towers.
“Network must be accessible even in the most remote parts of the country,” he said.
“The infrastructure will support access to government services, including social cash transfers and mobile money transactions, to boost financial inclusion.”
The minister assured communities that energy supply would be constant to ensure the towers operate continually.
Zambia, for years beset by power challenges, has enhanced supplies through a number of solar energy projects.
The provision of telecommunications infrastructure was a pre-election pledge by the United Party for National Development of President Hakainde Hichilema, who has been in office since 2021.
In a bid to enhance connectivity in remote areas, a rollout of Starlink kits is also ongoing.
Zamtel is investing heavily to catch up with the country's leading mobile operators Airtel and MTN. Meanwhile the country’s fourth operator, newly launched ZedMobile, recently hit a milestone of one million subscribers.
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