The Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra) is hoping to take internet to rural areas through a Television White Spaces (TVWS) project.

Macra is currently implementing the TVWS with the University of Malawi Chancellor College Physics Department with the aim of providing broadband connectivity to rural Malawi using the identified gaps in the TV UHF band.

The project is in response to the call for strategic research in the ICT sector as part of Macra’s mandate to enhance the provision of affordable and accessible ICT services to Malawians, especially those in rural and underserved areas.

Malawi joins other countries in Africa including South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya that are piloting similar projects.

Internet connections in Malawi number 5.7% of the country’s 15 million population, according to BuddeComm research.