Fixed line subscriber numbers in Zimbabwe have fallen from 325,000 to 301 650, finance minister, Tendai Biti, has said citing statistics from the Posts and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ).

Zimbabwe has only one fixed phone operator, the state-controlled TelOne, which according to experts, is facing increased competition from mobile operators and companies offering Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony services.

At the end of 2012, TelOne had 325,000 active subscribers, registering another decline from 373 000 active subscribers during the third quarter period 2012.

Despite the decline in subscriber numbers for TelOne, Biti said the telecommunications sector in Zimbabwe has been on the rebound. He attributed growth in the sector to further investments and network expansion by mobile operators Econet Wireless and Telecel Zimbabwe, the two biggest.

“The telecommunications sector remains one of the fastest growing industries due to rapid technological developments,” Biti said.

Analysts said further scope for growth in the telecommunications sector in Zimbabwe would come from data and internet services as well as value addition services.

“Scope exists as more people demand broadband services access, giving scope for expansion,” Biti added.

Information at hand shows that Econet has about 8 million subscribers; Telecel 2.5 million network users and state owned NetOne around 2 million network users, despite a “massive investment drift towards expansion of the broadband” and support services.

The significant growth in subscriber numbers for the mobile networks has also boosted internet accessibility through mobile phones and other devices such as tablet computers.