Government for smart partnership in addressing digital divide

Dar es Salaam. The government is looking up to a smart partnership with the private sector in efforts to bridge the digital divide, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.

Gracing the Mwananchi Thought Leadership Forum symposium yesterday, Information, Communication and Information Technology minister Nape Nnauye said the internet has reached a point whereby it could be regarded as a human right, hence the need to bridge the gap so that it will be accessible to all.

“It is clear that Information, Communications and Information Technology and internet have become vital in maintaining continuity of businesses, education, employment, provision of basic citizen services, entertainment and socialising,” he said.

Organised by Mwananchi Communications Limited (MCL) and sponsored by Vodacom Tanzania, the symposium run under the theme: “Leave no one behind: Uniting to bridge the digital chasm in Tanzania”.

He said the administration of President Samia Suluhu Hassan was ready to listen to views from different stakeholders and make constructive adjustments to the legal and policy frameworks.

“On its own, the government won’t be able to bridge the gap. It needs a comprehensive effort and I urge you to continue the discussions and air suggestions on what should be done to improve the environment,” said Mr Nnauye.

He expounded on Tanzania’s digital journey, including why the country decided to build the National ICT Broadband Backbone (NICTBB) and benefits that have so far been obtained.

“In the past year, the government managed to connect 25 regions to the National ICT Broadband Backbone,” Mr Nnauye said.

It has also connected seven neighbouring countries of Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Mozambique and Burundi, noting that plans were underway to extend it to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“We have completed a feasibility study to connect the DRC, either through Lake Tanganyika or through Burundi and Rwanda. It is expensive but we believe we can do it. In short, a lot of work has gone into this,” he said.

Mr Nnauye said when President Hassan visited Rwanda, an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on how to extend the ICT backbone to Rwanda via Ngara.

With various initiatives, being undertaken by both the government and the private sector, said Mr Nnauye, the number of internet users has risen from five million in 2010 to 31 million in 2021 internet users.

“In the same vein, fixed and mobile subscriptions have increased from 21 million to over 50 million,” he said.

In his remarks, Vodacom Tanzania chief executive officer Sitholizwe Mdlalose said the company was joining in the government efforts to facilitate connectivity and ensure that every Tanzanian was able to afford and get connected digitally.

He said the contribution of the digital revolution was profound in all key sectors of the economy from education, finance and health to agriculture, saying it was precisely for that reason that Vodacom, Vodafone and Safaricom had launched a special campaign known as Africa.Connected.

The campaign across eight markets seeks to accelerate economic recovery by driving digital inclusion, making devices more affordable, empowering small businesses and improving digital literacy.

“I would like to emphasize that our journey to digital economy and digital society in Tanzania can only be successful if we work together, if we strengthen each other and collaborate to address the challenges meaningfully and effectively,” said Mr Mdlalose.

According to MCL managing director Bakari Machumu, while digital transformation has brought some challenges to the traditional media outlets, the advancement in digital technology has also brought new business opportunities for media companies.

He said the traditional press was undergoing digital disruption that has deprived it [the traditional media] of their usual monopoly.

This was so because technology has created the rise of citizen journalism whereby every individual was able to compile and disseminate news via social media.

“As this happens, the world has found itself in a situation whereby people get information from various channels.

The only challenge is whether it is true and credible or not….Consumer demands have also increased. As a result, newspaper copy sales have gone down and the same has been TV viewership and radio listenership,” he said.

He said however despite the fall in copy sales, TV viewership and radio listenership, media outlets were now designing different models that help them to reach their audience wherever they are.

“As MCL, we currently reach 23 million people through all its social media platforms. At the same time, according to Ipsos 2020 data, Mwananchi newspaper is read by 2.9 million while The Citizen is read by 580,000 whereas MwanaSpoti is read by 2.48 million people,” he said.

He noted however that for the media to effectively get into the digital area, journalists need to unlearn and le-learn the rules of the game.

To the government he said: “The media needs to be taken as a partner and an enabler in the digital development so long as they remain within the laws of the land”.