Page 15 - issue 24

In The News 15

Moving Botswana into the Digital

Era with 100mb/s internet speed :

BoFinet

Imagine having internet speeds once connected through an
of up to 100 Megabits Per second ISP or service provider of
“directly to your home. The ability choice, will usher in a total
to download an entire music album new internet experience at
in 3.5 seconds, a full HD movie in less home for our customers.
than 5 minutes, load a web page in 0.1
seconds. Ladies and gentlemen all of The Ministry will issue
this will be possible through the BoFinet tenders for FTTB for Jwaneng
Fibre to the Home Infrastructure.” and Orapa in this current
These were the words of epiphany financial year and deliver the
from Mr Mooketsi Ratsela, the BoFinet connections well during the
Board Chairman at the Fibre to Home 2020/2021 financial year.
Technology Launch. Mr Ratsela said The “The project will bring in
next step of this impeccable growth transformation in the way
process is to deploy Fibre to the Home we communicate and the
(FTTH) targeting 11 898 plots and 16 internet speed at home will Bofinet Board Chairman
393 households in Gaborone. 67 plots be greatly enhanced and Mr Mooketsi Ratsela
in Extension 11 have been identified for improved.” she said.
the pilot, which will be followed by the
completion of phase 1 comprising of Eleven citizen owned
Extension 3, 9, 5, and 39 scheduled to companies will benefit
be complete by November 2019. from this engagement by
carrying out all the civil
BoFinet was mandated by the and cable works as well
Government of Botswana to operate as customer installations
a national and international world and maintenance. The
class telecommunications backbone project offers the likes of
network infrastructure which will BTCL, Mascom, Orange and
drive connectivity and economic other established ISPs an
growth. Honorable Dorcas Kobela opportunity to migrate their
Makgato, the Minister of Transport and customers from the weather-
Communications was also in attendance prone wireless solutions to
and gave the keynote address. the more scalable, stable and Honorable Dorcas Kobela Makgatho
fast fibre technology. BoFinet Minister Of Transport and Communications
In her address she went on to explain has initiated deployment
the second part of the rollout. The of IPTV and Video On In her closing remarks she said, “To all those
Fibre to the Home (FTTH) is set to be Demand(VoD) infrastructure contractors who are part of delivering this project,
rolled out to about 16,000 un-serviced and a purpose built open- let me urge you to work hard within your agreed
medium and high-cost residential plots access Data Centre to deliver timelines and budget not only to achieve successful
that should be concluded by December two key infrastructure completion but also to prove that indeed as Batswana
2020. Once completed this project will components for the economy companies can compete with the best of the best in
avail broadband fibre infrastructure that help complete the critical delivering projects of such magnitude.”
at the doorstep of your premises, and ICT infrastructure value chain

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