Tigo subscribers in Tanzania can now enjoy the fastest internet connection following the unveiling of the company’s 4G LTE service in the country. The 4G LTE technology is about five times faster than the 3G technology currently available in the Tanzanian market.
The 4G LTE network offers faster and higher speeds of data transfer, faster response times from the network and increased overall network capacity. It significantly enhances the customer experience for video streaming or conferencing and can accommodate more applications such as high definition content, video blogs, interactive games and video downloads on social networking sites.
Tigo Tanzania General Manager, Diego Gutierrez has lauded the 4G LTE as ‘the first of its kind in Africa’ and reiterated the telecom’s commitment in improving the quality and coverage of its network and bring world-class digital products and services to Tanzania.
In this East African country where digital infrastructure is steadily taking shape, the news on Tigo Tanzania’s 4G launch is good news to the 67% of the population that, according to the Tanzania Communication Regulation Authority (TCRA), use mobile phones.
The Tigo Tanzania 4G LTE means that Tigo customers will, unlike with the currently available 3G network, be able to surf at faster speeds, download content from the internet and make skype calls from their mobile phones and laptops. It will further enable Tigo customers to wade through high-data connection because it ensures real-time sharing of large files and media streaming. More so, it has a near-immediate delivery of time-sensitive data such as real-time interaction or transactions.
“Tigo once again demonstrates its commitment to promote digital lifestyle transformation and its leadership in delivering cutting-edge technology and innovations in its market”, Gutierrez said
Early this year, the company announced an increased annual investment of US $ 120 million per year on infrastructure improvement and expansion which is 20% higher that Tigo’s annual spend in the past three years.
Besides pioneering the 4G LTE, Tigo Tanzania boasts of several “firsts” in digital innovation technology. They include the first Facebook in Kiswahili (the country’s national language), Tigo-Pesa (mobile money) App for Adroid and iOs users, Tigo Music (Deezer), Tigo Back up and East Africa’s first cross-border money transfer with currency conversion.
With a burgeoning middle-class that constitutes over two-thirds of the population and a GDP growth rate of 7.6%, the Tanzanian economy promises bright prospects for continued growth of the communications sector which at 20% annual growth rate is ranked as the fastest in the country’s economy.
