Vodacom to invest $24m on network expansion in South Africa

Points clés à retenir

The network improvements by Vodacom in South Africa come at a crucial time, considering the challenges posed by load shedding in the country. Vodacom is actively working to maximize network uptime during blackouts, having spent R15 million on batteries and generators last year alone. An additional R117 million has been allocated in the current financial year to further reinforce Mpumalanga's infrastructure against power failures. Beyond power challenges, Vodacom faces issues of thefts and vandalism of base station equipment, averaging a staggering 87 incidents per month province-wide. The company is responding by implementing security improvements, including concrete barriers, alarms, and on-site guards. However, Vodacom emphasizes that community vigilance is crucial to defending against these criminal attacks. To address concerns of affordability for subscribers, Vodacom is offering discounted bundle deals starting from R5. The company aims to make expanded 4G and 5G connectivity more accessible to users. Early indicators show promise on the affordability front, with the number of active data users up 8%, and traffic surging 48% across Mpumalanga over the past year.