{Rwanda’s telecom firms are stepping up investment in data services to reduce their reliance on the voice market, as competition in the sector heats up in the wake of increased uptake of the Internet.
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Over the past two months, the country’s three telecom companies — MTN Rwanda, Tigo Rwanda and Airtel Rwanda — have all rolled out promotions aimed at increasing data penetration, a move that is expected to reduce the cost of Internet use. They have also lined up new investments in the data segment hoping to ride on the growing use of smartphones to access the Internet.
Global telecom industry body GSM Association says in its latest report that Africa is the fastest growing market for smartphones in the world, with East African countries topping the list of nations where the devices are increasingly gaining a foothold.
Industry data package charges per day on Internet modems in Rwanda have dropped to an average of between Rwf500 ($0.744) and Rwf800 ($1.19) from Rwf1,000 ($1.4), while weekly charges have dropped to Rwf 4,500 ($6.7) from Rwf 6,000($8.9), and monthly charges stand at Rwf18,000 ($26.7) from Rwf 30,000 (Rwf44.6) a year ago.
Rwanda’s Internet penetration is currently estimated at 12.2 per cent, representing an increase of 27 per cent as of June this year, mainly driven by mobile data.
However, the country lags behind its counterparts in the East African region apart from Burundi, which has an Internet penetration rate of 3.9 per cent. Kenya leads at approximately 41.1 per cent, Uganda’s stands at 17 per cent while Tanzania’s is 14 per cent.
Telcos across the region have been banking on non-voice segments such as mobile money transfer and data to drive growth
The East African
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