Broadband players in Zimbabwe must collaborate with respect to infrastructure, and focus on value added services for competition, according to James Wekesa, chief commercial officer (CCO) of WIOCC.
Outlining his “Strategies for players in Zimbabwe&ddquo; at the inaugural Broadband Forum in Harare, Wekesa argued for the sharing of infrastructure to enable broadband prices to decrease in the country.
“Compete on services, not infrastructure,” he said, adding that until players learn to share the available infrastructure, prices will remain high.
According to Wekesa, players must focus on improving services as the key to competition. He called upon industry figures present to start introducing value added services into the market, which he insists will increase broadband uptake across Zimbabwe.
Wekesa went on to highlight the assistance available through learning from the experiences of other broadband markets across Africa and beyond.
Advising players to benchmark, he said: “You need to find out from the people who have succeeded how it worked.”
The results of such benchmarking should then be “fine-tuned” for the proposed environment.
Turning to the importance of ensuring there are affordable devices available to stimulate broadband use, Wekesa applauded those working on developing locally-made mobile handsets in Zimbabwe.
“Invest in low-cost devices,” he said. “It will increase broadband uptake.”
With reference to the Zimbabwe-made handsets, he noted: “It is a great initiative, but needs more support.”
Concluding his advice to players in Zimbabwe, Wekesa urged them to find the opportunities available in the broadband market.
“My advice: remove the blinkers. Let’s stop crying,” said Wekesa.
“Look around to find what’s there, find the opportunities. Let’s use the internet.”
