Communications Authority connects 14 West Pokot regions to mobile network

CA Director General Ezra Chiloba. [Denish Ochieng, Standard] Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has connected 14 sub-locations to mobile network services in West Pokot County. This is even as it seeks to provide communication services to 101 areas across the country under the Universal Service Fund (USF) at a cost of Sh1.1 billion. CA Director General Ezra Chiloba today said the sub-locations were among those identified for connectivity in the second phase of the implementation of the USF. The USF was created in 2009 to provide communication services in various parts of the country, especially in remote areas. The authority formally launched the second phase of the USF Voice Infrastructure Connectivity project at Akiriamet, one of the beneficiary sub-locations in West Pokot County. Others are Kases, Kiwawa, Meshau, Lotokum, Kola, Ompolion, Kaptolomwo, Kachawa, Amaler, Emboasis, Kokwoptorir, Marus, and Pkpogoh. "This project will facilitate residents of the beneficiary sub-locations to enjoy a host of services, including mobile voice, data, Internet and a bouquet of other value-added services, including mobile money transfer services," said Mr Chiloba. The connectivity of 14 sub-locations now brings the total sub-locations connected in West Pokot County to 17 after three others - Apuke, Lopet and Chepserum - benefited in the first phase. Under the first phase, CA connected seven public secondary schools to high-speed internet in the area out of the 884 connected across the country. Mr Chiloba said the authority had faced various challenges in the implementation of the projects, including community resistance and vandalism of the infrastructure in some parts of the country. "Residents of Akiriamet will no longer have to climb trees to look for a mobile network signal again because of what we have done here," he said. "They can spend that time scouting for market opportunities for their livestock, connecting with their people in the four corners of the world. The authority is now in the planning stages of the third phase of the project, which will target 68 sub-locations across the country. West Pokot Governor John Lonyangapuo lauded the authority's communications interventions in the area, which he said will go a long way in transforming the lives of the people in profound ways, including tackling insecurity challenges. "Until the intervention, the residents of these unserved locations have not been able to place or receive a call from their localities, forcing them to walk several kilometres to make or receive calls. This is indeed a stitch in time," he said. ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru said the USF projects were complementing the various initiatives that the government put in place to narrow the digital divide, lower the costs of communications services and enhance the country's competitive edge in ICT developments. "The cost of services can only be reduced if there is a deliberate effort for operators to collaborate in the deployment of infrastructure," he said. "When the private sector collaborates on infrastructure sharing, a significant amount of investment costs could be saved and thereby prevent the duplication of similar infrastructure on the same route." Mr Mucheru challenged CA to consider other projects to address communication gaps in broadcasting and postal and courier services in rural and other high-cost areas. "As we develop the telecommunications and internet services, we need to focus also on these other sub-sectors because they are not only contributing to the kitty but also because they provide important services to the communities," he said.

Communications Authority connects 14 West Pokot regions to mobile network

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