- The public broadband plan, called SA Connect, was approved in 2013, but rollout has been slow.
- However, government now says work to connect over 400 sites in the Eastern Cape and the Northern Cape has started.
- The second phase is meant to ensure internet access for everyone across the country.
A programme to connect over 33 000 community Wi-Fi hotspots over three years will rope in small businesses for internet infrastructure services, as government rolls out a revised plan for the project.
The public broadband plan – known as SA Connect – was approved by government in 2013 to improve connectivity in public spaces. It aims to roll out 33 539 community Wi-Fi hotspots to cater to 5 830 208 households over three years.
But rollout has been slow and hampered by budget constraints.
In a recent address to Parliament, Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said the revised model for SA Connect would include a partnership with internet service providers, access network service providers, and mobile virtual network operators in the small business sector.
The minister said the collaboration was part of government's commitment to the transformation of the telecommunications industry through supporting emerging players.
"The SA Connect drive will expand from the core network owned by Broadband InfraCo, other state-owned entities and telecommunications infrastructure operators, as well as the satellite service of Sentech," she said.
Ntshavheni said that work to connect 412 sites in the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape had already begun. The first phase of the project was allocated a budget of R23 million.
The second phase would be funded by the Infrastructure Fund, which is backed by a R100 billion commitment from the government for various development projects.
Phase 2 is meant to ensure that South Africa achieves the goal of universal internet access. The government's National Infrastructure Plan 2050, published in March, details a plan to introduce universal digital connectivity to SA households, with a target of making up to 50G of data per month available to every home by 2025.
The plan shows that only 10% of the population currently has access to the internet at home or access through public facilities and internet penetration varies significantly by region, with Limpopo having the lowest level of broadband connectivity.
The Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA), an industry body representing 150 service providers, said it supported the intention to use SA Connect to create opportunities for SMMEs – and to enable competition in the sector.
"Fierce competition between private sector service providers at both infrastructure and services level has had massive benefits for consumers in South Africa as well as driving realisation of efficiencies in how services are provided," said ISPA.