Universal Service Fund facilitates community broadband networks to enhance internet services accessibility

* Very soon people will see a network on their mobile phone called Yathu Yathu

* Click that network, as it will connect and direct you to buy a bundle electronically

Maravi Express

In line with Malawi Government national information & communication technology (ICT) and digitalization policy, the Universal Service Fund (USF) is facilitating the formation of community broadband operators in an effort to enhance the accessibility of internet services in the country.

Under a model termed Yathu Yathu Data, the initiative will be run by independent cooperatives throughout the country, who were selected through a rigorous bidding process.

So far USF, has embarked on training of the successful community broadband operators on how the initiative will work and the technology to be used.

USF is a digital inclusion implementation arm of the Malawi Government through the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) and speaking in Mangochi during the opening of a training workshop for the operators, MACRA Director General Daud Suleman said the initiative will facilitate the entry of indigenous Malawians into the the telecommunications sector.

“Currently, USF is training eight cooperatives before they roll out on the market,” he said. “This initiative will also create employment for a lot of Malawians from rural areas where Yathu Yathu Data will be operating.”

The cooperatives under the Yathu Yathu Data are being financially supported through USF with National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF) providing the disbursement support of the funding.

Suleman added that the introduction of Yathu Yathu data will help to bring a competitive market on data thereby allowing Malawians access to affordable data bundles and access to internet.

“Very soon people will see a network on their mobile phone called Yathu Yathu. Click that network, as it will connect and direct you to buy a bundle electronically. This is an affordable bundle compared to other data available in the country.

“This means that on top of the mobile data provided by TNM and Airtel networks, there is an alternative which a customer can choose from. We hope that the coming in of Yathu Yathu network brings competitive markets, pricing and affordable networks for access to data bundles,” he said.

“Yathu Yathu data will be operated by cooperatives in order to allow rural and hard to reach areas across the country access the network service and so far we eight cooperatives have been registered and will start operating the network in the piloted districts.

“This will help to test the model where we want to ensure that even rural and hard to reach areas have access to internet,” Suleman said.

Chairperson for one of the licensed cooperatives, Click and Connect Cooperative, Kettie Kamwangala commended MACRA for the initiative, saying it will help create more jobs in the digital industry.

“Apart from that, more Malawians, mostly in the rural areas, will now have access to data. This service has already started creating employment to most people in the digital industry.

“As such, we will make sure to bring the service closer to people that do not have enough money to spend on data,” Kamwangala said.

In Malawi, 80% of the population live in rural areas where internet penetration is a challenge.—Additional reporting by Lyte Ali, MANA