The Department of Communications (DoC) continued to push rural connectivity and has identified 161 areas on which to focus with the aim of bridging the rural/urban divide by 2020.

The DoC intended to establish 400 access centres, including community post offices and outlets, for rural people to access communication services, said Communications Minister Dina Pule on Tuesday.

“Providing connectivity to our impoverished rural communities is a key priority because communications is a human right and it also facilitates development,” she said.

Further, the DoC was completing a broadband mapping study identifying existing broadband infrastructure and service gaps. However, initial estimates indicated that establishing sufficient broadband infrastructure in South Africa required significant investment and could only be achieved through a partnership between the public and private sectors.

The department, in attempts to facilitate the rollout of broadband, particularly in rural areas, had issued two policy directions of two frequency bands – the 2.6 GHz and 800 MHz Band – for public comment.

“We are hopeful that the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa will finalise the processes for awarding the broadband spectrum, within the confines of our policy, as soon as possible. We are finalising the broadband strategy, which will be released for public comments,” said Pule at a media briefing.

The creation of broadband infrastructure mentioned was expected to increase economic activity and create about 160 000 jobs by 2020.