The Uganda Communications Commission has announced that it will launch local social media platforms in a bid to lower internet costs. This announcement was made by the UCC’s Executive Director, Godfrey Mutabazi.
He said: “That is one of the projects we are working on. There is an investor who is bringing our own social media platforms. Instead of Twitter, you’re going to have something local that you’re going to use.”
He added: “The moment you access the internet, you first go to America and come back when you are surfing. But if we had our own content here, it will be cheaper.” Mutabazi says government and telecommunication industry players will be encouraged to use and promote local social media platforms.
In a country with approximately 40 million people, Mutabazi says, it’s possible to have 10 million people subscribing to local social media platforms.
Mutabazi says the commission has been and continues to encourage smartphone manufacturers to bring good but relatively cheap products in order to increase internet consumption in the country.
He says: “In a few years, the internet price will go down because we are going to encourage the importation of smartphones so that majority of people can use smartphones. One of the reasons why the internet is expensive is because capacity picked by telecommunication from Mombasa is used by few people.”
