The Zambian government, in collaboration with private entities, has embarked on an ambitious project to construct 520 new communication towers throughout the nation, as announced by Felix Mutati, the country’s Minister of Science and Technology. This project is part of a broader strategy to significantly enhance Zambia’s telecommunications infrastructure, with the goal of achieving 96% coverage for both phone and Internet services by the end of 2025, stretching into the early months of 2026.
Under this initiative, the government has committed to building 340 of these towers, while the remaining 180 will be erected by the private sector. The construction of these towers is anticipated to substantially improve the quality of communication services across Zambia, facilitating greater access to online services. This includes vital government programs such as the Farmer Input Support Program (FISP), Social Cash Transfer, and various Internet mobile services that are increasingly important for the daily lives of Zambians.
Prior to this announcement, Minister Mutati highlighted the significant impact of incentives provided to the private sector, which have been instrumental in boosting investment within the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. Since the introduction of these incentives a year ago, there has been a notable increase in internet penetration, which has risen from 53% to 64%.
Nevertheless, data from DataReportal indicates that as of the beginning of 2024, internet penetration in Zambia was at 31.2% of the total population. This figure is projected to climb to 43.44% within the year 2024, reflecting a growing trend in digital connectivity within the country. The construction of the new communication towers is expected to further accelerate this growth, bridging the digital divide and connecting more Zambians to the global network.
The Minister emphasized the remarkable progress Zambia has made in developing its telecommunications infrastructure since its independence in 1964, with a total of 25,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable laid across the country. He pointed out the substantial contribution of the private sector, which has added 5,000 kilometres to the fibre optic network just in the previous year, leading to a significant boost in internet penetration.
In a separate update on platform X, the Minister shared insights from Manuel Greisinger, the Google Cloud Director of Global Strategic Initiatives. Greisinger revealed that Google is actively involving Zambia in the Umoja project, a transcontinental fibre optic initiative designed to create a direct digital link between Africa and Australia.
In May 2024, Google unveiled the Umoja project, an ambitious fibre optic venture set to commence in Kenya and traverse through several African nations, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, before making its final connection in South Africa.
Furthermore, Manuel Greisinger, the Director of Global Strategic Initiatives at Google Cloud, expressed that the Umoja link is expected to be a catalyst for Zambia’s swift embrace of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. This advancement is poised to significantly enhance services within both the government and the private sector. In line with these technological advancements, the Minister also disclosed that the Zambian government is in the process of developing a comprehensive AI framework to support and govern the integration of AI technologies into various sectors.
