The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa is working with telecom operators to ensure a short-term spectrum relief plan as the country enters a lockdown for the next three weeks, ITWeb reported. Communications and digital technologies minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams said government will issue new spectrum to the operators on a temporary basis to expand the network during the nationwide lockdown. In a speech, the minister said the department has a responsibility to get the people of SA communicating.
In a statement to ITWeb, the regulator said Icasa is engaging with sector licensees on possible ways of radio frequency spectrum relief for the duration of the declared state of disaster. This is mainly to ease congestion, ensure good quality of broadband services, and to enable licensees to lower cost of access to consumers, particularly in relation to education, emergency and other social services.
Mobile operators have been waiting for years for allocation of spectrum in order to provide faster and more widespread high-speed data services. The Covid-19 outbreak has resulted in a massive spike in data traffic, with more people working or learning from home. Nonetheless, the operators have welcomed the move to provide spectrum relief during the 21-day lockdown.
