Overview of Broadband Connectivity for Rural Areas-Tanzania as a Case Study

Abstract

Broadband connectivity is a necessary service required not only in urban areas but more so in rural areas where most of the basic services are inadequate or do not exist at all. Broadband services can enable many services to be offered through information and communication technologies (ICTs) to the extent that rural people can get a chance to enjoy quality communication and other services as in urban areas and be part of the socio-economic development of a given community. Currently, there is a number of technologies and initiatives to connect rural and urban-underserved areas at a reasonable cost but most of the rural users are yet to be connected. This paper gives an overview and a discussion on technologies, broadband connectivity models, infrastructure and policy readiness, and initiatives towards achieving connectivity and bridging the digital divide. The context of this paper is rural areas in Tanzania.