The City of Tshwane Free WiFi Project has recorded 1-million unique connections as of 28 October 2015.
The service is delivered at average user speeds of 15Mbps and has been upgraded to allow 500Mb per device per day. This is equivalent to 15Gb of data per device per month and each user will still have unlimited access to the Tobetsa curated content portal.
The vision to bring free WiFi within walking distance of every citizen by 2017 is underway and this will ensure that every citizen can leverage the Internet to improve their personal circumstances.
Tshwane mayor Kgosientso Ramokgopa, comments: “”Tshwane has 66% of its citizens under 35 years of age and it is essential to ensure that Internet access is freely available to them to use as a catalyst for change in their personal circumstances; we have heard our digital natives and are answering their calls.”
The city also plans to allow users who register and have fully settled their municipal accounts to be given an additional 15Gb of data per month, totaling 30Gb of free Internet data to use on the Tshwane Free WiFi network, along with unlimited access to the revamped Tobetsa Portal. Tobetsa gives local communities the power to access information, education and jobs online, empowering them to upskill themselves and partake in the mainstream economy.
Zahir Khan, director and chief operating officer of Project Isizwe, says: “The Tshwane Free WiFi service is by the far the greatest catalyst for development in South Africa and the exponential user adoption has proven that people need to be connected in this digital age.”