Vodacom has partnered with BPG Langfontein, a farming business that employs the majority of the people living in Wakkerstroom, to move all farm workers using 2G feature phones to 3G devices.
Wakkerstroom is now the first smartphone only town in South Africa powered by Vodacom. It’s a model the network provider hopes to replicate across the country as part of its mission to connect people who live in deep rural areas and are still dependent on 2G networks.
Vodacom, working with BPG Langfontein, is pioneering an approach to connect people in rural communities to faster mobile networks and devices, so they can take full advantage of the benefits of the digital revolution.
Wakkerstroom is the second oldest town in Mpumalanga province. The town is on the KwaZulu-Natal border, 27km east of Volksrust and 56km south-east of Amersfoort.
Zakhele Jiyane, managing executive for Vodacom Mpumalanga, says: “There are growing expectations for big corporates the size of Vodacom to serve a social purpose, and for us to use our resources and core capabilities to make a significant contribution in transforming the lives of ordinary people. We are helping to remove communication barriers, so that citizens in the area can be part of the Digital Revolution and reap the associated benefits.
“By moving the more than 1400 farm workers from 2G to 3G devices, this will also free much needed spectrum and this spectrum can be re-farmed to provide for faster networks such as 3G and 4G.
“Crucially, the move opens a new world of connectivity for farm workers in Wakkerstroom. As a result, most people in the area will now be able to use the Vodacom network to connect on the net and access online government services, e-health services such as Mum&Baby and e-commerce,” Jiyane adds.
“Learners can now surf the internet for the first time and access Vodacom’s eSchool free of charge and those who are actively looking for jobs can start using their smartphones and tablets to apply for jobs over the internet on Vodacom’s zero-rated career sites. This will be key for driving growth to the benefit of people living in this area.”