South African Mobile Operators Showcase Progress to Parliament, Emphasizing Role in Digital Economy and Rural Connectivity
ACTforSA highlighted that the session was an opportunity for Parliament to exercise its vital role in driving accountability, while also spotlighting the sector's significant advancements and initiatives.
Today, South Africa’s leading Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), represented by the Association of Comms and Technology (ACTforSA) , appeared before a parliamentary Portfolio Committee. The session served as an oversight engagement, allowing the MNOs to demonstrate their critical role as the “backbone of the digital economy” and their contributions to progress across both urban and rural areas.
ACTforSA highlighted that the session was an opportunity for Parliament to exercise its vital role in driving accountability, while also spotlighting the sector’s significant advancements and initiatives. Key areas of focus included:
- Decreasing Data Costs and Infrastructure Investment: MNOs showcased efforts to bring down data costs, even as they invest billions to meet the soaring demand for connectivity.
- Rural Connectivity Expansion: The presentation underscored the sector’s commitment to “lighting up rural communities with essential connectivity,” bridging the digital divide.
- Job Creation and Economic Empowerment: The MNOs demonstrated their impact on job creation, enabling Small, Medium, and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs), and driving transformation initiatives for women, youth, and persons with disabilities.
- Data Privacy and Security: In an increasingly digital landscape, the operators emphasized their prioritization of data privacy and security.
- Spectrum and Universal Service Obligations: The session detailed how MNOs are delivering on their spectrum and universal service obligations, citing real impact in schools and underserved areas.
- Competition Commission Response: The operators also addressed their transparent and resolute response to directives from the Competition Commission.
ACTforSA affirmed its belief that “oversight and innovation go hand in hand.” The association emphasized that its members are not merely connecting devices, but are fundamentally “connecting people, opportunities, and a future we all believe in,” underscoring their broader societal impact.
