State seeks to cut Internet costs in fibre-optic plans
Workers lay fibre optic cables on Kimathi Street in Nairobi. The ICT ministry is proposing telcos share Internet infrastructure to bring costs down. FILE
Kenya plans to compel fibre-optic networks to share infrastructure, a move that could be sweetened with an offer of special tariff on electricity.
The proposal comes as the government seeks to lower Internet costs and raise penetration even as telcos lay independent cables, which cost billions of shillings.
Details are contained in the National Broadband Strategy to be launched Tuesday by the ICT ministry that seeks to increase access to fast Internet to 35 per cent of total households from the current 6.3 per cent by 2017.
“The often uncoordinated and disparate infrastructure initiatives is a key weakness that results in unwarranted duplication of resources that ultimately leads to higher cost of services and inhibits furthering of networks,” reads part of the strategy report.
There are 16.2 million Internet users in the country but only 1,002,701 were connected to high-speed bandwidth as at December last year, according to statistics from the industry regulator.
The government is keen to boost the uptake of quality Internet as it moves to roll out e-government services such as tele-presence facility that links the Nairobi Court of Appeal to other courts across the country, among other agencies.
The National Broadband Strategy proposes a new policy on standards that operators installing fibre optics cables will adhere to. It also suggests ending new fibre-investments in areas where other operators have already put in place the infrastructure.
The new measures will benefit Telkom Kenya, Kenya Data Networks and Jamii Telecoms who have heavily invested in the sector but are set to lose key clients such as Safaricom and MTN Business Kenya, currently laying their own fibre-optic cables.
“To this end the government will develop a policy to set clear guidelines for operators to share operator-specific infrastructure to avoid duplicating infrastructure in the same areas. This would result in the country saving costs,” reads the report.
The proposal to categorise ICT as a high-energy user and create special tariffs and rebates on energy is expected to reduce the cost of doing business.
Telkom Kenya chief executive Mickael Ghossein welcomed the move, saying it would cut the cost of doing business. Jamii Telecommunication Ltd chairman Joshua Chepkwony also supported the proposal.
Telkom Kenya said that it spends between Sh500 million annually on electricity and another Sh700 million on diesel to run its generators.
“It is imperative that industry stakeholders have this discussion on the introduction of rebates and special tariffs on electricity, thereby giving a reprieve to telcos that already incur high operational costs,” said Mr Ghossein.
“These will indeed improve on cost efficiencies as well as lead to even better competitive pricing to our customers.”
He added that sharing fibre-optic networks would result in optimal use of existing infrastructure rather than building competing networks.
Mr Chepkwony said that there is a need to protect investments already made and the proposed policy should capture this and not to leave it open as in the current form.
“The sharing aspect must make business sense for it to work and I hope operators will debate these issues come Tuesday,” said Mr Chepkwony.
At the moment operators can share infrastructure including fibre optic on need-be basis. However, the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) said that this had created room for duplication of resources and kept the cost of Internet high.
In the proposals, the CCK is also pushing for amendment of legislation to harmonise the central and county government ICT-related laws, so as to require providers of infrastructure to make provision for future installation of fibre optic cables.
