NEC Corporation is upgrading microwave links on behalf of the Tanzania Telecommunications Company Limited (TTCL), connecting six key rural and island locations in the country to double mobile network capacity and meet demand from local citizens, enterprises and tourists in a deal worth $1.6 million.
The government has already inaugurated the route from Dar es Salaam, the main economic centre of the country, to the island resort of Zanzibar. Further connections from Shinyanga to Maswa in the north and Mikumi to Kidatu in southern Tanzania are planned to open shortly.
TTCL is using NEC's iPASOLINK 400, 1000 and 5000iPS solutions which support a hybrid TDM and IP-based mobile backhaul service. This enables the operator to continue to leverage investments in existing legacy TDM systems for voice traffic and use high speed, high capacity Ethernet for data with the option of transitioning to an all-IP network to enable highly efficient long haul transmissions in the future.
The solution can also support the expansion of LTE network services when required with minimal capacity upgrades, in addition to the 3G networks of today. It features Ethernet Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM) for performance monitoring and fault isolation and troubleshooting to ensure system resilience, uptime and deliver a consistently high Quality of Service (QoS).
Makame Mbarawa, minister of communication, science and technology of Tanzania, said, "Our latest mobile infrastructure upgrades are a key part of the important work the Tanzanian government is undertaking to deliver our Vision 2025 programme and use the latest communication technologies as a tool for sustainable development. We're pleased to continue our long-standing relationship with NEC to support the needs of communities and entrepreneurial businesses throughout the country."
Eugene Le Roux, managing director at NEC Africa, commented, "Tanzanian citizens will see a noticeable difference in the mobile network's capacity to handle even more web browsing and m-commerce transactions as a result of this upgrade. NEC has been providing innovative technologies to Tanzania Telecommunications Company for over forty years and we're delighted their customers will continue to benefit from our latest high speed, future-proofed mobile backhaul solutions."