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WHY MPS WANT SPTC GATEWAY MONOPOLY TO END

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MBABANE – A huge difference in prices for a leased landline and internet charges in Botswana and those offered by Swaziland Posts and Telecommunications Corporation (SPTC), is what convinced MPs to call for the amendment of the Electronic Communications Act, 2013.


During a meeting where Members of Parliament ?(MPs) were lobbied by different stakeholders, it was revealed that for the International Leased Line Connectivity, SPTC charges E300 000 roaming or cloud services.
The E300 000 allegedly charged by SPTC is for a distance from the Ezulwini Switch to the Ngwenya Border Gate, which is about 31 kilometres.


However, SPTC’s counterparts in South Africa only charge E79 000 per month for the international leased line connectivity from Ngwenya Border Gate to Johannesburg, which is 335 kilometres apart.
These were some of the presented documents to the MPs, which led to Mangcongco MP Patrick Motsa to move a motion on Monday, calling upon the Minister of Information, Communication and Technology Dumsani Ndlangamandla, to within 14 days bring an amendment Bill that would ensure that SPTC no longer had the sole powers of providing backbone infrastructure (gateway) in the country.


The MPs said because of SPTC having the monopoly, internet and telecommunications in the country was expensive.  The MPs were further presented with comparisons of internet costs and landline calls which were compared to Botswana and the service provided by SPTC. 

The figures show that a month in Botswana for a leased line, the service provider or mobile company purchases the gateway at a monthly fee of E22 152 for what is known as STM1 with a bandwidth of 155.  However, to purchase the same product from SPTC allegedly costs E300 000. 

  

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