Tshwane residents welcome R23m investment to restore wi-fi services impacted by vandalism, theft

The youth are especially thankful that Tshwane is upgrading its WiFi capacity. Picture: Jacques Naudé/African News Agency (ANA)

The youth are especially thankful that Tshwane is upgrading its WiFi capacity. Picture: Jacques Naudé/African News Agency (ANA)

Published May 9, 2022

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Pretoria - Tshwane residents have welcomed the metro’s R23 million investment to restore wi-fi services impacted by vandalism and theft the past two years.

The need for access to the internet has only been growing, particularly for the youth, amid rising unemployment rates and the high cost of data.

Over the years, it has become common for young people in the townships to sit along fences of public buildings like schools, clinics and libraries, to access free internet.

In Soshanguve Extension 4, young people access free wi-fi outside the home of an intellectually challenged woman. The woman’s children use the free wi-fi to attract young people who enjoy free unlimited internet, and also keep an eye on their mother.

Young people from Soshanguve access free WiFi outside the home of an intellectually challenged woman and they also keep an eye on her safety. Picture: Jacques Naudé/African News Agency (ANA)

One of the youngsters, Enos Mthimunye, said as a pupil he cannot afford data, so free wi-fi was great.

In Mshongoville informal settlement in Atteridgeville, residents brave the hot sun or cold near a router pole to enjoy 1GB free daily streaming data provided by the City of Tshwane.

When the Covid-19 lockdown was implemented in 2020, City spokesperson, Lindela Mashigo, said Tshwane WiFi was a much-needed service.

MMC for corporate and shared services Kinsley Wakelin had residents, particularly the youth, excited when he announced the investment to “assist the youth to have internet access for educational and employment opportunities”.

He said: “Wi-fi services have been greatly affected by vandalism and theft. A budget of R23 million has been allocated to restore wi-fi connections at affected sites.

“We appeal to residents to work with the City to protect our infrastructure. Where communities witness theft and vandalism of vital infrastructure, they should report it to the law enforcement authorities.”

Tshwane University of Technology students Bongani Nkosi and Tshepo Ngwenya said free wi-fi was very important, because the cost of data was expensive, and it caused a digital divide that excluded those with financial limitations. “As a student, I visit restaurants that have free wi-fi because I save on data costs,” said Ngwenya.

Wakelin said the City was committed to strengthening online customer services to fast-track service delivery.

The department has a R1 587 billion budget for the 2022/23 financial year, in line with the theme of this year’s State of the Capital Address, “Building a data-driven City to fast-track service delivery”.

The department plans a new customer relations management platform, allowing for multiple channels of engagement, including voice, email, chat, video chat, SMS and other messaging apps, to enable better tracking of customer enquiries and complaints with real-time dashboards.

Pretoria News