- Tanzania has finally joined the East African Community One Network Area, which ensures cheaper calls across the bloc due to harmonised calling rates with charges on roaming voice calls in Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania eliminated.
- It is expected that the move will ease and reduce the communication charges that will promote the ease of doing business in the region.
Tanzania has finally joined the East African Community One Network Area, that ensures cheaper calls across the bloc due to harmonised calling rates with charges on roaming voice calls in Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania eliminated. It is expected that the move will ease and reduce the communication charges that will promote the ease of doing business in the region.
The June 2019 meeting of the EAC Transport, Communications and Meteorology Sector Council held in Kampala put pressure on Tanzania to join the network. The meeting gave Tanzania a deadline of March 31 to complete its analysis on the implementation of One Network Area. During last week’s private sector meeting held in Kampala, EAC director-general of Customs and Trade Kenneth Bagamuhunda revealed that Tanzania had conveyed its decision to join the network.
Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Tanzania have signed up for ONA. EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki said that Burundi will also be pursued to sign up. He added that ONA will promote easier communication among the people of East Africa, and strengthen the integration process. Being part of ONA means mobile network operators have to renegotiate and reduce wholesale tariffs. Waiver of excise taxes and surcharges on incoming voice traffic while establishing wholesale and retail price caps on outbound ONA traffic is also required. It is hoped that the ONA will boost and facilitate the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area.
