Communication costs get a hearing

Nadia Samie
9 February 2007

South Africa’s reputation as the country with the highest telecommunication costs may soon be getting the attention it deserves.

In his State of the Nation Address delivered this morning, President Thabo Mbeki said that the Department of Communications, cellphone service providers and Telkom will address call termination rates this year.

Telkom is also expected to apply a special low rate for international bandwith, giving some relief to internet consumers, who have had to put up with increasingly high costs, simply to stay connected.

South Africans have long been complaining about alleged uncompetitive practices by the country’s telecommunication providers.