South Africa at a glance

South Africa's telecommunications

It should come as no surprise that the country which invented touchtone dialling offers world-class telecommunications. Telecommunications is the fastest growing sector of SA's economy, with investment exceeding R60-billion between 1994 and 2004 - and showing no signs of slowing.

ICT and electronics
The leader of information and communication technology development in Africa, South Africa is the 20th largest consumer of IT products and services in the world.
SA ranked ahead of countries such as China, Greece, Hungary, Italy and India in the World Economic Forum's Global Information Technology Report 2004/05, which assessed countries' readiness to participate in global developments in information and communication technology.

With a network that is 99% digital and includes the latest in fixed-line, wireless and satellite communication, the country has the most developed telecoms network in Africa.

South Africa is the fourth fastest growing mobile communications market in the world. The country's three cellular operators - Vodacom, MTN and Cell C - provide telephony to over 20-million subscribers, covering nearly half the population.

Some of the world's leading telecommunication brands - including Siemens, Alcatel, SBC Communications, Telecom Malaysia and Vodafone - have made significant investments in the local industry.

The number of South Africans enjoying competitively priced access to the internet, uninterrupted connections and broadband access is growing steadily.

South Africa's second national operator has been licensed to operate a publicly switched telephone network. The new group expects to begin operations in the second half of 2006, offering competition to state company Telkom - until now SA's only fixed-line operator - for the first time.

SouthAfrica.info reporter