06 March 2019

The operator hopes the partnership will help more people become “first time users of the internet” in a part of the world with limited connectivity

Vodacom Lesotho has joined forces with Facebook to launch a free connectivity service that both companies claim will enable “hundreds of thousands of Basotho” to follow news and stay connected. 

Facebook Flex will allow Vodacom Lesotho customers to switch seamlessly between free and data modes, making it possible for them to chat, post, comment, like or share content for free with family and friends. 

The mobile network operator said it hoped the alliance would help more people access Facebook and become “first-time users of the internet” in a part of the world with limited connectivity. 

21 May 2018

Mobile penetration in East Africa as at 4Q17. (1) Eritrea; (2) Djibouti; (3) Ethiopia; (4) South Sudan; (5) Uganda; (6) Kenya; (7) Rwanda; (8) Burundi; (9) Tanzania. SOURCE: OVUM FORECASTER

East Africa will have 186m mobile broadband connections by 2022, according to Ovum. 

In a report published in mid-May, the analyst said mobile data will be the key growth driver for the East African telecoms market in the next five years to 2022.

The forecast for mobile broadband (MBB) in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda is 112m subscriptions at end-2022, while the forecast for MBB in all nine East Africa countries is 186m subscriptions at end-2022.