Google launches cache link in Tanzania

The Google signage is seen at the company's offices in New York January 8, 2013. Photo: Reuters/Andrew Kelly  

Written by ALVAR MWAKYUSA

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Minister for Communications, Science and Technology, Prof Makame Mbarawa

INTERNET users in Tanzania will now enjoy affordable and faster surfing services, thanks to the launch of the Google Global cache link to the Tanzania Internet Exchange (TIX), that will ensure local traffic is sourced locally.

At the launch of the service in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday, the Minister for Communications, Science and Technology, Prof Makame Mbarawa, was optimistic that the new product will attract more internet users.

“At present, about 11.6 million Tanzanians are using internet services but since the new link provides affordable and faster connections, we hope the number will grow to 15 million people by next year,” Prof Mbarawa stated.

He went on to boost that the ICT Data Centre whose construction is being finalised will be the largest in East Africa. “We expect the centre to be completed by August, this year and it will act as an intermediary between the Google data centre and internet service providers. Our aim is to make Tanzania an ICT hub in the region,” Prof Mbarawa bragged.

The minister, however, challenged the host of the link, the Tanzania Internet Service Providers Association (TISPA) to woo more content distribution providers like Amazon and the likes.

“By hosting such links locally it becomes easier and cheaper to connect to the internet. In the absence of such links, connections are routed to America and Europe and eventually make the service expensive and slow,” he noted.

Prof Mbarawa said the government was committed to expand internet services to majority of Tanzanians to enable services such as e-government, e-education and e-health, among others.

“As you are all aware the government is undertaking massive construction of ICT infrastructure in a bid to expand the service and enable more people to access it,” the minister noted.

The Chairman of TISPA, Mr Vinay Choudary, said the association is working around the clock to attract more content providers to spread out the spectrum of services to users.

“TISPA was formed four years ago and our objective is adding more value to internet services that are offered in the market,” Mr Choudary stated.

In an interview with the ‘Daily News’ on the sidelines of the launching ceremony, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tanzania Telecommunications Company Limited (TTCL), Dr Kamugisha Kazaura, said the new arrangement would enable the country to make effective use of international bandwidth.