On September 20, 2021, the President of Zimbabwe launched the third phase of the country’s mobile broadband project in Harare. The project is a collaboration between China’s Huawei and NetOne, Zimbabwe’s largest network operator.

Develop the digital economy

According to the project plan, 345 base stations will be built in remote areas of rural Zimbabwe to enable more people to use mobile Internet services. After the project is completed, NetOne's national network coverage in Zimbabwe will increase from the current 75% to 85%. The project will also optimize and upgrade some existing base stations, expand 4G network coverage and introduce 5G technology.

President Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe stated that the establishment of a vibrant digital economy is an important part of the Zimbabwe government’s development strategy. He expressed gratitude to Huawei and NetOne for their efforts to improve mobile Internet services in remote rural areas, and hoped that more Chinese companies would invest in the information and communication technology industry in Zimbabwe and contribute to the country's digital economy.

Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Guo Shaochun said in a video speech that China fully supports the development of Zimbabwe's information and communication technology industry. As an important partner of the Belt and Road Initiative, China will continue to deepen cooperation with Zimbabwe in various fields.

Keywords: One Belt One Road, overseas projects, engineering news

The project is one of the key projects of the Belt and Road cooperation between China and Zimbabwe. The first and second phases were launched in 2011 and 2014, respectively. According to reports, Huawei has participated in this project throughout the entire process. The first two phases have cumulatively added more than 2,600 2G, 3G and 4G base stations to Zimbabwe. Editor/Tian Zengpeng