By PATRICK BEJA
MOMBASA; KENYA: Thousands of Coast residents could have offices in the comfort of their homes by the end of this year thanks to revolution in technology.
This follows the move by Jamii Telecommunications Limited (JTL) to connect about 5,000 homes in Mombasa City to high speed Internet.
The firm’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Joshua Chepkwony said the introduction of the high speed Fiber-to-The Homes (FTTH) or Faiba project was intended to connect businesses globally and boost their online presence. So far the Sh100 million project has seen homes connected in Nyali, Tudor, Kizingo, Shanzu and Mtwapa.
The next phase of the project would link the Central Business District, Mombasa Old Town, Changamwe, Kilifi, Malindi, Ukunda towns.
“The future looks bright as homes will be fully online and people will be able to work at home. We can set up offices in homes using Internet platforms,” he said.
The fibre infrastructure will enable people in Mombasa do business in a competitive manner globally,” Chepkwony explained. He urged the Government to safeguard the Internet infrastructure in the country by coming up with stringent rules to curb vandalism.
“The service should be classified as a utility just like electricity because today we cannot do business well without connectivity,” he said.
Mr Chepkwony spoke during the Faiba launch for Mombasa County held at the Serena Beach Hotel. Lands Permanent Secretary Dorothy Angote, Former Information minister Samuel Poghisio and Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK) chairman Mr Ben Kituku graced the function.
Mr Kituku said in future, more money would come from ICT and therefore there was need to invest in innovation.
The CCK boss also took issue with those hoarding frequencies saying they would soon be repossessed. “CCK is going to remove those frequencies even if they are being hidden in the bedrooms,” Kituku warned.
Mr Poghisio said connection of the 5000 homes was key to boost business in Kenya’s holiday city and challenged residents to embrace the technology. Undersea fibre optic cables landed in Mombasa several years back but the county and adjacent counties had been left out in connectivity.
