Evotel has begun to bring Fibre to Kathu
Fibre Network Operator (FNO), Evotel stands for ‘Fibre for Everyone’ and true to its slogan is now in Kathu to install its fast and reliable fibre network to better the lives of residents and give them access to the latest technology and superfast broadband internet.
The company started the installation of its fibre network on the 14th July 2021 after a demonstration for the municipality to illustrate what the trenching will entail as Evotel’s planned rollout targets roughly 6100. Municipal representatives attended the demonstration so that they could see the micro-trenching process and were happy to see it in action.
“Kathu residents will benefit from what fibre offers by enjoying easier connection with family and friends across the globe. They will have uninterrupted access to the latest multimedia content available through services such as Netflix to stream series’ and movies without the dreaded buffering of the past. Gamers will have a much richer online gaming experience and all online banking and shopping services will be faster. In short, residents will have an improved online experience,” Bekker says.
The installation is a trenched solution, however not a traditional deep trenched solution, but a micro-trenching installation, and won’t be making use of existing municipal infrastructure, like aerial installations, where fibre cables strung between lampposts.
Free fibre for schools
Further to Evotel’s promise of providing uncompromised services to its customers and communities, the company, through its Schools Programme will also provide free fibre connections to all the schools in Kathu that falls under its network.
“The main focus here is to provide learners with the ability to connect to the internet, giving them access to much-needed resources to get the best education possible. It is about uplifting the youth and offering more cost effective access to smart-schooling, which has become prevalent as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown regulations. The youth are after all our future leaders, so we have to provide them with the best educational experience available,” Bekker says.
The cost of fibre access for schools would normally be in the region of R2 100 once-off and then approximately R2 000 per month for the running and leasing of the fibre line. Evotel is therefore, through its schools project, saving schools R24 000 per year which can be used otherwise. “We are sponsoring this initiative to ensure the success of our youth’s education and create a more advanced schooling environment where tablets and PCs can be implemented for learning,” Bekker adds.
Local employment
The company has, as with all its installations in other areas, committed to employ at least 30% local contractors to assist with the setting up of its network. Evotel has hired KC Pinnacle to head the deployment of the network in Kathu.
“Though this installation project is only a short-term project, we are also training the local contractors to maintain our fibre infrastructure in the future, providing a more long-term solution for employment in Kathu and addressing unemployment,” notes Bekker. Evotel cares for the communities it services and always does its best to give back and uplift these communities, which also goes for Kathu.
https://evotel.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/21-August-2021-Kathu-Gazette.pdf
