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Patrick Chitumba [email protected]

THE stage is set for the official commissioning of the rail fibre optic project set to be presided over by President Mnangagwa in Somabhula this morning.

It is all systems go for the official opening of the US$18 million project which has seen contractors laying the fibre optic cables along the railway line for a distance of 1 500 kilometres.

The project which is set to put Zimbabwe on the map in terms of internet connectivity has seen a continental telecom infrastructure provider, Bandwidth and Cloud Services (BCS) Group laying cables from Beitbridge past Rutenga via Somabhula, Bulawayo, and Hwange right through to Victoria Falls along the railway line in its initial stage.

The second phase saw the network extending from Somabhula via Gweru to Harare right through to Mutare as well as Bulawayo to Plumtree thereby completing the 1 500 kilometre distance with plans now in place to link the country to the rest of the region.

Contractors have set up an Information computer technology laboratory at Somabhula Secondary School which is set for commissioning alongside the national project.

The project which will see the country’s rural communities getting access to internet services, dovetails with the country’s inclusive development agenda.