The City of Cape Town has formally unveiled three new free Wi-Fi zones to supplement 41 free zones found within public libraries.
The City of Cape Town has unveiled three new free Wi-Fi zones within its Central Business District, from which citizens will benefit from a capped amount of data.
The three new Wi-Fi zones, which can be found at the Gallows Hill Traffic Department, the City Hall, and the Civic Center, join over 41 extant free Wi-Fi zones which can be found in public libraries. Further, the project supplements free internet access available through the SmartCape facility.
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The City of Cape Town previously connected 19 clinics to the internet through the provision of a free Wi-Fi plan as part of the Digital Inclusion Project.
Around 60 more free Wi-Fi zones are planned for the City’s next financial year, and will be rolled out by June of 2017.
The City of Cape Town partnered with Always On for the initiative, where the latter will manage the connections and pay for the bandwidth.
The move comes as a result of the City attempting to conquer the Digital Divide – the theoretical gap that separates high and low LSMs from quality internet connections.
The model rivals that of the City of Tshwane, which offers a capped Wi-Fi allowance to its residents. Residents who timeously pay their rates are entitled to a further allowance of data.
The City of Tshwane partnered with Alan Knott-Craig Junior’s Project Isizwe for its undertaking.
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What are your thoughts on the City of Cape Town’s introduction of three new free Wi-Fi zones? Which areas should the City target next? Be sure to let us know your opinion in the comments below!
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