MALAWI MPS CALL FOR IMPROVED MOBILE NETWORK COVERAGE

LILONGWE - Members of Parliament have deplored the intermittent mobile network coverage in some areas of the country and have since appealed for its improvement.

The members made the remarks during question time in Parliament on Tuesday.

Member for Mchinji South, Divelias Zaipa, asked for the erection of Telecom Networks (TNM) and Airtel towers in his area to ease communication barriers.

Dedza West parliamentarian, Philipo Chinkhondo, also asked government to engage the network providers on roaming charges, especially around the border areas which he said was costing his constituents more than what others are paying for the same services.

Chinkhondo said in these areas, some mobile phone users use the Mozambican network which attracts roaming charges, especially for Airtel subscribers.

In response, Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Nicholas Dausi, told the parliamentarians that government had already engaged the mobile network providers on the same and that it was looking forward to having the challenges sorted out.

“My ministry has been engaging the network providers and we will ensure that such issues are handled,” said Dausi.

Malawi has two prominent mobile network providers in Telekom Networks Malawi and Airtel. Malawi Parliament is meeting for the 47th session in Lilongwe which is scheduled to run for six weeks.