Namibian telecommunications company DemshiTelco has launched its Botswana expansion by signing infrastructure-sharing agreements with Paratus Botswana and Abaricom Botswana, paving the way for fibre broadband services to more than 40,000 homes in Francistown.
The agreements, signed in Gaborone, allow the two internet service providers to access DemshiTelco’s open access fibre network to deliver broadband services to residential and business customers.
DemshiTelco Managing Director Werner Shilunga said Francistown was selected as the company’s first rollout location as it begins building its Botswana footprint.
“Francistown has over 40,000 homes and DemshiTelco intends to roll out fibre across the entire city,” Shilunga said.
He said the company’s network is already operational and ready to connect customers, while recruitment is underway to establish a local team to support the expansion.
“DemshiTelco’s network went live and is ready to connect homes. We are busy putting a team together that will drive the growth of DemshiTelco in Botswana,” he said.
The company has also secured wayleave approvals in Maun, Tlokweng and Phakalane, positioning it for further expansion across Botswana.
Shilunga said negotiations with additional internet service providers were progressing, with further Master Service Agreements expected to be concluded in the coming weeks.
“We are in advanced talks with other ISPs in Botswana and are hopeful that in the coming weeks we will finalise MSAs with one or two more ISPs,” he said.
The Botswana rollout forms part of DemshiTelco’s broader regional growth strategy. The company plans to invest between N$1.5 billion and N$2 billion in the first phase of its expansion, targeting operations in five to seven Southern African countries by 2030.
“Our regional expansion will see DemshiTelco operate in at least five to seven Southern African countries by 2030,” Shilunga said.
The regional strategy includes expansion into Tanzania, Zambia, Angola, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, targeting a combined market of more than 100 million people.
Shilunga said partnerships between infrastructure owners and internet service providers would accelerate broadband connectivity across the region while enabling Namibian companies to become pan-African businesses.
“This is the type of collaboration that will ensure Namibia builds Pan-African companies. We hope financial institutions will follow suit to support Namibian companies to expand and scale across Africa,” he said.
