- The Gauteng Department of eGovernment is rolling out free WiFi to several Johannesburg hostels including Diepkloof, Alexandra, Orlando West, and others.
- The initiative connects these hostels to the Gauteng Provincial Network, aiming to provide free internet for education, employment, entrepreneurship, entertainment, and government services
- Part of the Department of eGovernment’s R1.5 billion budget is for expanding free public WiFi across the province.
The Gauteng Department of eGovernment, responsible for the province’s digital infrastructure, has announced that it will be rolling out free WiFi to hostels in the City of Johannesburg.
These public centres, which often house poor and working class people, will now be connected to the Gauteng Provincial Network (GPN). Hostels to be connected include Diepkloof, Mzimhlophe, Jabulani, Madala Hostel, Helen Joseph, Dobsenville, George Goge, Nobuhle, Denver, Nancefield, Alexandra, Dube, Mapetla and Orlando West, amongst others.
Many of these facilities continue to be kept in extremely poor conditions, and are in desperate need for upgrades and maintenance.
“Through this initiative, we are bringing digital access closer to communities that were previously underserved” said MEC for eGovernment Bonginkosi Dhlamini.
The department says it had a meeting with leaders from various hostels across the city on 5th November to discuss the planned roll-out. It says that rolling out free connectivity to these hostels will allow the people who live in the hostels to access the internet, including entertainment, entrepreneurship, education and employment opportunities and also access government services, without charge.
“We kindly request that the leadership welcome and accept this new technology that will benefit our hostels. Kindly use this WIFI for accessing job opportunities as well as government services,” added the MEC.
The rollout will begin in November and be carried throughout the month into the end of December 2025.
These hotspots join other already connected to the GPN, which also include a number of public transport Rea Vaya bus stations across Johannesburg.
Gauteng has been rolling out free WiFi hotspots to underserved areas and townships across the province in an effort towards its “Smart city region” plan. This year eGovernment was allocated a R1.5 billion budget to provide free public WiFi hotspots to residents.
“While we recognize the challenges posed by our current economic conditions, this budget is a positive step in the right direction. It will help us strengthen the Gauteng Provincial Network (GPN) and enhance our province’s technological infrastructure,” said the MEC in June.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Luis Monzon
Dieser Artikel ist neu veröffentlicht von / This article is republished from: hypertext, 06.11.2025
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