Egypt’s Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology is considering reducing tariffs for local and international calls before October, according to Minister Ahmed Nazif.
“The ministry is also considering providing internet services free of charge,” he said, cited by the Egyptian Gazette on Friday.
The figure for Egyptian citizens with telephone lines recently increased to 9.5 percent, the minister pointed out, indicating that the reason for the increase was the digital networks now used in all telephone exchanges.
Nazeef was speaking on Thursday at the opening ceremony of Al Harameen Telephone Exchange in Alexandria, established with the assistance of the US Aid for International Development (USAID)-funded Egyptian-American Cooperation Project.
Concerning future projects in this area, the minister said that many American communication companies would soon enter the Egyptian market for the first time, contributing to further improvements in Egypt's telephone and communication services.
Egypt currently is linked to 234 other countries through international communication channels, serving more than six million local subscribers, said the minister.
During his visit to Alexandria, Nazeef also witnessed the opening of an information and internet center, which is expected to provide internet and computer training for more than 150,000 people, said the paper – Albawaba.com
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