Home internet: Yas Tanzania targets 100,000 households over the next three years
June 25th 2026
In the Tanzanian mobile internet market, Yas ranks second behind Vodacom and ahead of Airtel. Competition is fiercer in the fixed internet segment.
Telecom operator Yas Tanzania aims to connect 100,000 fiber optic internet subscribers in Zanzibar over the next three years. The company intends to connect households and businesses to meet the growing demand for high-speed internet.
Axian Telecom’s Tanzanian subsidiary announced on Tuesday, June 23, the signing of an agreement with the Zanzibar Communications Corporation (ZICTIA) and the Zanzibari government. The operator has committed to investing 300 billion Tanzanian shillings (approximately US$114.5 million) over 20 years to expand fiber optic infrastructure across the archipelago’s two main islands, Unguja and Pemba.
This investment comes at a time of digital transformation marked by a growing demand for high-speed connectivity. Fiber optics is increasingly becoming a key infrastructure to meet the needs for bandwidth, connection stability, and the processing capacity of intensive digital uses.
For example, at home, fiber optics enables various bandwidth-intensive applications such as teleworking via video conferencing, streaming high-definition or 4K content, and gaming. It also facilitates the simultaneous use of multiple connected devices (Internet of Things), interactive online courses, and the transfer of large files.
If it achieves its objectives by meeting demand, the operator Yas can strengthen its position in Tanzania’s highly competitive fixed internet market. According to the Tanzanian Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), the company had only 9,804 subscribers in this segment at the end of March 2026, ranking 7th in market share, behind Halotel, Wananchi, Savana Fibre, TTCL, Vodacom, and Airtel. The latter two, market leaders, had 213,010 and 114,109 subscribers respectively.
However, it should be noted that even if the operator deploys its fiber network in Zanzibar, customer adoption will depend on several factors, including cost. According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), spending on 5 GB of fixed internet in Tanzania represented 28% of gross national income (GNI) per capita in 2025, well above the 2% affordability threshold set by the organization.
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