Tanzanians without access to electricity need to worry no more about charging their phones, following the launch of solar and bicycle-powered mobile phone chargers.

The chargers, dubbed ReadySet mobile chargers, were launched on Thursday by Vodacom Tanzania in partnership with Fenix International and are set to provide a much-needed solution for the millions of off-grid mobile customers who travel miles to access electricity.

Vodacom Tanzania Managing Director, Rene Meza, described this development as a great breakthrough in mobile phone use across the country, for it shall keep mobile subscribers and customers in touch throughout. "There are millions of Tanzanians who do not have access to electricity, most of whom live in rural areas. With the introduction of the ReadySet mobile chargers, they are set to charge their mobile phones and keep in touch with their loved ones," says Meza.

He added that: "We are proud of our partnership with Fenix International for it will go a long way towards addressing communication problems experienced in this country." According to Fenix International Business Development Manager, Peter Glenn, approximately 600 million mobile phone users living 'off-grid' spend 16tri/- a year travelling to a place where they can charge the device or power their handsets with car batteries.