Local and foreign investors should not miss diverse opportunities available in ever expanding communication sector and others, it has been said. Deputy Minister for Communication, Science and Technology .

Mr. Januari Makamba told journalists during the Capacity Africa 2013 conference in Dar es Salaam on Friday that investors should seriously consider Tanzania as their best destination.

"The business environment is good and we are improving it further," he said. Giving an example, he said that the government has invested a lot in constructing the national fibre optic cable network or the National ICT Broadband Backbone (NICTBB) as a way of improving communication sector which is now proving to be of great benefit for Tanzania and neighbouring countries.

"The national fibre optic cable network has proved to be of advantage to Tanzania and neighbouring countries," he said. He called more companies in and outside the country to join the network and expand business and communication base in Africa and achieve development objective.

TTCL manages and operates the NICTBB on behalf of the government of Tanzania through the Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology. The infrastructure seeks to enhance usage of ICT applications for sustainable social-economic development, including implementation of e-government, e-learning, e-health, and e-commerce.

Also TTCL seeks to provide access to international submarine fibre optic cables (EASSY and SEACOM) at their landing point in Dar es Salaam to all landlocked neighbouring countries for international connectivity. Some neighbouring countries like Rwanda are connected to the network while more such as Uganda and Mozambique are in talks with Tanzania to see how they can be connected.

Once completed, the optical network will have a length of more than 10,000 kilometres. The TTCL Chief Executive Officer, Dr Kamugisha Kazaura said the conference provided his company of a chance to expand business partners and get new experiences. "We have entered into agreements with several companies who are interested in our services especially the optic fibre network," he said.

The Chief Executive Officer of an international company, LIQUID TELECOM with its headquarters in Mauritius, Mr Hans Haerdtle said his company has benefited from the conference.

"We have learnt a lot from other companies like TTCL," he said. He said that his company want to expand in East, Central and Southern Africa. The meeting that ended yesterday was attended by 460 communication companies.