Cable & Wireless Seychelles is working with concerned authorities to see how best to make available affordable internet packages to meet the needs of its clients especially the most vulnerable ones.
The chief executive of Cable & Wireless Seychelles (CWS), Georges D’Offay, made the statement recently during a press conference held at the Exile Club during which he shared the company’s current activities and projects being undertaken this year.
“With the coming in of the second internet cable in the country, the company is working with the authorities to explore the different possibilities on how together we can offer our clients more GB and also how best we can make available affordable internet packages for them especially our most vulnerable clients who are finding the service too expensive for them,” said Mr D’Offay.
He went on to note that their clients remain at the centre of the company’s development.
Another project he spoke about was the Fibre to the Home (FTTH) project aimed at improving television broadcast and internet connectivity.
The two services were being downloaded via copper wire which slowed down the process.
Through the fibre optic, the TV transmission and internet connectivity are much faster and without interruptions.
He stated that the change from copper wire to fibre optic has been completed 100% on Praslin and La Digue and people can register for the two services.
On Mahé, he said the project is 75% completed and the 25% remaining to be completed is for the south of Mahé only and is expected to be completed by the end of September 2022.
Although the company has a good mobile system, drop calls are the most common complaints from clients. It has embarked on a project to upgrade its mobile coverage whereby at the end of August 2022, clients around the country will not experience drop calls on their mobile phones.
In the meantime Mr D’Offay is calling on clients who are experiencing drop calls to come by their offices to rectify the problem.
Mr D’Offay added that apart from rectifying the drop call problem, CWS has started to put up mobile antennas at different locations for better mobile coverage namely in the Anse Etoile and Glacis districts which will be commissioned soon.
Another one is to be mounted at Perseverance by the middle of June 2022.
He said that other antennas will be mounted in other areas across the country where mobile receptions are poor.
As for the 5G project for high speed internet, Mr D’Offay stated that by end of September, the company will add 10 additional 5G towers, at a cost of R22 to R23 million increasing the number to 20 5G towers in the country.
The billing system is also among complaints brought forward by customers which they say is complicated and Mr D’Offay said CWS is working to put in place a new billing system in the next 12 months or so which will improve the way bills are paid.
“To bring its services closer to the community, CWS has set up four new customer service centres on Mahé – at Grand Anse, Ile Perseverance, Dockland and at the STC Hyper Market – to facilitate clients to pay their bills and make use of other services on offer. Other services centres will soon be set up for customers in other areas of Mahé, Praslin and La Digue,” Mr D’Offay stated.
To offer a better customer service experience with regard to repairing faults and setting up wiring for TV and internet services, Mr D’Offay said these will be done on the same day of registration.
He noted that this customer service experience will start in two months’ time after the company has completed an exercise to repair faults and do wiring for 2000 clients already on the waiting list.
Mr D’Offay mentioned that CWS will continue to work closely with the Ministry of Education to offer WIFI services in schools still not benefiting from the service. This is expected to better improve their education and learning experience.
A professional data centre for clients to store their information is yet another project in the making for the company and it is expected to be completed by the end of December 2022.
During the 2008 economic crisis, CWS opted to enter in the business of real estate in order to accumulate rupees in the bank but it was not able to transfer to its overseas’ main parent company.
Mr D’Offay explained that due to the high costs of maintenance of the five properties acquired on Mahé, it has been decided as per CWS’ revamped strategy, to sell off those properties and to concentrate only in the telecom business as per the company’s mandate.
He noted that two of these properties on Praslin will be kept for the time to house CWS staff but will also be sold in future.
As CWS has been in existence for 130 years, with officers scattered all across the three main islands, Mr D’Offay stated that now is the time for the company to have a proper headquarters and that will be built as from 2023 around the premises located along Francis Rachel Street. It will be named Cable and Wireless headquarters.
Mr D’Offay stated that in all, to offer a better customer experience, its staff has to be happy, motivated and well trained to offer the required services to customers.
He added that apart from the many things done to motivate the staff, the company will be spending a lot of money on capacity building to groom them for future positions.
With regard to paying dividends, Mr D’Offay said the company has paid off all its shareholders in 2021 among whom the Seychelles Pension Fund (SPF). He proudly mentioned that CWS is a profitable company and the decision by SPF to invest in it was a very wise one.
Mr D’Offay added that as the financial transactions of the company has been audited, clients and any other persons who wish to see financial report can do so at the Office of the Registrar.
Source: Seychelles Nation
