Poor broadband connectivity hurts businesses

SALEH AL SHAIBANY -

saleh_shaibani@yahoo.com -

Business people in Oman’s smaller towns say poor broadband hurts their trades due to poor connectivity. It is also making it more difficult to attract skilled people to live and work in rural towns.

Broadband connectivity in the capital Muscat has a very wide range as well as a much bigger spectrum in terms of speed and bandwidth.

However, but just two hundred kilometres away from Muscat, the speed is severely cut down and so is the bandwidth as the coverage becomes weaker with distances. In towns like in the eastern governorates or in the central Oman, businessmen there have what telecommunications experts call a “wavelength black hole” as broadband deteriorates in range and transmission’s strength.

It is particularly hitting small traders who are trying to make ends meet. Faxes are not used anymore and most of the stock orders are now placed using the online route. Restaurants and fast food orders also are beginning to use the Internet for their orders from customers who require the online services. But the hotel and travel industry suffer most.

Travel bookings essentially need the online service to make reservations or secure an airline ticket.

Tourism businesses also take a severe knock. These services are just too slow in the rural areas. Ironically, the rural areas offer attractive holidays and sight-seeing.

It is defeating the purpose and the drive of the government for businesses to reach out even in the remote areas of the country. Business people must be encouraged to stay in their home towns to thrive and not pack up their bags to come to the city just because they need a faster online service.

Technological savvy youngsters rely on the Internet. They can establish a business anyway in the country. For them, the online business cuts down the distances as well as costs. For example, a travel agent in Muscat needs to pay the rent between RO 1,000 to RO 1,500 a month for a medium sized outlet. In the smaller towns, such outlet typically costs only RO 250 a month.

Two businessmen in either side of the country would get the same benefits in terms of operation but the one operating in the rural area pays less in rental costs.

So it makes sense to do business in smaller towns, not only to provide a service there but to keep people in their home towns.

At the same time, Internet costs are the same but traders in the rural towns get a bad bargain paying the same tariffs as in Muscat but getting a slow service. In this light, telecommunication providers need to upgrade their systems to serve equally to all the cross sections of their customers to be fair in their business.

Small businesses are competing in the same way like big trading houses. In the end, they need to make it count. One may wonder why foreign investors are reluctant to establish big businesses in Oman’s rural areas. International companies depend on excellent broadband connectivity to speed up their businesses.

If local people struggle, how can the country market its rural towns to international investors? There are no more corner shops in the Sultanate even in rural areas. The old souqs are disappearing very fast and in theory, they should be replaced with businesses that are well equipped technologically.

Excellent connectivity in small towns also creates jobs for the residents. It would keep them employed in their own home towns.

Hard questions must be asked. How can the cities like Muscat, Salalah and Suhar enjoy a good bandwidth with high speed but the rest of the country experiences degradation of connectivity? We live in a golden age of broadband and the experience must be expanded nationwide. After Muscat, the Batinah Governorate has the biggest population in Oman.

Yes, this governorate, with so much business potential, suffers the wavelength black holes. It is important in such areas the technological gap is bridged to boost business prospects.