Telecommunications Network
Addis Ababa and Ethiopia are positioning themselves in the 1990's to be an integral part of the global village of the 21st century. As a city where only 63% of households have radios, 18% televisions and 16% telephones, Addis Ababa is surprisingly ambitious in its attitude towards communications improvements (Tarver 195).
In January of 1997, the Ethiopian Telecommunications Authority began offering internet service in Ethiopic to meet the existing demands of Ethiopia's 5000 PC customers (Addis Tribune 3/20/97). The web is already being used in Ethiopia for both International and Intranational communications. The Addis Tribune Homepage provides weekly news updates in English from the capital, and as of 1997, web access is available in Amharic, Geez, Guragagina, Omorogina, and Timirigina at the Home Page of Ethiopian
Government to Invest in Wireless Network
Though expansion of the wired communications network will offer more residents immediate telephone access, the ETA is focusing its efforts on wireless communications. The government has projects in both mobile and satellite communications and hopes residents will be able to make a leap from no telecommunications to wireless telecommunications ("INTERVIEW: With Dr. Hussein", Addis Tribune 12/96).
Because the cost of owning personal computers is still prohibitive to the vast majority of Ethiopians, it is likely internet and communications centers funded by the government will spring up in schools and Universities across Addis Ababa and Ethiopia, providing web access.
