Providing phones for new schools will be a high priority for Telkom.
In line with the RDP, the aim is to provide phones to all existing schools within two years, says Telkom managing director Danie du Toit.
Telkom will install phones in 16 000 schools and 1 500 clinics in the next five years. Schools and clinics are community gathering points, so Telkom will provide at least one basic phone and two pay phones for each school; each clinic will get at least one phone and one pay phone for the public.
The company plans to provide at least one pay phone for every 1 000 people within the next five years.
R311-million was spent on the extension of the telephone network for the election. Much of this has been left in place to augment services in the rural areas.