Residents in South Sudan’s Kajo-Keji County of Central Equatoria State have expressed happiness over the resumption of MTN telecommunication services in the area. 

MTN network operator switched off its network in Kajo-Keji County at the peak of the 2016 conflict.

Due to a lack of network in the area, several residents had been forced to use Ugandan telecommunication networks and climb on top of Mere Mountain to access the MTN network from Uganda for communication.

Residents in the area said the challenge of traveling uphill for communication has come to an end after MTN-South Sudan switched on its network last week.

Sabri Charles, a resident in Kajo-Keji town told Radio Tamazuj during the week that he can communicate to his relatives in Juba, Yei, and Uganda after being disconnected from each other for the past four years.

“It has now reduced the movement of people uphill for communication and now the network is opened and everybody is happy. Most importantly we are connected to our families in Uganda, South Sudan, and others in the diaspora,” he said.

Another resident who identified himself only as Geoffry could not hide his happiness over the resumption of the mobile network and called on the management of MTN to ensure that all the far rural Payams of the County are connected to the communication network.

“I am very excited and happy to have our network back in the area. The people who are visually and physically disabled got a big challenge because they could not climb uphill to communicate with their relatives. We need MTN to ensure that the network coverage connects all the Payams of the County,” said Geoffry.

“They have re-opened for us the network and can now communicate and what we want from MTN is to send us Simcards and air time for the MTN South Sudan network,” Rose Modong of Wudu town appealed.

Chaplain Anyik a trader selling air time in Kajo-Keji Town said local businesses have started booming in the area due to the resumption of the mobile network.

“I have seen business is improving and am happy because I can sell MTN air time for over 10,000 SSP per day and people are happy and many are asking for new Simcard lines,” he added.

 Earlier, Khamis Daniel, the MTN marketing coordinator told early told Radio Tamazuj in Yei that MTN is working hard to restore all its network towers in Yei, Tore, Lasu, Mugwo, Kajo-Keji, Panyume, Morobo, and Kaya towns to ease communications in the area.