Stay connected and in contact

Telkom's Lukasrand Tower, Pretoria. Photo courtesy anjin-san

Semi-private telecommunications company Telkom and a second operator, Neotel, dominate fixed-line telephone services in South Africa. Telkom is a listed company in which the government is the largest shareholder.

Landline numbers in South Africa are listed in Telkom’s phone directories. Print versions are widely available at airports, hotels, offices, homes and public phone booths. Online versions of the white pages (residential phone book) and yellow pages (for businesses, services and products) are available at phonebook.yellowpages.co.za and www.yellowpages.co.za respectively.

Telkom’s telephonic directories:

Dialing codes

The international dialling code for South Africa is +27. The metropolitan municipalities of the City of Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni (East Rand)use the 011 code, while the City of Tshwane (Greater Pretoria) and its surrounding towns can be reached by using the 012 prefix. For other codes, consult Telkom’s list of dialling codes in South Africa.

If you are calling from outside South Africa, leave out the first zero of the code when dialling a landline and also drop the zero from the beginning of a cellular/mobile number.

Time difference

South African Standard Time, the time zone used by the whole country, is two hours ahead of co-ordinated universal time (UTC/GMT +2). Daylight saving time is not observed. To find out the local time, dial 1026 if you are in the country, or visit www.worldtimeserver.com.

Public phones

Public phones. Photo courtesy Steve crane

Public phones use coins or a prepaid, fixed-value microchip card as methods of payment. They can be found at various sites, including malls, filling stations and airports. These phone booths are generally blue (coin-operated phones) or green (card-operated phones). Phone cards and WorldCall cards, prepaid cards that allow you to call home, can be purchased at most retail stores, petrol stations, post offices and airports.

Mobile/cellular telephones

Telecommunications is one of the fastest growing sectors of South Africa’s economy, reflected in the rapid growth of mobile phones – called cellular phones or cellphones – in the country. The country has three established cellular network operators, Vodacom, MTN, and Cell C and its partner Virgin Mobile. Telkom became the fourth operator in October 2010, launching its 8ta service.

Check the compatibility of international handsets in South Africa. One option is to organise roaming facilities in your own country with your service provider.  The South African government has introduced laws that require all contract, prepaid and top-up customers to register their voice and data SIM cards. This means it is not possible to obtain a telephone or number without completing the necessary documentation. Tourists looking to use a phone linked to local service providers can rent one from MTN or Vodacom, which have kiosks at OR Tambo International Airport. The service providers have detailed websites where you can conduct research.

Internet

Wider access to broadband, ADSL and 3G access has boosted internet connectivity in South Africa. Bandwidth, however, remains relatively limited and expensive by international standards. Cellular network operators offer dedicated modem and data contract packages. Data packages are usually available, with top-up options utilising pay-as-you-go airtime. Some restaurants and guest houses are wireless “hotspots” where bandwidth can be obtained for free if you have a modem. Internet cafés can be located even in small towns.

Post office and postal services

The South African Post Office offers letter and parcel services as well as secure-mail, freight and courier services. PostNet is South Africa’s largest privately owned counter network in the document and parcel industry. There are more than 200 owner-managed retail stores countrywide attending to the “walk-in” needs of customers; PostNet branches offer postal, copying, printing and faxing services, as well as computer and internet access.

Languages

The “rainbow nation” of South Africa has 11 official languages – Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, and Xitsonga.

English is the country’s lingua franca and most people in Gauteng speak it, but it ranks joint fifth out of 11 as a home language. South Africa’s linguistic diversity means that what is spoken is often a mix of aspects of the different languages. The most spoken languages in Gauteng are isiZulu, Afrikaans, English and Sesotho.