Broadband connectivity is a necessary service

required not only in urban areas but more so in rural areas

where most of the basic services are inadequate or do not exist

at all. Broadband services can enable many services to be

offered through information and communication technologies

(ICTs) to the extent that rural people can get a chance to enjoy

quality communication and other services as in urban areas

and be part of the socio-economic development of a given

community. Currently, there is a number of technologies and

initiatives to connect rural and urban-underserved areas at a

reasonable cost but most of the rural users are yet to be

connected. This paper gives an overview and a discussion on

technologies, broadband connectivity models, infrastructure

and policy readiness, and initiatives towards achieving

connectivity and bridging the digital divide. The context of this

paper is rural areas in Tanzania.