ICT FORUM DISCUSSES NEED TO IMPROVE IMPLEMENTATION OF ICT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRETORIA 001976 SIPDIS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED DEPT FOR EEB/CIP/BLAKEMAN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETRD EIND EINV EINT ECIP SF SUBJECT: ICT FORUM DISCUSSES NEED TO IMPROVE IMPLEMENTATION OF ICT POLICIES AND STREAMLINE REGULATIONS REF: PRETORIA 271 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) sponsored a forum on ICT Developments and Regulations on September 4. The forum included members of South Africa's Presidential International Advisory Council on Information Society and Development, who promoted increasing ICT access in South African schools. Forum participants criticized the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) for its onerous licensing processes. Speakers also called for a campaign to educate political leaders who would impact future ICT policy development and implementation. New developments in the ICT sector including the introduction of Neotel, SEACOM undersea fiber-optic cable, and new Value Added Network Services (VANS) networks will serve to drive down ICT costs for South African consumers in the coming months. End Summary. ¶2. (U) SACCI sponsored a forum on ICT Developments and Regulations at Microsoft South Africa headquarters on September 4. Embassy ICT officer attended the forum and had the opportunity to speak with industry and consumer group representatives. ¶3. (U) Forum Participants included members of the Presidential International Advisory Council on Information Society and Development, which will meet September 6-7 to advise President Mbeki on leveraging ICT to advance South African development. Advisory council members include representatives from international ICT companies. Microsoft Regional Technology Officer Michael Thatcher said the advisory council would urge President Mbeki to increase efforts to help schools utilize technology. It would also urge South Africa to tighten intellectual property rights (IPR) so entrepreneurs could make a living from their inventions. -------------- IMPLEMENTATION A ROADBLOCK -------------- ¶4. (U) Thatcher identified deficiencies in policy implementation as a roadblock to improvements in the South African ICT sector. He said "even when policies were good, their implementation was erratic." He noted that the South African Government (SAG) has a commendable policy to provide schools with a fifty-percent discounted internet connectivity rate. However, Thatcher highlighted that implementation roadblocks have made it difficult for most schools to access this discounted rate. The policy has not been well-enforced and fewer than ten percent of schools could access the discounted rate. Thatcher also cited the execution and implementation of IPR policies as critical to growth in the sector. He explained that the Patent Office would need resources to transfer its patents database online. -------------- INDUSTRY CRITICAL OF ICASA -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Communications Users' Association of South Africa (CUASA) Representative Roy Webber criticized ICASA for slowing the pace of ICT liberalization and competition. Webber said South Africa needed a strong, capable, independent, effective, well-funded and communicative telecoms regulator; but asserted that ICASA was neither independent nor communicative. Webber slammed ICASA for its "out-of-date" website and lack of oversight on ICT billing. According to Webber, every operator should be forced to offer per-second billing and ICASA should work to reduce interconnection fees users pay when a call from one network terminates on another (e.g., from a fixed-line to a mobile-line). ¶6. (SBU) ICASA Chairman Paris Mashile was also scheduled to Q6. (SBU) ICASA Chairman Paris Mashile was also scheduled to participate in the Forum, but did not attend. Webber expressed frustration at Mashile's absence since he wanted to hear ICASA's response to his critiques. -------------- ICASA Licensing Process Slammed by Industry and Courts -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Webber disparaged ICASA for slowing down the roll-out of additional ICT networks. Webber noted that ICASA processes had considerably delayed the licensing of the second national operator Neotel, which delayed much-needed competition against state-owned Telkom. He also criticized ICASA's license conversion process for existing ICT license-holders. According to Webber, ICASA has started the license conversion process, but has not finalized the costs for these new licenses. This creates uncertainty for the industry. ¶8. (SBU) Webber noted that ICASA's shortcomings in the licensing PRETORIA 00001976 002 OF 002 process were recently highlighted by a Pretoria High Court decision, which found ICASA's processes to be flawed. The issue centered on whether companies holding Value Added Network Services (VANS) licenses were entitled to build their own network, or whether they were had to lease their backbone facilities from Telkom. The court decision effectively ended Telkom's monopoly by decreeing that technology company Altech has the right to build its own network. Webber emphasized that ICASA should have addressed this issue three-years ago instead of being forced to do so through the courts. ¶9. (U) According to press reports, the decision will open the "floodgates for competition since it allows about 300 other internet service providers and data carriers to build their own networks, too." Altech CEO Craig Venter described the decision as "an undisputed victory not only for Altech but for the whole telecoms industry." Venter said it would cost about R1 billion ($125 million) to set up a national network so most players could not afford to do so, but those with the financial muscle could now swing into action. "Ultimately, consumers will benefit because they will see lower prices," Venter added. -------------- INDUSTRY MUST EDUCATE ANC -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Professor Itumeleng Mosala, a former cabinet-member under the Mandela government, encouraged industry and consumer organizations to "better educate policy-makers" on ICT issues. He acknowledged that here had been unnecessary SAG interference in the ICT sector in the past, but cited a need for better-informed policy makers. Mosala noted that "interference many times masquerades as regulation. Government has a right to regulate but it has no right to interfere." He prompted the ICT sector to be more strategic in addressing problems with the ICT regulatory environment. ¶11. (SBU) Mosala noted that a new ANC government would soon be in power and industry officials should work with the ANC to educate them. He said that lobbying efforts tended to concentrate on officials at the Department of Communications (DOC) or ICASA, when they should also be targeting broader ANC leadership. He emphasized that policy is developed by committee in the ANC and he did not believe that ANC policy makers were currently well-informed about the ICT sector or the implications of SAG ICT policies on economic growth. "If they understood the issues, they'd implement policies better," Mosala said. ¶12. (SBU) Comment: Increased competition and innovations in the South African ICT sector have been hampered by DOC and ICASA policies. The DOC has championed policies to support state-owned entities and state-sponsored ICT projects at the expense of improved and affordable services. ICASA officials have acknowledged delays in the license conversion process (reftel) and the need for additional training on spectrum management. U.S.-based ICT companies have also cited the need to better inform SAG officials about developments in the ICT sector and the impact of SAG policies on sector growth. ¶13. (SBU) Despite these challenges, competition in the sector should be revolutionized in the coming months. Neotel has recently begun offering competitive fixed-line services. Increased bandwidth capacity also will become available in June 2009 with the SEACOM undersea cable project. Finally, liberalization in the sector will also be spurred on by the recent court decision to allow VANS to Qalso be spurred on by the recent court decision to allow VANS to develop their own networks. All of these developments, which will be occurring at about the same time, will serve to drive down ICT costs for South African consumer. End Comment. LA LIME