MAHO BEACH, St. Martin (June 17, 2002)-Four ministers responsible for telecommunications in their respective countries outlined the policies of their governments in presentations made at the forum on “Ministers’ policy statements,” which was held during the morning of Monday, June 17, the first working session of the 18th annual conference of the Caribbean Association of National Telecommunications Organizations (CANTO). The conference opened here Sunday at the Maho Beach Resort.
The ministers-all newly-appointed to the portfolio of telecommunications-stressed the importance of the sector to the economic, social and cultural development of their countries and unequivocally embraced liberalization as the only way to ensure universal access to information, communication technology (ICT), cheaper rates and quality service from the providers. Similarly, they indicated that a strong public-private sector partnership was essential to the further development of the telecommunications sector.
First at the podium was Netherlands Antilles minister of traffic and telecommunications, Mr. Herbert Domacasse who informed the gathering of the on-going efforts of the Antillean central government to formulate a liberalized telecom policy, an act which will ensure a level playing field for all concerned. Elaborating on the legislative infrastructure as it concerns telecommunications in the Territory, Domacasse said that the 5-year transition period granted to government-owned telcos by the 1996 Telecommunications Act has been difficult due in part to the involvement of unions. He said it took too long for said companies to streamline their operations for them to become competitive, while disputes between the incumbent and new entrants into the field flared up, especially with regards to interconnection. According to the minister, the situation became “unstable and explosive.” Government, consequently, had to come up with a modern telecommunications policy and legislation to create a stable environment for the development of the sector.
Domacasse listed the fundamentals of the new liberalization policy and legislation, chief among which were to promote competition, increase choice for the end-user, reduce tariffs, facilitate equal access and safeguard the general interest of the community. He further explained that the proposed law is focused on the implementation of:
a) Transparent and non-discriminatory rules and procedures
b) Codes of conduct for suppliers to safeguard availability and quality
c) A set of rules and obligations to safeguard the social and general interest in
a liberalized telecommunications market
d) The regulation and standardization of terminal equipment
e) Supervision with regards to the technical and quality aspects of the sector.
The proposed new policy and act will “create the legal framework and conditions to permit the modernization of our telecommunications while liberalization can proceed in an orderly way,” Domacasse said. “Citizens should be protected and ultimately be able to benefit from liberalization and lower rates due to the competition factor.”
“I’m convinced that our decision to deregulate the telecommunications market will finally result in stimulating new private sector initiatives as well as competition and thus create more enterprises and jobs,” the minister added.
The session, which was sponsored by the RBTT bank, was opened by managing director of TELEM, Mr. Dennis Richardson, who handed over the chair to Mr. Joe Dominique, TELEM’s corporate communications officer, and coordinator of the CANTO conference. Welcoming the panelists and other delegates to the session, CANTO chairman, Mr. Cornelius Prior noted that “what’s going on in member countries is very interesting.” He said great pressure was being exerted on international rates which are “all coming down.” This, in turn, has drastically reduced the revenues of many Caribbean telcos. The regulatory agencies in the region face a big challenge to balance the needs of the people for better and cheaper services with those of the companies, which need to make a profit, he remarked.
Also speaking at the forum were Hon. Adlun Ndombet-Assamba, minister of state in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Technology of Jamaica; Hon. Felix Finistere, minister in the ministry of Communications and Works of St. Lucia and Hon. Samuel Condor, the St. Kitts/Nevis deputy prime minister and minister of telecommunications.