Telecommunications, informatics and media policy

Through its activities and investments in the telecommunications, informatics and media sector (the “Sector"), the EBRD makes an important contribution to the transition process with the objective of establishing a fully liberalised, market-led, financially self-sufficient Sector.  In its financing of operations in the Sector, the Bank pursues the following transition-related objectives:

• Promoting sustainable network expansion, increasing the density of telephones and improvement in quality of service
• Fostering emergence of innovative and advanced communications services crucial for overall competitiveness of businesses within the country
• Assisting the incumbent operator and the government to accelerate privatisation
• Developing appropriate regulatory and legal frameworks
• Extending development of the Sector beyond basic telephone services, including media, which promotes access to communications and information.

The relative focus on these objectives will depend on the transition stage of any particular country. The Bank's unique capability to cover the full private-public spectrum of operations allows it to help the Sector throughout all stages of the transition from state-owned monopolistic operator to liberalised competitive market-led environment.  This is achieved through a number of steps, for example, establishing a regulatory framework, promoting sound corporate governance and responsible market behaviour by Bank clients, promoting competition by encouraging introduction of mobile operators, second operators and advanced service providers, efficiency improvements in the incumbent operator and, in many cases, its privatisation.  This evolution has led to a move from sovereign guaranteed to corporate financing, thereby giving the EBRD the operational flexibility needed to assist the public sector whilst maintaining its priority for private sector participation.

The proposed strategy provides a flexible approach, tailored to the transition stage of the host country, that responds to the highly complex, varied, technology driven and ever-changing needs of the Sector, promotes required reforms in the provision and financing of telecommunications, informatics and media infrastructure and services, furthers good governance and reflects the comparative advantage of the Bank.