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FYR Macedonia's telecommunications to be modernised with loan from EBRD
A loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will greatly improve the telephone call completion rates in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia by modernising its local, long-distance and international telecommunications network. The US$ 42.55 million (ECU 33.8 million) loan was signed in Skopje last Saturday. The loan brings the total of EBRD investments in telecommunications in the 25 countries in which it operates to more than US$ 550 million (ECU 433.8 million).
Odd Haugan, Senior Banker in the EBRD's Telecommunications Team, said: "This project allows approximately 78,000 new subscribers to be connected to the telecommunications network. It provides digital exchanges that give commercial entities in FYR Macedonia access to modern high quality telecommunications services both nationally and world-wide. By meeting the telephone demand in the most important industrial and commercial cities, the project will accelerate business development and trade in the country."
At present, the call completion rate is 45 successful calls in 100 attempts for local connections, 35 out of 100 for long-distance, and 20 out of 100 for international calls. The project will improve these rates by increasing the local switching capacity of about 97,800 main lines, providing the optical fibre national transmission backbone and improving international digital access.
The physical investment programme has an associated technical assistance component which will help the borrower, the Public Enterprise for PTT Traffic "Makedonija" (MPTT), to develop a corporate strategy and prepare for future privatisation. The programme will assist MPTT in implementing and operating a modern telecommunications network in a consumer-oriented and commercial manner.
This is the EBRD's fourth project in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The other three, worth ECU 43.8 million, are loans for the power sector and air navigation systems, and a trade guarantee facility with a local bank. Telecommunications investments continue to be a major area of co-financing activity for the EBRD, in the form of loans and equity investments, for privatisation and upgrading of telephone systems in central and eastern Europe and the CIS.
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