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EBRD supports telecoms sector in Kyrgyz Republic
Conference to discuss improvements of regulatory framework
As part of its ongoing support for the telecommunications sector in the Kyrgyz
Republic, the EBRD is sponsoring a a conference in Bishkek on Thursday, June
21, 2007, in association with the National Communications Agency, the
country’s telecommunications regulator. The conference will discuss
forthcoming improvements to the regulatory framework governing how local
operators interconnect with each other.
Stakeholders with an interest in improved and lower cost telecommunications
services will meet to discuss proposed new interconnection rules. Participants
include representatives from the National Communications Agency, the Ministry
of Transport and Communications and other ministries, telecommunications
network operators, user groups, NGOs and donors active in
telecommunications-related work.
New interconnection rules are urgently required in the Kyrgyz Republic because
the telecommunications sector has developed and changed significantly since
the current regulations were adopted. The objective of the new framework is to
improve the range and quality of services available, while reducing prices for
subscribers.
The new rules are designed to ensure effective interconnection between the
networks of individual telecommunications operators so that the Kyrgyz
telecommunications infrastructure will work seamlessly and efficiently. The
new rules set out obligations of all network operators to provide
interconnection with other operators. They also include new procedures for the
resolution of disputes, the treatment of confidential information, the
enforcement of and compliance with regulatory obligations and the tariff
regulations.
The new regulatory framework was prepared under the direction of a working
group led by the National Communications Agency which also included
representatives of the Ministry of Transport and Communications and network
operators. Assistance was provided by Great Village International Consultants
and the international law firm McCarthy Tetrault, both based in Canada. The
work was funded by the EBRD via its multi-donor Early Transition Countries
Fund.
The new rules are currently in a draft form, and input provided by the
conference will be used to finalise the regulations. The National
Communications Agency intends to adopt the final rules in July 2007 and bring
them into force in September 2007.
As part of an “Interconnection and Tariffing Project”, the EBRD is also
funding the development of a new telecommunications costing model, a new
tariff rebalancing schedule and new tariff rules. This work will assist the
regulator in implementing required changes to the prices of telecommunications
services, based on fair cost-based accounting methods which reflect
international best practice.
A third component of the EBRD’s support is the funding of a separate project
to assist sector stakeholders in developing a universal access policy and
fund, and recently completed a demand study in six rural villages across
Kyrgyz Republic. The study, presented at a conference in Bishkek in April
2007, highlighted that significant demand for telecommunications services
exists in most small rural villages across the country. This demand, the study
found, can be met on a profitable basis by commercial telecommunications
operators in most villages. Funding for the universal access work is provided
by the Government of Canada.
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