Page 148 - SAMENA Trends - July-August 2022

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

(cellular operators, PTCL, LDIs, WLL operators, and ISPs) as of prudent policy and regulatory reforms. It is pertinent to highlight
June 2022. The PTA said it was able to get 19,847 complaints that International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ranks PTA at
resolved i.e. 98 percent. Cellular mobile subscribers constitute a the “Advanced” level under its fifth-generation regulation (G5).
major part of the overall telecom subscriber base. Therefore, the Pakistan is also placed among the top five regulators in the Asia-
maximum number of complaints belongs to this segment. The Pacific region. (July 19, 2022) pta.gov.pk
total number of complaints against CMOs by June stood at 19,496
where 19,215 were addressed i.e. 98 percent. According to the PTA Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has formulated the
data, 7,191 complaints were received against Jazz, 6,135 against "Cyber Security Framework" through extensive consultation and
Telenor, 4,427 against Zong and 1,735 complaints were received deliberation with Telecom Industry and leading cyber security
against Ufone. The PTA also received 176 complaints against experts. This framework is based on the Critical Telecom Data and
basic telephony, where 160 were addressed during June 2022. Infrastructure Security Regulation (CTDISR) by PTA and defines
Furthermore, 499 complaints were received against ISPs, where the obligation of auditors and PTA's licensees, said a news release
453 were addressed. (July 21, 2022) brecorder.com issued here. It provides guidance to the auditors for performing
gap assessment in the light of PTA's Cyber Security Regulations
Chairman PTA, Maj. Gen. Amir Azeem Bajwa (R) spoke virtually at including interpretation and expectations against each security
the Regulators’ Roundtable of the 22nd APT Policy and Regulatory control where necessary. As part of the framework, a maturity
Forum 2022 organized by Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT). model has also been devised, whereby the controls have been
Chairman PTA briefed the audience about PTA’s regulatory classified on the basis of their criticality. It is pertinent to highlight
achievements and cross-sectorial collaborations with other that International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has given
government bodies and private entities. The Chairman also said significance to the Cyber Security Framework of each member
that PTA is striving to achieve the leading status under the G5 state while calculating the Global Cyber Security Index (GCI). The
benchmark through enhanced cooperation with the other stake- framework is a significant step towards improving the security
holders and regulators. He also mentioned that Pakistan is on landscape of the telecom industry and will enable organizations to
the path towards achieving the vision of ‘Digital Pakistan’ through better manage and reduce cybersecurity risk. (July 7, 2022) urdupoint.com

Qatar

The communications regulator claimed the country’s mobile The Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) issued the Cloud
operators are capable of meeting high data and quality of service Computing Handbook for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs),
demands expected during this year’s World Cup, following an which is part of its regulatory instruments that were developed
extensive audit of the nation’s networks. In a statement, Qatar’s to create a safe cloud environment and to facilitate large-scale
Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) said an audit adoption of cloud computing by SMEs based on their requirements
conducted from August to December 2021 indicated Ooredoo and objectives and in line with the digital development of Qatar.
Qatar and Vodafone Qatar could maintain a high standard of Cloud computing offers many opportunities for Small and Medium
accessibility and retainability of services offered to consumers, Enterprises, as it enables them to automate their procedures and
while having the capacity to provide higher download speeds to provide high-quality services at lower costs. Cloud computing
a “wider environment”. The audit covered mobile voice calls, SMS saves large amounts of capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operating
and 5G data services, with testing conducted during peak hours of expenses (OPEX) compared to the costs of traditional solutions.
working days on more than 58,000 samples from each provider’s Thus, it contributes to enhancing their growth by improving
network collected across different areas of Qatar. It used undefined productivity, flexibility, security, and overall operational efficiency.
QoS systems and the latest devices and smartphones to conduct The Handbook provides a simplified explanation to Small and
the study. Clearly, the audit was done with the major-football Medium Enterprises about what cloud computing is, the meaning
tournament in mind, which is due to kick-off on 20 November. In of typical cloud contractual provisions, categories of cloud
preparation for an increase in mobile network usage, the regulator services, and key points that Small and Medium Enterprises should
said it has assigned operators with additional 5G spectrum, pay close attention to before subscribing to such services. The
including mmWave, aimed to “revolutionize the mobile broadband Handbook also includes an annex on data classification guidelines
performance in Qatar”. CRA added it did not conduct an audit to that will help SMEs classify their data in their transition to the
compare or identify which operator had the best network. In terms cloud. The State of Qatar has placed the development of cloud
of notable statistics, it found on average networks in the country computing at the heart of its digital transformation strategy. Cloud
had a maximum downlink throughput of 700Mb/s and 99.9 per computing contributes to establishing Qatar as a leading regional
cent successful call completion. According to GSMA Intelligence, digital hub, a home to international digital players, and an attractive
the country has 5.3 million cellular connections, with the vast destination for domestic and foreign investments in innovative
majority (76 per cent) using 4G technology. digital services. CRA recently issued the Cloud Policy Framework,
(August 25, 2022) www.mobileworldlive.com which provides trusted access principles for all stakeholders in the

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