Page 77 - SAMENA Trends - March-April 2022

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Turks and Caicos Completes Telecommunications Emergency Preparedness

and Response Policy

The Turks and Caicos Islands’ Telecom- network, with restoration taking up to ten four phases of disasters defined by the
munications Commission (TCTC) has days. Loss of communications during the International Telecommunication Union
developed a Telecommunications disaster impacted the rescue and recovery (ITU): mitigation, preparedness, response
Emergency Preparedness and Response efforts, leaving the government unable to and recovery. The TCTC and Cenerva
Policy (TEPRP) supported by industry communicate with citizens and lacking worked with key stakeholders to create the
specialist Cenerva. The Category 5 hurri- coordination of emergency services. new policy to ensure telecoms operators
canes Irma and Maria in 2017 resulted in The TEPRP lays out new obligations on have plans in place for disaster recovery,
substantial damage to Turks and Caicos’ telecoms network operators, designed intended to keep networks operational.
telecommunications infrastructure. Signif- to facilitate a coordinated response in This includes requirements for backup
icant network and infrastructure damage emergency situations and support the facilities which can be deployed quickly
resulted in the loss of connectivity between continuity of communications. The policy and support for key government and
the Islands and outage to the mobile identifies obligations that apply across the emergency communications channels.

Banglalink Acquires Additional

Spectrum in 2300MHz Band

Banglalink has acquired 40MHz of spectrum in the
2300MHz band at an auction held by the Bangladesh
Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
Banglalink’s CEO Erik Aas said: ‘We congratulate the
BTRC on successfully conducting the spectrum auction.
It is an important step for the industry, as the availability
of more spectrum will result in better internet speed and
quality digital services for citizens of Bangladesh. In
keeping with our objective – 4G for all, not 5G for a few,
we intend to utilize the new spectrum primarily for 4G in
next two-three years.’ Banglalink is aiming to build 3,000
mobile towers this year to boost its 4G coverage.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt Sign MoU on Digital Transformation

Egypt’s National Telecom Regulatory Authority has signed a tion with the Saudi Communications and Information Technology
memorandum of understanding in the field of digital transforma- Commission. The memorandum serves to work on cooperation
and exchange of experiences in the field of smart cities, frequen-
cy spectrum management and human capacity building. It also
includes agreements to coordinate joint events, and to design
training programs and workshops. According to an official Egyp-
tian statement, the signing of the memorandum comes within the
framework of strengthening cooperation between the two coun-
tries, and attracting investment in Egypt’s telecommunications
market. The memorandum was signed by Hossam El-Gamal, CEO
of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority, and Muhammad Al-
Tamimi, governor of the Saudi Communications and Information
Technology Commission. It was signed in the presence of Ahmed
Ihab Gamal El-Din, Egypt’s permanent representative to the UN,
and his Saudi counterpart Abdulaziz Al-Wasel. The signing took
place on the sidelines of the World Conference on Telecommuni-
cation Measurements Standards in Geneva.

77 MARCH-APRIL 2022