Page 11 - SAMENA Trends - October 2021

SAMENA COUNCIL ACTIVITY SAMENA TRENDS

Call-to-Action by SAMENA Council

to Accelerate Fiber Deployment

Our societies and the global economy are digitalizing rapidly, and there are ever more
possibilities to advance standards of living through human-centric, data-driven, and
evidence-based policies, increased economic competitiveness, higher-quality jobs,
enhanced provision of public services throughout the SA-ME-NA region's urban and rural
communities. Fiber holds the power to do to rural communities what it has enabled for urban
areas: more possibilities of digital inclusion and socio-economic participation.

SAMENA Council views that, in order to achieve greater penetration of Fiber, the regional
markets need to:

1. Draw upon global recommendations, such 7. Consider implementing the 4 core
as from the ITU and the UN Broadband recommendations of the Broadband
Commission, to inspire accelerated Commission’s Working Group on 21
efforts in Fiber-optic deployment across Century Funding Models, which could
the region address ICT infrastructure gaps, including
2. Recognize the necessity and inevitability of Fiber, and which may play an important
of deploying Fiber for reaching Universal complementary role in the initiatives
Digital Access; for fostering greater taken by the Governments
productivity in the Enterprise Sector; 8. Set coverage and minimum speed
for improving Government Digitization targets through a national broadband
processes; realizing the Smart City plan or universal service obligation, which
visions; fortifying 5G with the right level is aligned with our emerging desire to
of Fiber penetration; and, as a whole, for create “giga-bit societies”
building a sustainable Digital Economy 9. Recognize and address issues that
3. Optimize approval and permit processes have impeded Fiber deployment or
4. Incentivize investment in non-economical Fiber migration -- whether such issues
and complex geographies relate to processes, lack of an enabling
5. Foster CAPEX reduction and better return environment, lack of investment
on investment by reducing redundancy incentives, or other business or
and the cost of network expansion – this, operational difficulties
for example, can be achieved via use of 10. Incentivize the Private Sector to work
existing infrastructure such as electricity in closer collaboration with the Public
infrastructure Sector, to drive common understanding
6. Create enabling environment of positivity, on the flexibility, scalability, and asset
predictability, tax relief incentives, potential of Fiber networks. This alignment
reduced license fees, among other will support our efforts in building a
regulatory, legal, and financial incentives sustainable digital economy, which relies
and supportive measures should be not only on connectivity infrastructure,
considered for readily implemented but also on capacity-building and
in letter and spirit. Moreover, outdated ICT talent development initiatives, to
or non-essential regulation should be help realize digitization-driven socio-
removed economic impact from urban areas to the
last mile

11 OCTOBER 2021