Page 47 - SAMENA Trends - October 2021

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Bahrain Internet Among Cheapest in Region

Bahrain's Internet prices are the second lowest among Arab countries telephone numbers which was an important step for clients.
with services costing up to two per cent of an individual’s income, it “The service previously took around 24 hours but this has
was revealed recently. Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) now been reduced to an hour or an hour-and-a-half.” Shaikh
Acting General Director Shaikh Nasser bin Mohammed Al Khalifa added Nasser also said that 1,473 complaints were registered in
that a 95pc satisfaction rate was registered for mobile phone services 2019, 2,084 in 2020 and 2,009 up to the third quarter of this
last year – up from 82pc in 2011. He also disclosed that broadband prices year with 96pc of the complaints resolved. He also added
reduced by 81pc from 2013 to 2020, while mobile service prices dropped that plans are in the pipeline to strengthen networks in new
by 49pc from 2010 to 2020. “There is a national plan for collaborative housing towns such as Salman Town, Khalifa Town and East
efforts between the government and the TRA, and we are in the process Hidd, among others.
of implementing the goals of the Fifth National Plan which includes
developing the telecommunications infrastructure,” said Shaikh Nasser
during a media briefing organized by the National Communication
Centre. “We also want to place Bahrain on the regional map as a hub for
IT in addition to providing high-speed Internet services at competitive
prices.“ This year, we have achieved reaching an Internet speed of
1GigaBit per second which is a critical achievement for users who need
high-speed Internet. “Mobile phone subscriptions rose from 1.5 million
in 2010 to more than 1.7m in 2020, while portable broadband rose from
269,189 in 2010 to 1,861,240 in 2020 and wired broadband rose from
67,557 in 2010 to 148,050 in 2020. “These are all achievements that we
must be proud of as Bahrainis.” Shaikh Nasser also revealed that more
wired broadband subscriptions (fiber optics) are expected following
the separation from Batelco. He also said that in 2010 individuals
consumed only 39GB of data annually which has risen to 975GB in
2020, and it is expected to increase further with new applications and
more digitalization. According to the latest TRA report, the monthly
price for broadband services has reduced significantly in the last six
years – 50Mbps dropped by 66pc (from BD50 to BD16.8), 100Mbps by
68pc (from BD75 to BD24.15), 150 to 250Mbps by 69pc (from BD100 to
BD31.5) while 300 to 500Mbps by 72pc (from BD150 to BD42). “We have
also reduced the costs of international roaming by 85pc in the last five
years through collaborative efforts with telecommunications regulatory
authorities in the GCC with efforts underway for further reductions,”
he added. “We are also the first country in the Arab region to launch
the service of switching service providers without losing or changing

Trilateral MoU Signed in Pakistan

University of Central Punjab (UCP), WorldCall Telecom Limited (WTL),
and the UK based World Mobile Group (WMG) have signed a trilateral
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up a state-of-the-art
Block Chain Centre of Excellence at the University of Central Punjab.
The signing ceremony was conducted at the head office of World Call
Telecom Limited on Friday, October 22 and was covered by the electronic
and print media. A high-level delegation from UCP led by Pro-Rector Dr
Nassar Ikram and Dr Ahmad Shabbar Kazmi Dean Faculty of IT, Zubair
Anwar, Head UCP Centre for Professional Excellence and Abdullah
Iqbal, Deputy Manager Coordination & Technology joined this notable
event. The management team of WTL, including Babar Ali Syed, Chief
Executive Officer (CEO), Agha Mansoor, Director, Effan Riaz Technical
Director, Muhammad Azhar Saeed, Chief Finance Officer (CFO), and
Faisal Ahmed, Executive Vice President Corporate Affairs, received UCP
delegation and arranged a guided tour to their technical facilities after
the signing ceremony.
47 OCTOBER 2021