Montserrat to liberalise telecommunications
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| Published on Friday, March 16, 2007 |
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BRADES, Montserrat: The government of Montserrat has this week signalled its plans to work on liberalizing the island’s telecommunications industry.
The move was highlighted by the Minister of Communications and Works Idabelle Meade, during a special telecommunications workshop in Brades on Tuesday.
Meade explained that the government of Montserrat was working diligently to liberalise and modernise the telecommunications sector and establish a new regime with regulatory safeguards, despite the ongoing volcanic situation.
“This will ensure the creation of a dynamic communications sector with the opening up of all the possibilities for sustainable development via a vibrant services sector. This regime of liberalisation will create new opportunities for communications service providers, new business opportunities, new jobs and the potential for the training of Montserratians in lucrative and highly skilled fields," Meade said.
Montserrat’s decision to work towards liberalising the telecommunications industry comes as the current contract with Cable & Wireless expires on the 18th March 2007.
Meade thanked Cable & Wireless for being the only provider of telecommunications services over several decades, and for faithfully continuing to provide services to Montserrat during the volcanic crisis.
She says the government of Montserrat recognises the need to learn from the decisions made by other OECS countries and Anguilla to liberalise their telecommunications industries.
Meade said: “In taking forward our plans for liberalisation of the telecommunications sector, we recognise that there is absolutely no need to re-invent the wheel, but simply to take on board the lessons from those who have ventured out ahead of us and who would by now have had much experience and be willing to share those experiences.”
The government of Montserrat has received presentations on the way forward for liberalising the island’s telecommunications sector and the procedures for setting up a regulatory framework.
These presentations were submitted by Donnie DeFreitas, Director of Technical Services at the Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority and Bill Withers of the Anguilla Regulatory Commission. | | | | Reads : 230 | | | |
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