Local telecommunication authorities can’t quite decide on their policies. Leon Perlman reports
Virtually the entire ensemble of South African telecommunications Who’s Who assemble at Telecom 95, the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) seventh World Telecommunications Forum and exhibition. Curious strategy shifts in our telecommunications policy filtered through during the nine day event.
Held at the massive Palexpo arena in Geneva, Switzerland, the quadrennial event is regarded as the world’s most important forum for telecommunications policy and technology. Some
1 066 exhibitors and over 130 000 visitors attended the event. It was the first year in which South Africa has participated as a full member of the ITU.
President Nelson Mandela, who gave the keynote address at the opening, headed the large South African contingent. In his speech, he appeared to echo the antipathy expressed by Post and Telecommunications Minister Pallo Jordan towards what appears to be the unstoppable global trend towards deregulation and opening up of traditionally closed markets to competition. Europe has committed to wholesale deregulation and privatisation of state telecommunications companies by 1998.
Said Mandela: “Many developing countries face difficulties in raising capital for their existing operators. There is consequently pressure on governments to threw open their doors to international competition. This calls for great care, to avoid jeopardising local services unable to compete with powerful international operators.
Observers at Telecom 95 interpreted Mandela’s remarks as indicating that the loosening of Telkom’s grip on telecommunications was not in the best interests of the Reconstruction and Development Programme and would not be considered any time soon.
Jordan has in the past referred by name to United States telecommunications monoliths AT&T and Sprint as examples of predatory investors which could undermine Telkom’s profit base. He sees this as eroding Telkom’s ability to provide so-called Universal (telecommunication) Services to underprivileged and under-serviced areas.
“Telecommunications cannot be simply treated as one commercial sector of the economy, to be left to the forces of the free market,” Mandela told the packed opening session. But he left the door open to possible alliances between Telkom and Global Partners which he said could inject capital and expertise. During one of the strategies sessions, Jordan referred to the need for an Independent Telecommunications Authority that would “level the playing fields”. Again, he repeated his anti-competition theme. Days later, however, he appeared to soften his antipathy.
He was quoted in the official Telecom 95 daily as saying that “the objective is universal service. If competition is what we need to get universal service, then we’ll have competition”.
Of the much touted Telecommunications Green Paper, Jordan said: “We have avoided looking at models in other countries and hence have rather sought the route of public consultation. It might not necessarily be the best route, but it will produce a result that everyone can live with. And even if the regime that evolves out of that is faulty, it will ensure a sense of ownership.”
Mandela also announced that South Africa will host Africa Telecom 98, the regional version of Telecom 95, at the Gallagher Estate in the spring of 1998..