RESOLUTION 9 (Rev.Doha, 2006) & Annex 1
Participation of countries, particularly developing countries, in spectrum management
The World Telecommunication Development Conference (Doha, 2006),
considering
that the continuing growth in demand for spectrum, from both existing and new radiocommunication applications, places ever greater requirements on a scarce resource; that, because of the investment in equipment and infrastructures, major changes in the existing use of the spectrum are often difficult to achieve, except in the long term; that the marketplace drives the development of new technologies to find new solutions to address development problems; that national strategies should take into account international commitments; that it is recommended that national strategies should also take into account global changes in telecommunications and developments in technology; that increased spectrum access may be facilitated through technical innovation and greater sharing capabilities; that, based on its ongoing work, the ITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) is well placed to provide worldwide information on radiocommunication technology and spectrum utilization trends; that the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector (ITU-D) is well placed to facilitate the participation of developing countries in ITU-R activities, and, for those developing countries that so request, to distribute to them the results of particular ITU-R activities; that such information would assist spectrum managers in developing countries to develop their own national long-term strategies; that such information would enable developing countries to benefit from sharing studies and other technical studies in ITU-R; that, within spectrum management, one of the most pressing concerns of many developing countries, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), is the difficulty of elaborating methods for the calculation of fees for use of the radio-frequency spectrum; that the World Telecommunication Development Conference (Istanbul, 2002) adopted Question 21/2 "Calculation of frequency fees" with the objective of developing a database of models for calculating such fees,
recognizing
that it is the sovereign right of every State to manage spectrum use within its territories; that there is a strong need for the active participation of developing countries in ITU activities, as expressed in Resolution 5 (Rev.Doha, 2006), Resolution ITU-R 7 of the Radiocommunication Assembly (Geneva, 2003) and Resolution 17 (Florianópolis) of the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly, which may be individually and through regional groups; that it is important to take into consideration the ongoing work in ITU-R and ITU-D, and the need to avoid duplication of effort; the successful cooperation between ITU-R and ITU-D to produce the reports entitled "WTDC-98 Resolution 9: Review of national spectrum management and use of the spectrum. Stage 1: 29.7-960 MHz" and "WTDC Resolution 9 Rev.Istanbul
2002): Review of national spectrum management and use of the spectrum. Stage 2: 960-3 000 MHz"; the considerable support given by the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) in the production of these reports, especially by encouraging and facilitating the active participation of developing countries, in particular LDCs; the successful development of the "Spectrum Fees Database" (SF Database) in response to Question 21/2 and the availability of guidelines and case studies to assist administrations in extracting information from the SF Database for use
in the preparation of fee-calculation models that suit their national requirements,
resolves
to prepare the next in the series of the reports described in recognizing d) above within the next study period for the frequency band 3-30 GHz; to continue the development of the SF Database and provide additional guidelines and case studies, based on practical experiences of administrations,
instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau
to continue to provide the support described in recognizing e) above; to encourage Member States from developing countries to provide ITU-R and ITU-D with a list of their needs with respect to national spectrum management, to which the Director should endeavour to respond, and an example of which is given in Annex 1; to encourage Member States to continue to provide ITU-R and ITU-D with practical examples of their experiences of using the SF Database; to take appropriate measures so that work in accordance with this resolution is carried out in the six official and working languages of the Union,
invites the Director of the Radiocommunication Bureau
to ensure that ITU-R continues the collaboration with ITU-D in the implementation of this resolution.
Annex 1 to RESOLUTION 9 (Rev.doha, 2006)
Specific needs in spectrum management
The main types of technical assistance which developing countries expect from ITU are as follows:
Assistance in raising the awareness of national policy-makers as to the importance of effective spectrum management for a country's economic and social development
With the restructuring of the telecommunication sector, the emergence of competition and the high demand for frequencies from operators, effective spectrum management has become indispensable for States. ITU should play a key role in raising the awareness of policy-makers by organizing special seminars designed specifically for them. To this end:
in view of how important the regulators have become, ITU might include them in its regular distribution list for circulars providing information about the different education programmes and modules organized by the Union; ITU should include dedicated spectrum-management modules in the programmes of meetings (colloquiums, seminars) bringing together
regulators and ministries responsible for spectrum management, with private-sector involvement; within the limits of available resources, ITU should make fellowships available for LDC participation at those meetings.
Training and dissemination of available ITU documentation
Spectrum management must be in accordance with the provisions of the Radio
Regulations, of regional agreements to which administrations are parties, and of
national regulations. Spectrum managers must be able to provide frequency users
with relevant information.
Developing countries would like to have access to ITU documentation, which
must be translated into the six official and working languages of the Union.
Developing countries would also like to see suitable training provided in the
form of specialized ITU seminars, in order to help frequency managers gain a
thorough knowledge of ITU-R Recommendations, which are constantly changing.
Through its regional offices, ITU could set up an effective system to provide
frequency managers with real-time information on existing and future
publications.
Assistance in developing methodologies for establishing national Tables of frequency allocations
These tables form the mainstay of spectrum management; they identify the
services provided and their category of use. ITU could facilitate
administrations' access to information available in other countries, in
particular by developing links between its website and the websites of
administrations which have produced national tables of frequency allocations,
allowing developing countries to obtain information on national allocations in a
rapid and timely fashion.
In certain circumstances, ITU could make available the assistance of its
experts for the development of national tables of frequency allocations, at the
request of the countries concerned.
Assistance in setting up computerized frequency management and monitoring systems
These systems facilitate routine spectrum-management tasks. They must be
capable of taking local features into account. The establishment of operational
structures also enables the smooth execution of administrative tasks, frequency
allocation, spectrum analysis and monitoring. According to the specific features
of individual countries, ITU can provide expert help in identifying the
technical means, operational procedures and human resources needed for effective
spectrum management.
ITU should also provide encouragement and assistance to administrations in
setting up regional spectrum monitoring systems, particularly in the HF band.
Economic and financial aspects of spectrum management
ITU could further develop the mechanism set up under resolves 2 in
order to enable developing countries to:
learn more about practices in other administrations, which could be useful for defining spectrum fee policies tailored to each country's specific situation; identify financial resources to be allocated to the operational and investment budgets for spectrum management.
Assistance with preparations for world radiocommunication conferences (WRC) and with follow-up on WRC decisions
The submission of joint proposals is a way of guaranteeing that regional
characteristics are taken into account. Alongside regional organizations, ITU
could give impetus to the establishment and running of regional and subregional
preparatory structures for WRCs. Considerable resources are needed for the
implementation of decisions taken by WRCs.
With support from regional and subregional organizations, ITU could
communicate the broad outlines of decisions taken by the conferences, and
thereby contribute to establishing a follow-up mechanism for such decisions at
national and regional level.
Assistance with participation in the work of ITU-R study groups and their working parties
The study groups play a key role in the drafting of Recommendations which
affect the entire radiocommunication community. It is essential that developing
countries participate in study group work in order to ensure that their specific
features are taken into account. For effective participation of those countries,
ITU could – through its regional offices – assist in running a subregional
network organized around coordinators responsible for the Questions under study
within ITU-R, as well as by providing financial assistance in order for the
coordinators to participate in meetings of the relevant ITU-R study groups.
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