Statement
by
H. E. Mr. Abdul Rahim Saidjan
Minister of Communications
Islamic State of Afghanistan

Wednesday, 20 March 2002

Excellencies, Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to express my sincere thanks on behalf of the Ministry of Communication of Afghanistan to the Secretary General of ITU and the Director of BDT for convening this important WTDC-02 and would also like to express my appreciation of the Turkish Government for hosting this conference and making this event possible in this historical and beautiful city of Istanbul.

Afghanistan has been suffering from arm conflict over the last 23 years. Over the last two decades, not only all the resources of the country had been tied up by the war, furthermore the military conflict and the fighting inside Afghanistan has destroyed the entire infrastructures, including the telecommunications. The country’s Telecommunication System has been in the state of collapse and needs a complete reconstruction. The country has been brain drained, the businessmen and the qualified people have left the country. This has created acute shortages of skilled personnel. Furthermore, the country has been hit by a severe drought over the last four years.

In December, 2001, the current Interim Government of Afghanistan was formed as a result of Bonn agreement. This administration intends to lay the foundation for a democratic government in the country and will encourage market economy.

The Interim Administration of Afghanistan has the support of the international community and the majority of the Afghan people. The political and security situation in the country has been moving forward in the right direction. It is a good opportunity for Afghanistan to embark on the reconstruction of the country. At the very beginning, the reconstruction of the telecommunication sector need restructuring, human resource development, new legislation and new regulations, radio frequency management system, numbering plan and tariff procedures.

There are a large number of companies from different countries that they want to invest in the telecommunications sector in Afghanistan. The government is also interested to allow private sector participation. The Ministry of Communications has been facing the problem of not having the required legislation, licensing procedure, numbering plan, frequency spectrum management mechanism, tariff policy and expertise to react quickly and timely to the prevailing circumstances.

There is about one telephone line per 1000 person in the country, which is the lowest in world. The equipment which are used by the PTT in Afghanistan are over 40 years old and out of date. The subscribers of the telecommunication network in Afghanistan are mainly based in large cities and the rural population have no access to telecommunication services at all. Moreover, the subscribers of the telecommunication network in Afghanistan have no access to the modern telecommunication services, they can only make local calls within their towns. There is no Internet Service Provider in the country. The country administration and the public is deprived of the current Information and Communication Technologies which are an essential tools for development of education, business, economy, exchange of information, health, effective administration and social welfare. We cannot talk about the issue of DIGITAL DIVIDE in Afghanistan. The war over the last two decades has completely destroyed the telecommunication services in the country. It needs urgent attention.

There is an urgency to restore the national and international telecom services in Afghanistan as they are essential for the humanitarian and relief operations, rehabilitation and reconstruction activities.

The major task ahead of the Ministry of Communications has been to facilitate the reconstruction of the telecommunication system in Afghanistan including landline telephone services, mobile telephone services (GSM), a high speed SONET ring for the transmission of voice, data, video and multimedia images in between cities and to/from outside the country.

We would like to ask this conference to make the necessary provisions so that Afghanistan can develop the required policies for the achievement of its objective. I would like to highlight that the Ministry of Communications intends:

• To encourage Private Sector Investment in telecommunications
• To create environment for competition in the field of telecommunications
• To simplify licensing procedures for private investment
• To develop Human Resource in the telecommunication sector
• To develop legislative and regulatory skills in the telecom sector
• To develop a policy which is effective and can meet the reconstruction needs of Afghanistan and that of the Information and Communication Technologies.
• To protect the public rights

It is possible that some of the telecommunication services can be provided by the private sector investment. As explained earlier, the existing legislation and regulatory mechanism was based on the idea of the government monopoly, which makes it difficult for the Ministry of Communication issuing licenses for the private companies who may wish to engage their services to provide certain telecommunication services in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Communication realizes the importance of public and private sector partnership for the provision and development of telecommunication services. As a matter of urgency, we like the ITU and the member states to support Afghanistan on the following issues:

• Development new legislation and regulations

• Radio frequency spectrum management

• Human Resource Development

• Numbering Plan

• Tariff procedures

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has been providing assistance for countries with special needs. We believe that the current situation in Afghanistan is unique and need a special attention so that with the support of ITU and member countries the restoration of its telecommunication services are facilitated. It will be highly appreciated if the proposed draft resolution for Afghanistan is supported by the member states.

I hope that it will not be long that Afghanistan will enjoy the Information and Communication Technology and will become part of the Information and Communication Networks.

Thank you for your attention.