{"id":624,"date":"2025-03-27T22:34:27","date_gmt":"2025-03-27T22:34:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/?page_id=624"},"modified":"2025-06-03T17:56:19","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T17:56:19","slug":"partner-sba","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/vision\/partner-insights\/partner-sba\/","title":{"rendered":"ITU160 Partner submission: SBA Communications Corporation, USA"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Shared infrastructure, broad connectivity<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Submitted by:<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Maria Alexandra Velez, Vice President, Corporate Affairs,
SBA Communications Corporation, USA<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\n Limited connectivity in developing countries has left millions without access to the benefits of digital transformation. Many people lose out in education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. Mobile connectivity has filled gaps in the absence of fixed broadband infrastructure.

As demand grows for resilient, sustainable, and inclusive digital infrastructure, telecommunications towers can serve as the backbone for delivering universal connectivity. <\/p>\n

\n Innovate, collaborate, and go mobile-first <\/h3>\n

\n The independent tower industry has innovative tower-sharing models that reduce costs, accelerate network deployment, and promote competition among operators, making connectivity more accessible and efficient.

Governments, regulators, local communities and businesses can work together to forge equitable connectivity policies. Our recent white papers Latin American Telecommunications at the Crossroads of Passive Infrastructure Sharing<\/em> and The Independent Tower Industry as Key Enabler of the Development of African Telecommunications (both 2024)<\/em> highlight the role of tower infrastructure in universal connectivity, with actionable insights for policymakers. They aim to inspire scalable, sustainable solutions aligned with the ITU\u2019s mission to connect everyone.

Our efforts focus on expanding mobile broadband coverage to underserved areas.\u00a0 For millions of people, mobile networks are often the only gateway to the Internet, and we are dedicated to deploying cost-efficient, scalable, and adaptable solutions to bridge the connectivity gap. <\/p>\n

\n ITU: Inspirational for women\u2019s success <\/h3>\n

\n ITU\u2019s work in developing standards, fostering international cooperation, and advocating for universal, meaningful connectivity aligns closely with our mission.

As an ITU member, we benefit from ITU forums, which encourage network resilience and sustainability. ITU\u2019s advocacy efforts champion women\u2019s success and inspire our programmes to empower women in the telecommunications sector, including mentorship initiatives. <\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

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Tips for universal connectivity<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n
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  • Market-driven regulatory frameworks. <\/strong>A light-touch regulatory approach fosters innovation, attracts investment, and stimulates competition. Policies can acknowledge the tower-sharing model to promote affordable, scalable, and efficient connectivity.<\/li>\n<\/div>\n\n
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  • Shared infrastructure. <\/strong>This reduces capital expenditure for operators, accelerates network rollouts, and minimizes environmental impact.<\/li>\n<\/div>\n\n
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  • Collaboration. <\/strong>Private sector entities, regulators, and ministries can be strategic partners to enhance universal connectivity. Data-driven insights and industry expertise can inform forward-thinking policies that foster sustainable growth within the tower industry. <\/li>\n<\/div>\n\n
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  • Promote public-private partnerships: <\/strong>Co-investment in connectivity projects can fast-track infrastructure that is affordable and sustainable for end users. <\/li>\n<\/div>\n\n
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  • Mobile-first solutions: <\/strong>Prioritize mobile broadband coverage. <\/li>\n<\/div><\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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    Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of ITU or imply endorsement.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Shared infrastructure, broad connectivity Submitted by: Maria Alexandra Velez, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, SBA Communications Corporation, USA Tips for universal connectivity Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of ITU or imply endorsement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":906,"parent":645,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-624","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/624\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/645"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/906"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itu.int\/160\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}