ICT

The recommendations offered by the private sector on the enablers for private sector participation and priorities for the ICT sector include:

• reducing the high barriers to entry, including the high costs of Right of Way permits and the multiple taxes and licenses required;
• reviewing the high cost of deployment and lack of supporting infrastructure (especially in power and transport);
• addressing the dearth of local ICT-related skills and competence;
• implementing the Open Access Shared Infrastructure framework;
• reducing the costs of duct building and duct infrastructure leasing;
• accelerating Right of Way permits;
• harmonising multiple taxes, and reducing taxes on computing hardware and locally produced software;
• integrating ICT infrastructure into estates and commercial districts;
• harmonising the BTS roll-out;
• releasing the spectrum for LTE/wireless data;
• ensuring consistent minimum provision of 18 hours of power supply per day;
• unbundling of metro access;
• unlocking broadband to cater for bandwidth issues;
• deepening fibre-optic technology; and
• expanding fibre-optic links to neighbouring capitals and submarine cables.