[Sigifp-l] Fwd: ICT: infoDev and ITU Launch New Online Regulation Toolkit

[Michel J. Menou]

InfoDev and ITU Launch New Online Regulation Toolkit :

Press Release No:2006/034/S

Contact
Joan Hubbard
Tel: 1-202-473-5847
Email: jhubbard at worldbank.org


Geneva - July 25, 2005 — infoDev, a multi-donor program focusing on 
information and communication technologies (ICT) for development, and 
the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations 
specialized agency for telecommunications, today launched a new online 
Regulation Toolkit designed to address the complex regulatory challenges 
emerging from a rapidly evolving ICT industry.

An update and expansion of infoDev’s influential print publication 
Telecom Regulators’ Handbook (issued in 2000), the new web-based toolkit 
is aimed at national and regional regulatory agencies, ICT 
policy-makers, and other stakeholders with an active interest in ICT 
regulation. Nearly 140 countries worldwide now have a national 
regulatory authority, with the vast majority having been put in place 
during the last 10 years. These relatively new authorities, many of 
which have been established as part of a broader programme of national 
ICT liberalization, have a strong need for reliable and impartial 
information on regulatory issues and best practice.

“This new ICT Regulation Toolkit will provide ICT policy-makers and 
regulators with practical approaches and instruments to support their 
decision-making,” said infoDev Program Manager Mostafa Terrab. “It isa 
unique resource designed around three key features: it is an 
interactive, on-line tool allowing for user feedback and enhancement; it 
is dynamic in that its contents will evolve to reflect new developments 
in the sector; and it is forward-looking, foreseeing and anticipating 
policies and regulations that fully leverage the potential of new 
technologies to maximize access for all throughout the developing world.”

Conceived as a permanently evolving resource, the toolkit consists of a 
series of modules on key regulatory issues in the rapidly converging ICT 
sector. The first module, which went live today, deals with the 
authorization of telecommunication services. It addresses such issues as 
different authorization approaches and practices, and competitive 
licensing processes. It also highlights recent trends toward lighter 
authorization and licensing practices that reduce barriers to market entry.

The remaining modules are scheduled to come online between now and 2006. 
They will cover legal and institutional aspects of regulation; 
interconnection, price regulation and competition; new technologies and 
their impact on regulation; and radio spectrum management.

Each module consists of a core document, which provides a high-level 
summary of the topic concerned, and serves as the framework for a range 
of online content giving more detailed information through hyperlinks. 
These hyperlinks allow users to access secondary documents that offer 
in-depth treatments of the topic in both text and graphical formats.

Users can gain access to reference documents containing information on 
best practice and industry precedents. They can also obtain practice 
notes that provide summaries, background, context and practical advice. 
As well as providing an invaluable day-to-day information resource, all 
modules can also be used as training materials in formal training 
sessions for regulators or operators. The online version of the ICT 
Regulation Toolkit will be regularly updated to ensure that it 
incorporates the very latest information on regulatory strategies, best 
practice and country case studies.

“Today’s regulators and policy makers — especially those in the 
developing world — are seeking practical advice and concrete best 
practice guidelines to help grow their national ICT markets,” said 
Hamadoun I. Touré, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development 
Bureau (BDT). “The new ICT Regulation Toolkit responds to this demand by 
providing a first-class product on policy and regulation.”

The full toolkit will be showcased at the annual ITU Global Symposium 
for Regulators (GSR), to be held in Hammamet, Tunisia from November 14 
to 15, 2005, as well as at the upcoming World Summit on the Information 
Society (WSIS), which will take place in Tunis from 16 to 18 November 2005.

The module that went live today is accessible at 
www.ictregulationtoolkit.org, as well as through links on the infoDev 
and ITU websites. The remaining modules scheduled to come online later 
will be made available on CD-ROM.


About infoDev
infoDev is a multi-donor program with close ties to the global 
operational capacity of the World Bank, and equally strong relationships 
with a number of key donors. It helps the donor community and developing 
countries address the opportunities and challenges of ICT for 
development. Since its creation in 1995, infoDev has been a pioneer in 
promoting the innovative use of ICT as a tool for poverty reduction and 
sustainable development. www.infodev.org

About ITU
ITU is the leading international organization within the United Nations 
system for information and communication technology issues and the 
global focal point for governments and the private sector to coordinate 
telecom networks and services. One of its key mandates is to foster 
telecommunication development in developing countries through policy 
advice, provision of technical assistance, mobilization of resources and 
initiatives to extend access and bridge the digital divide. www.itu.int



SOURCE: World Bank




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