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| Govt admits SA telecoms prices ‘prohibitive' |
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| BY TRACY BURROWS AND DAMARIA SENNE |
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[Johannesburg, 14 July 2005] -
Deputy communications minister Roy Padayachie concedes that SA's telecoms prices could be seen as prohibitive, and has challenged players in the industry to “put their individual interests aside long enough to find a solution”.The deputy minister was addressing the opening session of the Department of Communications' two-day colloquium on telecommunications pricing in Midrand this morning. The colloquium attracted over 350 representatives of service providers, government officials, business and consumer groups and other stakeholders.Padayachie, speaking on behalf of communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri, who sent word that she was unable to attend, said: “What we need to do is to see how we can harness our respective strengths to find a creative solution to the challenges the telecommunications sector faces.”He said these challenges include the high cost of telecoms and an inability to provide fixed-line telecommunications to the masses.“High speed, high quality services should be available at a cost that does not make it prohibitive to do business, thus putting companies at a competitive disadvantage.“ICT plays an important role in the development of this country. It is a significant contributor to the GDP and influences the competitiveness of other sectors,” he added.Also addressing the delegates, Taylor Reynolds of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECB), said the OECB had conducted a short survey this week in which it had looked at the status and costs of the South African telecoms sector compared with those of the 30 OECB countries. The OECB found SA was the most expensive, with usage charges very high compared to other countries.He noted: “Many of the OECB countries are moving towards a flat rate for call charges, instead of differentiating between peak and off-peak, and local and national, charges.”Reynolds emphasised the need for competition, saying it is key to bringing prices down.“Effective competition in the market is key. If we take care of effective competition, prices take care of themselves and you have a faster and more efficient service,” he said.While there have been hopes that the colloquium will result in an agreement on lower pricing, Telkom CEO Sizwe Nxasana noted that the colloquium is “no surprise” and is essentially nothing more than part of an ongoing process in which the government engages the industry on various strategic and policy issues – including pricing.Nxasana told ITWeb that Telkom would send a high-level delegation to the colloquium. “We expect to share our views on the issues of policy regulations, affordable broadband access and universal access, as well as engage in debates and discussions with industry players on these issues.”Nxasana said Telkom expected the colloquium to highlight government policy, legislative and regulatory process on issues such as the South African market structure and competition investment promotion, and how these will impact on the cost of communications in SA.Related stories:
Telecoms colloquium begins tomorrow
Telecoms pricing colloquium announced
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