MCIT officially announces implementation of Open Access Policy

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology officially announced the Open Access Policy enforcement at a press conference which was held on October 1, 2016 at the Government Media and Information Center(GMIC).

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) who opened the conference said: “The purpose of the conference is to officially announce and provide information regarding importance, necessity and economic consequences of the Open Access Policy in the country’s telecommunication sector.  He added that: “The main objective of the policy is to provide the citizens access to quality, reliable and affordable telecommunication service throughout the country.”   

He also mentioned that Open Access Policy and Competitive Provisioning are subject to three globally accepted fundamental principles, which are: non- discrimination, transparency and realistic pricing which has been also considered while developing this policy.

Dr. Hamayoon Qayumi, the Senior Advisor to the president also talked about the policy and shared the message of H.E the President, saying: “ one of the fundamental principals  NUG economic strategy has been to identify potential opportunities for regional cooperation. Thus, many policies and programs have been developed and implemented to support the goal. Open Access and Competitive Policy is one of the government policies that strengthen and extends sustainable social development through cooperation of private sector providers.

Dr. Hamayoon Qayumi also expressed his deep gratitude to the leadership of MCIT and the technical teams from the government, private sector and international organizations for their hard work and contribution that has resulted to a rich and inclusive policy. He added: “By implementing this policy, MCIT will stop government monopoly on major ICT infrastructures and thus, for the first time, private sectors are allowed to have access to existing critical telecommunication infrastructures; and also encourages them to establish and operationalize their own telecommunication infrastructures including fiber optic. He urged private sector to cooperate in the implementation of the policy and come up with investment packages.”

Mr. Sattar Murad, the Minister of Economy also spoke at the conference. He said that: the Open Access Policy will have significant impact in areas such as: job creation, raising incomes, attracting private sector’s participation, strengthening competition and reducing the prices of services.  

Mr. Atiqullah Nasrat, the Head of Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce(ACC)  also talked about the  Open Access Policy and shared the views of the private sector. He expressed: “Tat the private sector has always encouraged constructive policies and their implementation. I am sure, once this policy is implemented, prices will decrease and people will have better services.”

He also added that implementation of the policy will result to Public and Private Partnership in telecommunication infrastructures, which in his opinion would result to economic growth and income generation.  

Dr. Najib Azizi, the Chairman of ATRA talked about the policy and the required regulations and explained that the open access policy will create new momentum in the telecom sector of the country, and ATRA will uphold to work with the private sector in order to provide necessary facilities for their work.

At the end, the MCIT Technical Deputy Minister, Engineer Ahmad Shah Sadat summarized the conference by outlining some key aspects of the Open Access policy saying that “The implementation of Open Access policy will open the fiber optic and broadband sectors for private investment and ownership. This policy will pave the way for a more vibrant and connected society by reducing internet and data prices for customers and expanding broadband access. In addition, it will also increase revenues for the government of Afghanistan.”

To read full Open Access Policy, please click here: