Morocco's telecom liberalization experience, a source of inspiration, ITU secretary general
Morocco, Economics, 10/19/2000

Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Yoshio Utsumi, said in Rabat Wednesday at a news briefing, that Morocco's telecommunication sector liberalization experience is a source of inspiration.

Yoshio Utsumi-- who is visiting Morocco for talks with Moroccan officials on preparations for the ITU conference of plenipotentiaries to be held in Marrakesh in 2002-- said the liberalization process will drain more investments and more operators.

After he hailed the progress scored by the Moroccan telecom sector, mainly regarding the GSM, he said the Moroccan government ought to start drafting appropriate juridical implements adapted to the new situation.

Secretary of state in charge of post and telecommunication and information technologies, Nasr Hajji, on his part said the changes underway in the telecom sector throughout the world require that the ITU adopt a new approach to keep pace with this progress. The Marrakesh conference, would provide an ideal frame to debate these changes and their impact on the telecom landscape.

Hajji stressed the need to establish a propitious environment, to promote human resources and consolidate infrastructures to attract more operators-investors to this promising sector. He described Morocco's experience in matters of telecommunication as pioneering and highlighted the fancy triggered by the mobile phone whose subscribers currently exceed two millions, compared to only 150,000 in early 1999.

Hajji also dealt with the efforts being made to promote E-business, with the privatization process of the Maroc- telecom company and with the liberalization of the telecom sector by 2002.

The ITU secretary general, who started his four-day visit to Morocco Tuesday, held separate meetings with several Moroccan officials, including Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi, on means of upgrading cooperation relations with the ITU.

Morocco will be the first Arab and the second African country to host the ITU conference of plenipotentiaries. Kenya hosted a similar conference in 1982.

ITU, set up in 1865, is headquartered in Geneva. It is an international organization within which governments and the private sector coordinate global telecom networks and services.

Previous Stories:
  ITU Secretary General in Morocco   (10/18/2000)
  International telecom body chief in Morocco   (10/14/2000)
  Morocco launches tender for selling part of telecom company   (10/4/2000)

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