FOR RELEASE ON
March 8, 2007
Contact:
Nermeen Negm, Marketing Manager
Tel: 971.4.364.2708
E-mail: nnegm(a)samenacouncil.org
URL: www.samenacouncil.org
JORDAN'S TELECOMS REGULATOR JOINS SAMENA
DUBAI,
UAE - March 07, 2007 - SAMENA Telecommunications Council has
announced the addition of Jordan's Telecommunications Regulatory Commission
(TRC) to its regulatory membership portfolio.
Chairman of the Board and CEO of TRC Jordan, Dr. Ahmad Hiasat, who attended SAMENA's Beyond Connectivity conference and exhibition in January and presented his insights on regional telecoms regulatory issues and challenges, expressed and assured SAMENA of TRC's active involvement in the Council's regulatory endeavors.
In 1995, Jordan was the first country in the Arab World to enact a modern telecoms law and to establish an independent telecommunications regulatory body. Notably, TRC is also the first regulatory body from the Arab region to join SAMENA; Pakistan's regulatory body the PTA is already on the Council's board.
The TRC's involvement with SAMENA has been envisioned to serve as a strong catalyst in generating regulatory dialogue in the Middle East. SAMENA's executive team sees expanding telecoms regulatory participation as a precursor to the Council's fortifying presence in the region and as a sign of its growing recognition as a unique platform that facilitates collaboration amongst a diverse group of telecommunications organizations.
TRC-Jordan is a financially, administratively, and operationally independent organization, which is responsible for regulating and monitoring telecommunications, information technology, and postal sectors. Specifically, it is concerned with licensing; granting of type approvals; regulating tariffs; facilitating interconnection; specifying the minimum thresholds for Quality of Service; setting technical standards; managing frequency; and protecting consumer interests.
About SAMENA
SAMENA Telecommunications Council is a tri-regional, non-profit telecommunications
association that embodies a community of South Asian, Middle Eastern,
and North African telecoms operators, manufacturers, regulatory authorities,
and academia. SAMENA aims to be the ultimate promoter of collaboration
and knowledge-sharing in the SAMENA region that spans 25 countries,
including Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Iraq,
Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United
Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
The Council is driven by telecoms issues that operators in South Asia, the Middle East, and in North Africa face, and is determined in providing its advocacy expertise to help aid the incubation of novel approaches and ideas that would provide better means for the expansion and utilization of telecommunications in the region.
Headquartered in Dubai, SAMENA is chaired by Dr. Mohammed Ali Al Wohaibi, Executive President, Omantel and is directed by Mr. Thomas W. Wilson, CEO, Teralight.