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EGYPT |
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Telecom & internet |
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Egypt's telecommunications services have expanded rapidly in recent years, doubling the number of fixed lines (with 10.4 million subscribers currently for a penetration rate of 13 percent) and increasing 15-fold the number of cellular subscribers (a 10 percent density), increasing ten fold the number of internet users to 5 million subscribers with a penetration rate of some 6 percent. |
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Telecom & internet |
Egypt's telecommunications services have expanded rapidly in recent years, doubling the number of fixed lines (with 10.4 million subscribers currently for a penetration rate of 13 percent) and increasing 15-fold the number of cellular subscribers (a 10 percent density), increasing ten fold the number of internet users to 5 million subscribers with a penetration rate of some 6 percent. Major investments have been made in telecom infrastructure (between US$ 800 and US$ 1200 million per year from 2000 and 2004). These performances are the fruit of liberalisation and deregulation policy based on public-private partnership as per the “Egypt Information Society Initiative”.
This integrated project targets development of a local ICT industry and better penetration thanks to original initiatives (free internet, low-cost computers and community technology centres…) and development of four topics: e-knowledge (training, education, cultural heritage, and contents), e-health, e-business and e-government.
A new telecommunications law (law 10/2003) as well as a law establishing the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) has been adopted. The NTRA has overall responsibility for regulating telecommunications in Egypt and is also responsible for regulation of television and radio bandwidths, including frequency usage. Telecom Egypt is a State-owned monopoly, although the Government has announced that 44 percent of the company will be sold off to a strategic investor and additional shares on the stock exchange will be introduced as soon as market conditions are suitable. The Telecommunications Law stipulates that Telecom Egypt is to relinquish its monopoly as domestic and international fixed-line operator by 31 December 2005 and thus basic services have been completely liberalised since then in accordance with GATS commitments. Lastly, 20 percent of shares in TE capital were opened to the public in December 2005.
There are currently over 14 million subscribers to Te-Vodafone and ECMS-MobiNil, the two mobile phone operators compared to 4.3 million at the end of 2002.
A third GSM licence was cancelled but another tender is still in the pipeline.
A 3G licence will be granted at the end of the period of exclusivity granted to the two current operators (end 2007). To support its continuous liberalisation of the Telecom Services market and promote competition, Egypt by introduced a wide-scale unbundling of local loops for ADSL services as part of the broadband initiative launched in May 2004.
There are plenty of internet shops, especially in Cairo. The country counts nearly 160 internet service providers. A new law on electronic signatures (law 15/2004) has been adopted, regulating commercial transactions by internet. This law seeks to encourage the use of information technologies and provides the same legal recognition and protection to electronic contracts that already apply to traditional contracts. It should be noted that Egypt has the lowest rates in the Middle East, but only 3 percent of the population had a computer in 2004. The data processing sector, however, registered an average growth rate of between 15 and 20 percent per annum. |
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