FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

Myanmar pushes on with telecom reforms

Myanmar pushes on with telecom reforms

IN A BID to improve its transition to the digital economy, Myanmar will accelerate reforms in the telecommunications sector by strengthening its legal framework, said a senior official at the Myanmar Connect 2018, which kicked off yesterday.

Soe Thein, director-general of Posts and Telecommunications Department, said Myanmar would soon try to enact the new laws that are much needed for development of its telecom industry.
“Now we are redrafting the Postal Law and drafting the Myanmar Independent Regulator Law. A cybersecurity law is under consideration to enforce legal penalties for cybercrimes, which are threatening people’s lives,” he said.
Currently, the industry is being regulated by three laws – the Telecoms law, the Electronic transaction law and the Computer science development law. The universal service strategy has been developed to complement the laws.
According to the official, Myanmar’s telecommunications sector has improved a lot thanks to its landmark reforms that began in 2013.
“In 2012, there was only one telecom operator and it cost more than US$1,000 (Bt32,000) to buy a mobile SIM card in Myanmar. Today, a SIM costs less than $1 and people have several options from four telcos,” he said.
Before the reforms, the telephone density was only 13 per cent of the population and the international bandwidth was only 30 billion Gigabits per second (Gbps). Only one international gateway, a single international submarine cable, two cross-border fibre cables with China and Thailand, a national fibre backbone of 7,600 kilometres and some 3,000 sites served less than 2 million data users. 
Now, the telephone density has improved to 103.25 per cent of the population, with over 70 per cent smartphone usage. 
Four telecom operators have covered over 90 per cent of the population and nearly 60 per cent of geographical coverage with a combined fibre of 68,000 kilometres and 16,000 sites.
The international bandwidth has improved to 445.3 billion Gbps thanks to the increase in cross-border fibre with China, Thailand, India and Laos as well as six international gateways and three international submarine cables. The number of data users has significantly risen to 46.8 million, nearly 91 per cent of Myanmar’s population, according the statistics publicised at the event.
Despite the impressive growth, Myanmar’s telecom sector still has a long way to go because challenges remain, said the official.
“Although quick reform has resulted through successful liberalisation, an access gap still exists especially in rural areas. Affordability issues of the rural population still needs to be addressed,” he said.
Soe Thein said the entry of Mytel, the fourth telecom operator, is sparking a new level of price competition. Regulatory focus will be on sustainable competition and promoting rural uptake, he added.
“Mobile operators and fixed wireless providers are entering into a new chapter of price competition. Differentiation will become a key challenge for ISPs,” he said.
The official said the data market’s growth needs to be accompanied by app and content development to support the agenda for digital economy.
“We will try to connect the remaining unconnected people as soon as possible by enforcing QoS (quality of service) and taking care of customer issues. We will also develop an open access framework and improve coordination on implementation as well as an appropriate framework for vibrant but sustainable competition,” he said. 
The department has conducted a series of public and industry discussions with stakeholders in the process of drafting rules and other regulatory frameworks. It also sought input from the public and industry players in the development of Myanmar’s telecom reforms.
“We are committed to holding public consultations in all the major rule-making processes,” he said.
 

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