International Telecommunications Regulations, World Radio Communications Conference & ITU Final Acts

Meeting report

International Telecommunications Regulations: Minister's address and request
Dr Siyabonga Cwele, Minister of Telecommunications, firstly apologised to the Committee for the  delay with the 2012 Regulations, stating that this was a result of the work done by the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (the Department or DTPS)  and the regulator, to make sure that anything ratified is in line with the Constitution of the Republic.

These International Telecommunications Regulations (ITRs)  are very important and some of the regulations were, for the first time, starting to take issues of disability into the Telecommunications regulations.  Issues of internet services are always very difficult, globally; it remains an important enabling tool and it is good for the growth of the economy. He stated that the officials will talk about the regulations in greater detail. The Minister also said that the launching of satellites is a highly contested matter. At international conferences, people pushed their own national interests, but it is important to attend because the environment is very challenging. He emphasised that South Africa must really consider manufacturing, even if it starts with localisation only, in order to have products to sell in a few years.

Ms Nonkqubela Jordan-Dyani, Acting Deputy Director General, DTPS, noted that the purpose of her briefing was a request to this Committee (and indeed to Parliament) to ratify the Final Acts of the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), which was signed in Dubai in 2012, in line with Section 231 (2) of the Constitution. She elaborated that the reason that this is being brought so late before Parliament was because extensive discussion had to take place.

The importance of these issues is that the National Development Plan states that a more efficient information infrastructure that promotes economic growth and greater inclusion is required, as are a stronger broadband and telecommunications network and lower prices. The impact of investment in broadband on GDP has been widely acknowledged.

Recently, the Cabinet approved the National Integrated ICT Policy White Paper. The impact of investment in ICTs on socio-economic development is cross-cutting across diverse sectors, including lowering the cost of doing business globally. The ITRs will contribute to facilitating these developments.

The ITRs were originally agreed to in Melbourne in 1988. At this time, there was little or no internet, and cell phones were uncommon, unwieldy and unsophisticated. The original ITRs facilitated the era of privatisation, competition and deregulation and subsequently the growth of the information and communication technologies. However, by 2012 the world of Information and Communication technologies had completely transformed. Mobile phones have now become the dominant telecommunication device.

The process is now more inclusive, and many more developing countries are participating and are at the forefront of meetings.  There are fears, from the Internet ‘powers’ , of intrusion by governments into the Internet space. Furthermore, there were attempts to decide in advance what countries could and could not talk about, leading to a delay in hosting the WCIT in spite of urgency to update ITRs.

At this World Conference, topics for discussion included the quality of service corresponding to ITU Standards . Transparency of International Roaming prices was another topic, and this was related to measures to avoid ‘bill shock’. The dissemination of national emergency numbers to visitors was important. The issue of promoting access to telecommunication services to the 650 million people living with disabilities around the world was also of particular focus at the conference. Furthermore, energy efficiency and e-waste best practices were also discussed. Miss Jordan-Dyani said that the misuse of number resources - often associated with fraudulent practises – was another topic for discussion.

 ITRs assist in encouraging investment in international telecommunications networks, and competitive wholesale pricing.  ITRs also assist in the application of basic pricing principles and a framework for international agreements, based on transparency, practicality and causality. Further economic benefits include guidelines for dispute resolution, the possibility of commercial special mutual arrangements, and measures to assist in avoiding double taxation for international services. The ITRs create a legal basis through which charges for maritime telecommunications in the maritime mobile service and the maritime mobile-satellite service are collected and paid. The most controversial issue was on Cybersecurity and spam.

The ITU has a culture of agreement by consensus (she quipped there was often agreement by exhaustion). She highlighted that the delegates who are chosen to be at the conference have a strict code of conduct that they need to adhere to because there is a lot of lobbying and influencing that takes place at the conference.

Particular areas of contest included the lack of consensus on the Security and Robustness of International Telecommunication Network, as well as the Unsolicited Bulk Electronic Communications. A lot of time was spent debating this. There was a formal vote regarding the right of Member States to access international telecommunication networks. As a result of the controversies, only 89 countries signed, (which was less than the number who signed the initial ITR agreements), although 152 participated .

It is recommended that South Africa, as a leader in the continent, should ratifies the ITRs as they will contribute to improved provision of telecommunication services and better customer experiences, supporting the Integrated ICT Policy on the White Paper. She mentioned that there had been debate already on the need to review the ITRs on a more regular basis.

World Radio-communications Conference 2015 (WRC-15) Final Acts: Request for ratification

The Minister gave an overview and background of this presentation.

Mr Silulami Doyi, Director, DTPS, tabled the World Radiocommunications Conference 2015 (WRC-15) Final Acts. He requested Parliament to ratify the Final Acts in line with Section 231 (2) of the Constitution.

He noted that the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is a United Nations (UN) Member-State body, specialising in telecommunications and information technology. The ITU convenes the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC), to review and revise the Radio Regulations so that they will reflect the latest technological developments, respond to changing market demand and service specific spectrum requirements. The ITU held the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15) from 02 to 07 November 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Radio Regulations provide an agreed framework of rights, obligations and procedures applicable between countries in their many uses of the radio-frequency spectrum. At the WRC-15, a number of amendments to the Radio Regulations were adopted to make provision for new services and new technologies in various frequency bands. This included some non-treaty level resolutions and recommendations, and a framework for the studies required for the agenda items of the next conference. He also mentioned that the ITU published the 2016 edition of Radio Regulations on November 2016. The Radio Regulations will come into force and be effective as of 01 January 2017.

Mr Doyi went further on to state that in exercise of its sovereign rights, the Republic of South Africa reserves the rights to structure its own National Radio-Frequency Plan (NRFP) to suit national requirements. The NRFP is  a comprehensive source of information, that provides key data on current and potential radio spectrum allocations in South Africa and aims to inform a diverse range of stakeholders, including current and potential users of the radio spectrum. He commented that the harmonization within the region, benefit from economies of scale in devices and interference free operation of radiocommunications. In terms of the Mobile broadband communications, he said that Africa and Europe are in the same region, which is region 1,and Africa achieved 55% more for mobile spectrum at the conference.

WRC-15 also considered regulatory provisions and frequency allocations to enable new Automatic Identification System applications and other possible new applications to improve maritime radiocommunications. Furthermore, in relation to road safety, radio-frequency spectrum is needed , because the operation of short-range high-resolution automotive radar has been allocated  the 79 GHz frequency band. He mentioned that spectrum has been secured for Earth observation satellites for environmental monitoring. He said that the satellite space is a very contentious space and it is controlled by the Western countries.

Discussion
Mr J Parkies (ANC, Free State) noted that because Members were not specialists in the topic, it would be appreciated if plainer language could be used in future, to aid understanding. He suggested that there should be a talk about the national ICT policy, and a date should be set aside for that. He also wanted to know how harmonisation within the region would help with unemployment, job creation and fighting inequality. He wanted to know the impact of the work done by the Department, on the daily lives of the people.

Mr E Mlambo (ANC, Gauteng) welcomed the two presentations and said that he is glad to see that South Africa is moving forward. South Africa is becoming a part of the global playing field with these new technologies. However, he was concerned that South Africa did not have any of its own satellites, saying that this shortcoming meant it was difficult to be part of the dominant forces. He wanted to know if there were any discussions taking place in relation to South Africa developing its own satellite in order to compete effectively. He highlighted the need for it to be independent, claiming that South Africa was “still being colonised”, and one way to fight this was to set up its own satellites.

Mr O Sefako (ANC, North West) also welcomed the interesting presentation. He asked who were the negotiators in these kinds of conferences. He asked who owns the huge satellite dish that can be found in the area by Krugersdorp.

Mr J Julius (DA, Gauteng) raised concern regarding the lobbying of other states by the Department, prior to it receiving any Parliamentary approach in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution.

Miss Z Ncitha (ANC, Eastern Cape) stated that she did not see the challenges outlined in this presentation. The DTPS also did not state whether it needed any assistance from the Select Committee. She also commended the Department for considering people living with disabilities in its framework. She said that there is a need to expand these technological developments in rural areas and marginalised areas such as Eastern Cape. Lastly, she also wants to reiterate the need for South Africa to have its own satellite.

The Minister of Telecommunications acknowledged that there is a lack of infrastructure and technological development in marginalised areas. He said that it was no longer possible to discriminate against the poor and those living in rural areas, as this would be contrary to the Constitution. The DTPS did need more  people with skills in order to address the challenges facing the country. He mentioned that the Department wanted to launch satellites, which are low-cost but efficient. The DTPS was working with the Department of Science and Technology (DST) to launch new forms of satellites.

Miss Jordan-Dyani also             emphasised that there is a need for South Africans to be empowered with skills, so that there were people who were able to calculate the value add of spectrum and deal with matters relating to spectrums. The Minister or the Cabinet decides who the chief negotiator in the conference will be. One of the biggest challenges faced by the DTPS is the issue of roaming.  The Department will work with Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) to sort out the issues relating to roaming. Miss Jordan-Dyani stated that in her view spectrum is the most lucrative public entity, which can highly contribute to the economy of the country. She urged that the DTPS needed to have adequate skills in this area.

Members resolved to recommend ratification of the  International Telecommunications Regulations 2012.

Members then resolved to recommend ratification of the World Radio-communication Conference 2015 (WRC-15) Final Acts, in line with Section 231 (2) of the Constitution.

South African Express Airways (SA Express) 20/20 vision Strategy Update: Minister of Public Enterprises briefing
Ms Lynne Brown, Minister of Public Enterprises, provided a brief context and said that the CEO and CFO of SA Express are both present today. She said that at the last budget speech, the Minister of Finance announced that SA Express, SAA and Mango were going to merge, so that was an ongoing plan. At the moment, National Treasury is the custodian of these airlines.

Mr Inati Ntshanga, Chief Executive Officer, South African Express Airways, began by outlining the purpose, vision and values of SA Express. He stated that the purpose of SA Express is to have an integrated, sustainable regional airline connecting secondary and main airports. Furthermore, the vision of SA Express is to have a world-class regional airline with an extensive footprint in Africa. He stated that one of the core values of SA Express is safety.

He stated that the SA Express 20/20 vision Strategy was submitted to the Minister of Public Enterprises on 1 July 2013. Essentially the 20/20 vision is a 20 year strategy aligned to South African Airways’ (SAA) Long Term Turnaround Strategy (LTTS). The strategic objectives of the airline is to be a sustainable regional airline on the Continent and to achieve consistent and effective customer service. He also highlighted that the airline wants to foster performance excellence through people, skills and job creation. He mentioned that there has been an enhanced collaboration with SAA and Star Alliance in order to improve the route network. The commercial agreement signed between SAA and SA Express had been beneficial in terms of achieving savings. SA Express is working with Denel and has signed an MOU. Under an Incubator system for training pilots, 20 black pilots were transferred to SAA and Mango to meet their transformation objectives in the 2015/16 financial year.

He then proceeded to discuss the Route Network Update. The challenges include corporates cutting business travel. High operational costs have resulted in loss of revenue. He mentioned that that there is an intention to streamline the fleets by only having two types of fleets. He said that next year there will be new aircraft coming in because some of the aircraft are fairly old.

Mr Ntshanga stated that on 19 and 20 April 2016, the SA Civil Aviation Authority had temporarily suspended the Airline Operating Certificate (AOC) but the matter was resolved within 48 hours. He commented that after the suspension incident, it was clear that the company needed to concentrate a bit more on safety reporting. 

SA Express reviewed all its costs, such as the fuel costs, catering costs, ground and passenger handling, maintenance, materials and repairs contracts and so forth but without compromising on safety. This exercise had allowed it to save R326 million.

He then outlined that the relationship with SAA needs to be enhanced. Other challenges included the  ageing fleet and lack of spares and the fact that costs exceeded revenue. Lastly, he mentioned that SA Express is trying to address the revenue, the costs and other challenges in order to improve the reputation of the company.

Discussion
Mr Parkies wanted to know if SA Express had a mechanism in place to monitor if the maintenance was going according to plan. Secondly, he focused on the issue of transformation in the airline and wanted to know how long the training of black pilots will take, and he asked for the CEO to be specific. Mr Parkies asked whether the CEO has a transformation plan for SA Express. Mr Parkies also mentioned that there is a need for professionalism with SA Express, saying that when there is a flight delay it is not announced and the delay is never explained.

Mr C Smit (DA, Limpopo) wanted to know the impact that the planned merger of the three airlines will have on the future of SA Express, and what role will SA Express play in the merger. He said that it is of great concern that SA Express is in a crisis stage.

Miss C Labuschagne (DA, Western Cape) also focused on the merger and wanted to know whether there was yet a time frame for this merger. She asked if the financial status of SA Express played a role and what would need to be done before the merger can take place. She also asked if there was a pre-determining factor before the merger. She recently had a bad experience with SA Express, due to technical problems, and she is really concerned with the customer service of SA Express.

Mr A Singh (ANC, KwaZulu Natal) also shared that he had not had a good experience with SA Express. He wanted to know when the merger plans will be in place, although he believes that the merger will help all the airlines and was pleased to hear that they would fall under one entity.

Mr Julius stated that the merger will only help if SAA is stabilised This had not yet happened, due to the political issues within the airline. He felt that  this presentation by SA Express did not provide any evidence of any improvements. Lastly, he enquired as to the extent of the commercial agreement between SA Express and SAA.

Miss Ncitha also mentioned that her experience with SA Express has also not been good.

The Minister stated that a company has been appointed to manage the merger so the Department of Public Enterprises is not in control of the merger.

Mr Ntshangu mentioned that SA Express does not like to experience delays because these impact negatively on many other things. He highlighted that there will be new aircraft coming in and this will help resolve the non-availability of aircraft .He also emphasised that safety is the SA Express core value and the pilots will never take off if there are any safety issues in question. Lastly, he stated that the SA Express did have evidence and can provide any information that the Select Committee requires.

The meeting was adjourned. Mr Parkies wanted to know if SA Express had a mechanism in place to monitor if the maintenance was going according to plan. Secondly, he focused on the issue of transformation in the airline and wanted to know how long the training of black pilots will take, and he asked for the CEO to be specific. Mr Parkies asked whether the CEO has a transformation plan for SA Express. Mr Parkies also mentioned that there is a need for professionalism with SA Express, saying that when there is a flight delay it is not announced and the delay is never explained.

Mr C Smit (DA, Limpopo) wanted to know the impact that the planned merger of the three airlines will have on the future of SA Express, and what role will SA Express play in the merger. He said that it is of great concern that SA Express is in a crisis stage.

Miss C Labuschagne (DA, Western Cape) also focused on the merger and wanted to know whether there was yet a time frame for this merger. She asked if the financial status of SA Express played a role and what would need to be done before the merger can take place. She also asked if there was a pre-determining factor before the merger. She recently had a bad experience with SA Express, due to technical problems, and she is really concerned with the customer service of SA Express.

Mr A Singh (ANC, KwaZulu Natal) also shared that he had not had a good experience with SA Express. He wanted to know when the merger plans will be in place, although he believes that the merger will help all the airlines and was pleased to hear that they would fall under one entity.

Mr Julius stated that the merger will only help if SAA is stabilised This had not yet happened, due to the political issues within the airline. He felt that  this presentation by SA Express did not provide any evidence of any improvements. Lastly, he enquired as to the extent of the commercial agreement between SA Express and SAA.

Miss Ncitha also mentioned that her experience with SA Express has also not been good.

The Minister stated that a company has been appointed to manage the merger so the Department of Public Enterprises is not in control of the merger.

Mr Ntshangu mentioned that SA Express does not like to experience delays because these impact negatively on many other things. He highlighted that there will be new aircraft coming in and this will help resolve the non-availability of aircraft .He also emphasised that safety is the SA Express core value and the pilots will never take off if there are any safety issues in question. Lastly, he stated that the SA Express did have evidence and can provide any information that the Select Committee requires.

The meeting was adjourned.