Namibia sets example

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa), 14 February 2007

The Namibian government has set an example to other countries in the SADC region, including South Africa, on how deregulation of broadband should commence to truly benefit a broader base of citizens.

Internet users in Windhoek must be smiling after ‘MWEB Namibia launched the first commercial broadband wireless Internet service’ (MWEB launches WiMax for Namibia, ICTWorld, 9 February 2007). Shortly Internet users in Swakopmund and Walvis Bay will also be able to make use of wireless Internet services.

What makes this a notable achievement?

The Namibian Communication Commission (NCC) and Namibian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, who made the introduction of the wireless Internet service possible, have left plenty of room for celebrations and healthy competition.

CEO of MWEB, Rudi Jansen, has praised the Namibian government for its ‘incredible foresight in embracing the new technology, and has proved its commitment to deregulation with this bold move of licensing a commercial operator, rather than just opting for the state telco’ (MWEB launches WiMax for Namibia, ICTWorld, 9 February 2007).

Jansen added: “In SA, the physical elements are already in place for rolling out WiMax, but regulation is holding back the process. As in the Namibian scenario, it is also important that WiMax licences are allocated to private enterprises, rather than just state enterprises and telcos if end-users are to really benefit.”

In other words, the Namibian government is actually giving healthy competition a chance while the South African government is still making an awful lot of noise without the necessary actions to back it up.

ADSL South Africa(Broadband South Africa), like Jansen, welcomes the Namibian government’s bold move towards the deregulation of broadband. We hope internal as well as external pressures will force the SA government to go down the same road sooner rather than later.