RWANDA UTILITIES REGULATORY AGENCY (RURA)

1. RWANDA UTILITIES REGULATORY AGENCY (RURA) WORKSHOP ON UNIVERSAL ACCES1-4 MARCH, 2005NAIROBI, KENYA

2. CONTENT I - INTRODUCTION II – BACKGROUND III- REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT IV. UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO BASIC COMMUNICATIONS V. CHALLENGES

3. RWANDA’S POLICY AND STRATEGIES I – INTRODUCTION Rwanda faces greater development challenges as the country is emerging out of the 1994 genocide and war; Development policies and strategies have to take full and close consideration of these post-genocide issues with a community address in all undertakings; The development of universal capabilities, mostly at the community level, is critical to allow full participation of all social groups to the national socio-economic development process undertaken by the Government of Rwanda; This will require that access to information and knowledge be made as easy as possible for all.

4. II – BACKGROUND 1- KEY SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND MACRO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS. Demographic features • Female, young and rural dominant population with high density; • Population: 8,128.553 (census: 2002); • Density: 322 per sq km; • Population growth rate: 2.7%; • 83.1% of the population live in rural areas; • 1.757.426: households. Macro economic features • Agriculture-based economy; • 88.6 % of the national labor force working in agricultural sector; • GDP per capita 202 USD; • 66% of the population in rural area lives below the poverty line;

5. 2 - RWANDA’S DEVELOPMENT VISION AND POLICY A- Government initiatives The Government of Rwanda is committed to promote the information and communication Technology (ICT) sector, aiming at moving Rwanda from a traditional agriculture based economy into a knowledge based economy. Designing of a development oriented ICT Policy and the building of a conducive environment through a sector reform with the objective to promote the development of the ICT sector in Rwanda B- Rwanda’s development Vision The overall objective of Rwanda’s development vision is: Rwanda to move from a least development country status to join the emerging economy group members to year 2020;

6. Vision of an ICT- led development: • Rwanda to modernize the economy and the society by the means of ICT as the development engine to propel the economy at accelerated growth rates, to reach natural prosperity and to ensure competitiveness. C- Rwanda ICT Policy Process The Rwandan ICT- led Socio Economic Development Policy began in 1998. The first phase concentrated on a comprehensive ICT- led Integrated Socio-Economic Development Policy for Rwanda The document was adopted by the Government in early 2000. The second phase of the process concentrated on the development of the first ICT Plan (2001- 2005).

7. D- MAJOR STAGES IN STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION This Plan 2001- 2005 is the first of the four to be developed within the framework of the Vision for Rwanda in 2020. Stage1: 1st and 2nd Plan Components • Provision of infrastructure equipment and support • Building ICT skills, both user and technical

8. Stage2: 3rd and 4th Plan components • Integrating ICT in all sectors of the society Core of the Rwanda ICT Strategy • Human resource development • ICT in education, health, Agriculture and Finance • Facilitating Government Administration and Service delivery • Developing and Facilitating the private Sector • Deployment and Spread of ICT in the community • Infrastructure development – Including Universal Access

9. III - REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT 1- Legal Framework • The law n°39/2001 establishing the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency • The law n°44/2001 of 30/11/2001 governing telecommunications has permitted the openness of the market with new private actors entering into play. • The law n°32/2002 establishing the Rwanda Information Technology Authority

10. 2. Telecom Profile Operators and Services providers : - Rwanda Telecommunication s.a. (Rwandatel) a state owned fixed operator company under privatization. - MTN Rwandacell, mobile operator - The African Rural Telecommunication (ARTEL), VSAT network operator - Mediapost, ISP - Terracom, ISP Other service providers include: Training and Capacity building - Kigali Institute of Science, Technology and management (KIST), - The computer center of the National University of Rwanda - Private sector initiatives: e-tools, e-ICT training center

11. 3. STATISTICS Teledensity: 1.8 for 100 inhabitants - Fixed telephone subscribers: 23,424 - Fixed public telephone: 3,933 - Mobile telephone subscribers:135,214 - Mobile public phone: 1,457 - Internet subscribers: 2,875 - Household with telephone (census 2002): 3.3% - Household with radio(census 2002): 41.7% - Household with computer (census 2002): 0.1% - Household with television (census 2002): 0.1%

12. IV. UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO BASIC COMMUNICATIONS In Rwanda, the rate of penetration of communications means is very low. For future development by 2020, Rwanda projects to have: At least one community telecentre associated to various systems of communications at the level of each administrative sector and at each secondary school and even to a large number of primary schools. The telephone density of at least 20% and the hinterland connected to the communication network. To achieve these objectives, The Universal Access Fund has been established by the law n°44/2001 governing telecommunications and the Presidential decree n°05/01 determines its functioning and the Public Operators contributions.

13. 1. DEFINITION Universal Access to telecommunications services means in accordance with the law n°44/2001, the widest possible access on affordable terms and with minimum subsidy to public telephone service, by the general public in all parts of the Republic. The provision of Universal Telecommunications Access consists in • Supplying to any person who requests a connection to a Public network with the serviced zone at an objectively justifiable price • Providing in each large city, municipality within a radius of 2 km maximum, at least one public access point • Providing in each district and trading centre at least one public access point, as well as the possibility of servicing the public and health services in the area • Ensuring free carriage for call to emergency public services • Facilitating access to information technologies especially in schools, hospitals and other public services

14. 2.IDENTIFICATION OF NEEDS The Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency (RURA) has the mandate to draw up and keep up to date an exhaustive list of localities and file them according to: • Access to telecommunications services provided in whole territory concerned and the coverage by a network. 3. TENDER AWARDING New Universal access service provision is awarded by auction within the context of a transparence process based on competition between interested public operators and as a priority to operators whose business is only confined to rural areas. 4. CONTRIBUTIONS The fund is, without excluding other contributions, financed with contributions made by Public Operators, who pay an annual amount of money equivalent to a percentage of their turnover. The level of contribution is set by the Regulatory Board not later than 31st January of each year. The current rate is 2%.

15. 5. PROJECTS One pilot project has been launched for the provision of the Telecommunications Services in 44 localities identified all around the country. The project is implemented by African Rural Telecommunications (ARTEL) using VSAT technology. V. CHALLENGES Major Problems in Rural Areas include: The majority of the population in the rural areas depends on Agriculture Most of them live under the poverty line The communities are isolated, not easily accessible and the means of communications are not yet developed. The people living in these communities are often unskilled, with very limited or no education and no capacity to improve their quality of life.