Development through ICT: Egyptian Information Society Initiative

1. Development through ICT:Egyptian Information Society Initiative Amr HASHEM Ministry of Communications & Information Technology Arab Republic of Egypt

2. Agenda • Introduction • Egypt’s Outlook • Information Society Initiative • ICT Industry • Creating Favorable Environment • WTO Commitments • Way Forward • National Action Plans • Regional & International Coordination

3. Egypt Today • A unique location linking major economic regions: • Mediterranean, • Europe, • Asia, • Africa, and • Arab World. • Investing $80 billion over 21 years in modernization of infrastructure.

4. Egypt Today • 65% under age of 25 • Preparing young generations by investing in: • education, • skills development, and • professional training. • Ranking 17th worldwide in number of yearly graduates

5. Egypt Today • Egypt is reincarnating into a modern, liberal & private sector led market driven economy. • A remarkable recovery through an extensive economic and social reform programs

6. Egyptian Information Society Initiative Coordinating the efforts of the Government, the business sector and the Civil Society in deployment and utilization of ICT for economic and social development through various forms of Public-Private-Partnerships

7. ICT & Economic Growth • Higher productivity: • making it possible to adopt different structures and locations • New technologies allow for new methods of production • Social Services: • social services promoting economic growth, such as health and education. • Investment: • Investment in ICT is also significantly correlated with growth (Easterly and Rebelo,1993) • Rural Development: • There is evidence that teledensity is positively correlated with the level of income.

8. Teledensity & Income in Egypt

9. Egyptian Information Society Initiative E-Business CIT Industry Development E- Society Civil Society E-Health - - - E-Government E-Knowledge E-Learning E-Heritage E-Content E-Readiness

10. Legal ICT Framework • 1997: Investment Incentives Law • 1998: Separation of Operation and Regulation Establishment of an Independent Regulatory Authority • 1999: Establishment of Ministry of Communications & Information Technology Development of 1st National CIT-Plan • 2002: Intellectual Property Law WTO- Basic Telecommunications Agreement • 2003: New Telecom Law WTO-Information Technology Agreement • 2004: E- Signature Law

11. Basic Telecom Agreement (BTA) • Arab Countries with BTA Commitments Morocco (Apr. 94, Apr. 97, Oct. 00) Tunisia (Apr. 97) Jordan (Oct. 00) Oman (Dec. 00) Egypt (Jun. 02) Bahrain • MCIT and TRA studying the requirements of BTA (Winter/Spring 2001) • MCIT, TRA, MoFA and MoE Preparing the Final Draft of BTA proposal (June 2001) • Clarifying issues related to the BTA proposal (Fall 2001/Winter 2002) • Meetings for discussing Egypt’s BTA proposal (February 2002) • BTA proposal circulated among WTO members for approval (April 2002) • BTA commitments integrated into Egypt’s schedule (June 2002)

12. BTA Commitments (Cont.) • Reference Paper on Regulatory Principles • Table of Specific Commitments • Grace Period for Market Reform • Technology-Neutral approach to services • Development of Local Industry • No Limitations on Foreign Capital • Opening up the market for new services

13. Competition in ICT • 1996: Internet services provision • 1997: public payphone services • 1998: mobile telephony services - GSM • 2000: provision of public data services for business sector • 2000: VSAT services • 2002: Internet backbone infrastructure rollout and wholesale services • 2003: high-speed access – xDSL • 2004: pre-paid calling cards

14. Fixed Services • Annual Investments of almost EGP 3 Billion since 1997: • modernization of core network • adding almost 1 million new access lines annually • Introducing new services • Revisiting the Business Model: • Consultation with stakeholders • Tariff rebalancing to eliminate cross-subsidies • Introduction of USF to finance service provision in rural areas Millions

15. Mobile Telephony • 2 Egyptian-International consortia: • Vodafone: Vodafone PLC + Egyptian Investors • MobiNil: Orange + Egyptian Investors (Orascom Telecom + others) • Impact of deregulation: • Employment: 4000 jobs • Investments: EGP 10 Bil. • Wealth Creation: EGP 16 Bil. • Governmental proceedings of almost: EGP 7.4 Bil. Millions

16. Internet Access • Subscription-Free Internet Services: • Launched in Jan ’02 • Interconnection between NSP and TE • Internet at cost of local calls(0.2 $ per hour) • Improved QoS - Reduced Costs - Utilization Growth • Broadband Initiative • Launched in May ’04 • Unbundling of the local loop • Increase ADSL Penetration – Promote WiFi Hotspots • 50,000 ADSL Subscriber during First Year

17. Free Internet Nationwide Mil. Min. of Use International Capacity in Mbps

18. Info Technology Agreement (ITA) • Extension of the implementation for developing countries till 2005 • MCIT, MoF, MoI&FT and MOFA studying the ITA in respect to: • Impact on the sovereign income of taxes • Impact on industry development • Reaching an initial proposal for phasing-in the items under the ITA • The goal is to promote the ICT sector by: • Reducing producers’ costs of deploying ICT • Encouraging consumer demand • Encouraging innovation and development • Creating job opportunities

19. ICT Imports Tariffs Source: Monthly Economic Digest, November 2003 MOFT

20. Scheduling ITA commitments • Scenario 1: Phasing-in Implementation using a ‘Sudden-Death’: • Year 1: Spare Parts & Components • Year 2: Electronic Devices & Equipment • Year 3: Electric Cables, Electric AC & Switches • Year 4: Communication Switches, Cables & Semi Conductor Equipment

21. Reductions in ICT Customs • Scenario 2: ‘Progressive’ Approach: Annual equal reductions on tariffs for ITA items

22. Promoting E-Access • Buying a PC on monthly installments and no advance payments • Using the phone line as a collateral • Highly efficient PCs manufactured or assembled locally • 75 thousand PCs were sold since December 2002 • Target to reach 200,000 households within a year

23. 2004 Tariff Reforms

24. No. of ITCompanies No. of IT Companies Source:The General Authority For Investment & Free Zones

25. No. of ITLabor Force Source:The General Authority For Investment & Free Zones

26. Alliance with MNCs

27. Expectations of Liberalization • Higher customer focus • Bringing-in new services to cater to the needs of various segments • More efficient service delivery as a result of the technology neutral-approach to regulation • Stronger Industry Promotion • High-yield job creation as a result of market growth and development • Export-oriented industries through transfer of know-how and innovation

28. Way Forward • Dialogue within the international community to promote technology transfer and facilitate participation of developing countries in the global information society • Regional coordination to promote economic integration and generate opportunities for regional players • Ongoing national consultation with market players and stakeholders to resolve various issues of concern regarding further market development

29. Thank you AHashem@mcit.gov.eg