Sierra Leone’s Telecommunications/ICT regulator, the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM), has played host to a high-powered delegation from her sister regulator, the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA) from Wednesday 10th February 2021 to Friday 12th February 2021.
A team from NATCOM at the Liberia Border at Jendema received the delegation from the Liberia Telecommunications Authority on Tuesday 9 February 2021.
The LTA delegation included the Acting Chairman/Commissioner Maria Harrison, Commissioner Isreal Akinsanya, Jaiah Masssaquoi, James Lynch, Natalie Kollie, Numene T.H.Bartekwa among others.
The visit of the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA) team to Sierra Leone was to enhance and deepen collaborative regulation, which is critical in the Telecommunications eco-system. It is evidently clear that information and Communication technologies (ICTs) now formed the backbone in the digital economy of today. In view of this, it is imperative for regulators to consider unprecedented collaboration in getting the regulatory environment right.
In the engagement with NATCOM, the delegation from LTA listed the following for discussions:
- Discussions on collaboration for the 18th Annual General Meeting for the West Africa Telecommunications Regulator Assembly (WATRA).
- Discussions on Free Roaming
- Discussions on Cross Border Coordination.
- Discussions on Rural Connectivity (Universal Access).
The Chairman/Commissioner of NATCOM, Ambassador Joseph.C. Blell welcomed the LTA delegation to Sierra Leone and encouraged them to be at ease while they explore Freetown. He furthered that Liberia and Sierra Leone are by and large brothers and sisters and that NATCOM is willing to collaborate with them to ensure that our people enjoy good quality Telecommunication services.
In his statement, the Director General of NATCOM, Daniel Bobson Kaitibi also welcomed the delegation and said he was pleased to have the opportunity to speak with the delegation on cross-pollination of ideas and experience sharing. He furthered that the team at NATCOM will discuss frankly with the LTA delegation, the items listed for discussion and a lot more and was looking forward to joining forces to boost Telecommunication /ICTs for development. Director General Kaitibi informed the delegation that their visit was in line with President Julius Maada Bio’s determination to accelerate digital transformation in Sierra Leone.
Commissioner Isreal Akinsanya spoke on behalf of the LTA delegation expressing his appreciation for the cordial welcome his delegation received from NATCOM.
The discussions between the delegation from LTA and NATCOM would further help us to assess and manage tomorrow’s spectrum demand .Tomorrow’s Communications, relating to Spectrum solutions and expertize in Spectrum Management, Radio Monitoring, Network Planning, Implementation and Optimization all formed part of the well structured dialogue .The LTA delegation also had fruitful discussions with the Mano River Union Secretariat and the Ministry of Information and Communications.
