GT&T invited to submit draft memo on telecoms reform
By Gitanjali Singh
Stabroek News
March 28, 2003
The Guyana Telephone & Telegraph Company Limited (GT&T) has been given two weeks to submit to the government for comment, a draft memorandum of understanding (MOU) based on the agreed minutes of the last round of discussions on April 23-4, 2002 in Trinidad.
Prime Minister Sam Hinds yesterday led the government side as talks resumed with the Atlantic TeleNetwork and GT&T on making significant changes to the telecommunications sector.
Attorney General, Doonauth Singh yesterday indicated that the Prime Minister had outlined to the firm that the talks could resume and the basis on which this could be done. The government team at the talks also included Gita Raghubir while Sonita Jagan, GT&T's general manager led her team, which included senior counsel, Miles Fitzpatrick.
Asked whether the MOU, which arose on the government side from Trinidad, was broached, Singh said no as that MOU had not accurately reflected what had been agreed upon and was never accepted as the position of the government's negotiating team.
The government's advisor, Canadian Hank Intven, who was not present at the talks yesterday, had prepared that MOU and it is not clear if he is still the advisor.
The two sides, subject to the approval of their principals, had agreed to opening up the data market soon after the MOU was executed, interim rate increases were implemented, final rate rebalancing agreed to and a reform legislation package be in place within a year of the MOU. If these conditions are not met, then the data market, the two sides agreed, would be closed and any licenses granted to any competitive data operators would be terminated. The government team agreed to the government working with GT&T in such a circumstance, to enforce GT&T's exclusivity rights in the market.
The interim increases agreed to were for local rates to move from 60 cents per minute at peak hours to $2, and from 30 cents at off-peak to $1. Internet calls were to be subject to the same local usage as telephone service with discounted rates for education institutions. International rates to all other countries except UK, US, Canada and the Caribbean were to be decreased.
Additionally, monthly residential main line rental would double to $1000 per month, and the third and subsequent lines would move up by 433% from $750 to $4000 monthly. Business main-line (first four) rentals were to be increased from G$1500 to $2000 per month. A mechanism would have to be found to bypass the Public Utilities Commission to enforce such rates.
In return, ATN would not object to the government licensing call centres not connected to the public switch telephone network in Guyana and the domestic telecom markets would be opened to competition as soon as the legislative reform package was passed. International voice markets, including VOIP would be opened subject to certain conditions before three years.
To break its monopoly, ATN wanted to be compensated and suggested the government's 20% share in GT&T as one method of compensation.
