United States Ambassador visits NATCOM Sierra Leone
The United States Ambassador to Sierra Leone, John F. Hoover on Wednesday, 24th June, 2015 paid a familiarization visit to the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM). The ceremony took place at NATCOM headquarters on 13 Regent Road, Hill Station in Freetown. Ambassador Hoover’s visit to the Sierra Leone telecoms regulatory authority was necessitated by the steady growth of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Sierra Leone and the role of ICT stakeholders in the Ebola epidemic. The purpose of his visit was also to see how the two institutions can collaborate to enhance matters relevant to ICT. The U.S. Envoy was warmly received by the Chairman / Commissioner, members of the Board of Commissioners, and staff of NATCOM. (Photo: l-r US Ambassador John F Hoover and Momoh Konte, NATCOM Chairman)
In his welcome address, Chairman of NATCOM, Momoh Konte offered his profound appreciation for the visit; which he said was a strengthening of the existing relationship between the two institutions. He thanked the U.S. government’s role in general and the Centre for Disease Control’s (CDC) participation in particular, in the fight against the Ebola Virus Disease, and appealed to the U.S. government to continue their support in making Ebola a thing of the past in Sierra Leone.
Chairman Momoh Konte told the Ambassador some of the challenges in the telecom sector since he was appointed by His Excellency, Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma early this year. He threw light on the state of the Commission; the internet penetration, rural telephony and the role of the telecom service providers. In a bid to overcome these challenges he said, he was embarking on reorganizing NATCOM to make it more efficient and robust in its day-to-day operations through capacity building and restructuring. He disclosed how NATCOM hired the services of both local and foreign consultants to restructure its human resource. This restructuring process he went on, is ongoing, with the aim to right-place each staff so as to meet the demands of new age. He also disclosed NATCOM’s engagement with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on rural telephony during the 2015 WSIS Forum held in Geneva, Switzerland, in May; adding that Sierra Leone is partnering with Guinea on the Big Data Project. “Plans are already on course to target districts in phases through ICT for zero Ebola,” he said. The Chairman promised to improve on the 1% internet penetration in the country upon assumption of office to 5%.
He informed that NATCOM would entrust the rural telephony expansion drive to the Universal Access Development Fund (UADF). The UADF itself was established to identify opportunities for bridging the digital divide in Sierra Leone. He told the Ambassador that the UADF office (presently located at NATCOM headquarters) would be relocated to a new building and staffed adequately. “We will move the UADF to another building and staff them with engineers, lawyers and other technical staff.” He however acknowledged the effort of service providers such as Airtel, Africell and Sierratel in the rural telephony expansion and promised to ensure that NATCOM is ranked as a leading and performing MDA in the country. He further promised NATCOM’s visit to the US Embassy as the relationship between the two institutions grows from strength to strength.
In his response, Ambassador John Hoover expressed his delight to be around but however regretted his late visit to NATCOM. This he said was due to the Ebola outbreak. He thanked the Chairman, NATCOM and the telecoms service providers in the country for their collective effort in providing the necessary ICT facilities such as the 117 Ebola response number. He said as a government, they are focusing on zero Ebola and how the economy of Sierra Leone can be recovered. Ambassador Hoover related his stay in Kenya and his collaboration with ICT stakeholders .
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