TEHRAN – The vice president of the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) has represented Iran at the 26th Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication Regulators’ Council (SATRC-26).
The meeting was organized by the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT) and hosted by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) from November 5 to 7 in Islamabad, Pakistan.
The event brought together policy experts and representatives from member states, including Iran, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan, to discuss ways for developing regional digital cooperation.
SATRC-26 focused on reviewing key policies and regulations in the Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) sector, spectrum management, expansion of digital access, and the promotion of regional cooperation, IRIB quoted Seyyed Mohammad-Hasan Javanzadeh as saying.
Referring to the approval of the outcomes of the SATRC Action Plan phase IX and adaptation of SATRC Action Plan phase X, the official said the meeting included special sessions such as the chief regulators’ roundtable, industry-regulator dialogue, and sharing regulatory experiences to expedite the development of the telecommunications and ICT sector in the South Asian region.
During the three-day event, the Iranian official held meetings with other South Asian heads of regulators, focusing on enhancing technical collaborations, sharing expertise in global access to digital services, ensuring the quality of services, and promoting healthy competition in the telecommunications market.
SATRC-26 served as a premier regional platform for dialogue and collaboration on key regulatory issues, focusing on the adoption of the Tokyo Statement 2025 and its implications for sustainable, inclusive, and equitable digital transformation in South Asia. The Tokyo Statement identifies six strategic priorities, including Digital Connectivity, Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Trust and Safety, Digital Inclusion and Capacity Building, Sustainability, and Partnership and Collaboration. Discussions covered critical themes including emerging technologies, universal connectivity, spectrum harmonization, and regulatory innovation.
Status of ICT in Iran
The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology is the highest authority in the field of ICT in the country. All activities related to the information and communication technology industry are directly related to the ministry.
The government pays special attention to plans and policies in this sector to maximize the use of ICT to facilitate people’s lives.
The successful design, construction, and launch of a satellite demonstrates the country’s growth in technology and science.
Space technology has been regarded as a tool to expand prosperity, peace, foster scientific and cultural development, and economic progress in human societies.
Different nations around the world utilize this technology in some way based on their capacity, capabilities, and efforts.
Currently, 13 universities and a research institute affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology offer aerospace majors, thus Iran has a high capability in training specialists and experts in the aerospace sector and is a leading country in the region.
Access to telecommunication services in rural areas of the country had improved over the period as the overall number of villages with access to communication services rose to 52,182, around 93 percent of all villages. Meanwhile, 47,837 villages had access to home landline services.
Moreover, the number of Iranian mobile users reached nearly 135.890 million, according to the CRA, which put the mobile phone penetration rate in the country at 161.67 percent.
The figures showed, however, that fixed broadband adoption in Iran had stalled at 14 percent, with nearly 11.921 million customers having access to the Internet via those services.
This statistic shows that fixed broadband internet has grown by less than 2 percent compared to last year, while mobile internet has experienced a growth of 10 percent. However, it can be said that the speed of mobile internet expansion is five times that of fixed internet.
MT/MG
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