[Kictanet] Day 4 of 10: What are the Existing/Sugested legal andregulatory framework for OFC?

Fri Jan 26 10:35:47 EAT 2007

Dear Walu,

Just checked the dictionary definition of "Regulate" and got these synonyms
- rule, govern, manage, order, adjust, arrange, dispose, conduct,
systematize. Al these sound and are good "English" words cos they give you
the sense of stability, odder and continuity. However, these may not be so
good "legal" words because law introduces the concept of constrain. Then
these words become a burden that regulation is (especially to the private
sector) and that regulatory frameworks prescribe.

On the same breath, I would argue that its not a simple lets have or no,
lets not regulate the OFCs. I think we need to regulate in the sense of
providing continuity by systematizing and managing for the benefit of all,
so regulation should only be used to facilitate and not constrain.
Non-regulation to me sounds chaotic and not sustainable in the long run!

Lets have a "facilitative regulatory framework" so that the private sector
can do what they do best...invest and get a return on their investment; and
the government collects its taxes while we enjoy efficient and affordable
the services!

Harry

-----Original Message-----
From: kictanet-bounces+harry=aitecafrica.com at kictanet.or.ke
[mailto:kictanet-bounces+harry=aitecafrica.com at kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of
John Walubengo
Sent: Friday, January 26, 2007 9:40 AM
To: harry at aitecafrica.com
Subject: [Kictanet] Day 4 of 10: What are the Existing/Sugested legal
andregulatory framework for OFC?

Thanx Brain, Kai, et al for your contributions on the
previous themes, I now wish to introduce today's theme as
shown above.

It looks like on the Regulatory theme, there is very little
option.  The choice is simply between having or NOT having
Regulatory environments for the submarine cable.  The
current practice is simply NO Regulation by virtue of the
fact that most OFC is laid out by Private sector with
commercially agreed private contracts.  These are kept
confidential until or unless a dispute arises in which case
it is resolved through existing Company Laws or Competition
Laws. None-Regulation has therefore served well in managing
Private sector investements.

However, in the Case of a Consortium model, where Public
Funds have been committed to build the infrastructure, some
argue that Regulation is required to ensure that the Public
interest (social benefits) are balanced against the 
Private (profit) interests.  The Consortium operators
however find this recommendation not encouraging since they
feel that Regulation would tend to frustrate an otherwise
enterprising venture that would excel without Regulatory
constraints.

As for the proposed Open Access Model, the Regulatory
frameworks suggested seem to range from None, Some, Delayed
to Full Regulation.  I still don't know how these different
variants would apply but would be glad to hear more from
the participants.  So lets explore the Pros and Cons of
these options but approaching it in a practical way as
follows:

What benefits/disadvantages has Non-Regulation brought to
submarine OFC within the the context of the three models
	a) Purely Private Provisioning of OFC
	b) Consortium Provisioning of OFC
	c) Open Access Provisionig of OFC.

2Days discussion - the eFloor is open to all however.
Operators, Lawyers, Regulators, Policy Makers, CSO &
Consumers are particularly encouraged to say something.

walu.
--- Bill Kagai <billkagai at gmail.com> wrote:

> Brian...
> Signs of a good Cabaret Sauvignon over lunch today!!!
> 
> Anyway,
> We are all converted capitalists hosting the World Social
> Forum..so I say..a
> good model is the one that makes good money for all of
> us.
> 
> 
> On 1/25/07, Brian Longwe <brian at pure-id.com> wrote:
> >
> > For once I get to make my comment on the day it is due
> (good job, Brian -
> > keep it up) .......  {I heard that when you start
> talking to yourself you
> > should get worried..... how about when you start
> sending email to yourself?}
> >
> > HAHAHAHA!
> >
> > Anyway on a more serious note, some years ago I had a
> v. interesting
> > dialog on this issue of submarine infrastructure. The
> people I was talking
> > to (don't remember exactly who)  {is loss of memory a
> sign of age, senility,
> > insanity or all 3 together} hehehe.....
> >
> > ---as I was saying, the people I was talking to
> mentioned that the perfect
> > model has existed for the longest time in the oil & gas
> pipelines in
> > different parts of Europe. These cross multiple
> jurisdictions, are critical
> > to the livelihoods and economies of all the
> stakeholders, support the
> > existence and stability of a wide spectrum of sectors,
> and at the end of day
> > provide something that an individual or family pays
> for.
> >
> > Taking all of the above into consideration - these
> projects are
> > deliberately designed not to make a profit. (In fact it
> was hinted that some
> > of them are designed to make a loss - pssst don't say
> anything to the banks
> > - snicker, snicker, hee, hee)
> >
> > So at the end of the day you have a consortium<ouch> or
> group of parties
> > that come together to form an SPV <yay> which then
> raises the funds required
> > and builds the damn thing - so that all the various
> "downstream" parties can
> > make their money, needless to say this helps the
> circulation of currency,
> > etc, etc, etc...
> >
> > So, my take is that OpenAccess - SPV - build at cost -
> don't aim for
> > profit - facilitate growth elsewhere is the way to
> go....
> >
> > I'll stop now because if I don't I may start writing
> some of the things I
> > want to say to myself in a separate email ;-)
> >
> > Brian
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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