Policy Framework & Regulatory Structure

The Communications Authority is a statutory body corporate established pursuant to Section 3. Subsection (1) of the Telecommunications Act No. 23 of 1994.

POLICY FRAMEWORK REGULATORY STRUCTURE

The Act of 1994 confers upon the Communications Authority (CAZ) mandate to regulate the provisions of telecommunications products and services in Zambia, to promote competition, and to ensure that the benefits of development of the sector accrue to the citizens of Zambia and its economy. In accordance with the mandate, the Board of Regulators approved effective 1st September 1996, a policy framework and a regulatory structure designed to provide a fair, transparent and predictable regulatory environment in Zambia.

GOALS

The policy framework and regulatory structure are intended to achieve among others the following goals:

The introduction of competition in all segments of the telecommunications sector as appropriate. The implementation of national telecom development programs that entice participants to implement sub-economic services and rewards them for doing so. And the establishment of a regulatory system that implements policy through incentive, rather than coercive methods.

The Communications Authority will imitate programs for national telecommunications development and will focus on the expansion of service to residential as well as business customers. Pararell special emphasis will be placed on providing basic services to unserved or underserved segments of the Zambian population including rural areas and economically depressed urban areas.

For this purpose the Communications Authority intends to create a national Telecommunications Development Fund (NTDF) that will be used to provide some funding for development projects in these areas. The NTDF will be financed in part from operating fees imposed on service providers. Upon careful evaluation and deliberate judgments of the merits of various approaches to achieving the above, the Communications Authority has determined that the introduction of appropriate levels of competition in the telecommunications sectors defined below will provide the broadest benefits to the people of Zambia and its government, as well as provide the most appropriate advanced telecom infrastructure for the development of it's economy.

To accomplish these goals, and as a prerequisite for the establishment of a transparent regulatory environment, the Communications Authority intends to implement the spirit and substance of the principle of equal treatment of all service providers. To that end, the Communications Authority will issue licences for telecom services based on guidelines and licencing structures that will apply to the current service providers, including the Zambia Telecommunications Company limited (Zamtel) as well as all future licencees.

The Licences to be issued will be of three types as follows:

TYPE A

Licences that require Service Providers to install own and operate public switched telecom network (PSTN) infrastructure facilities. These are categorized as follows:

Type A1 - Network Facilities of basic local services
Type A2 - Network Facilities for basic national long distance services
Type A3 - Network Facilities for basic international service
Type A4 - Network facilities for basic rural and urban services to sub-economic areas.

TYPE B

Licences that do not require ownership of public networked telecom facilities. These are categorized as follows:

Type B1 - Basic Voice Services
Type B2 - Data Transport Services
Type B3 - All other services (e.g. Internet service providers; Shopping services etc.)
Type B4 - Network facilities for private use

TYPE C

Licences that require ownership of infrastructure facilities for cellular mobile and paging services. These are categorized as follows:

TYPE C1 - Local mobile cellular services
TYPE C2 - National mobile cellular services
TYPE C3 - Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) Satellite based national mobile cellular service
TYPE C4 - Paging services

Service providers with Type B licences will be allowed to offer telecom services using networking facilities provided by one or more of the Type A1-A4 licencees, or own and operate facilities for their private use (Type B4 licences).

For Type A and C licences, future Service Providers will be licenced through a tender process, with the highest bidder winning the licence award. Bidders will be required to post the Bid Bonds to enter the competitive tenders, for the following licences:

A1 Licence (local service)
A2 Licence (long distance)
A3 Licence (international)
A4 Licence (rural/poor urban)
C2 Licence (mobile)

Type B licence will be granted through an open applications process. Qualifying criteria for bidders and approval guidelines for all licences, will be published in advance of licence award for each process.

All licencees will also be required to pay operating fees as a percentage of net revenues, defined as gross revenues less VAT. Specific percentages will be attached to each licence, as follows: 5% for mobile cellular, paging, and value added services, and 0% for basic services to rural areas. Payments will be due within 3 months of closing of yearly accounting reports. These operating fees will be reviewed periodically to assess, and be responsive to, the changing conditions in the market place, as well as the development needs of the country.

For more information contact

Licencing & Consumer Affairs
The Communications Authority,
P O Box 36871,
LUSAKA

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