Information and communications bill picks up speed

TODAY is the last day for the public and interested parties to submit comments on the new draft Information and Communications Bill published on the website of the Namibia Communications Commission (NCC).

The Bill was supposed to be tabled in Parliament this month, but missed the deadline set by Cabinet. On February 27, Cabinet resolved that the bill should go to the National Assembly within three months.Cabinet also directed that another round of consultations be held within that time frame.”This process is to be driven by a task force, chaired by the Ministry of Justice,” together with an international expert, the Cabinet briefing paper, published on March 1, stated.According to the draft bill, the NCC, which grants and issues television and radio licences, also grants licences in the telecommunications sector.As soon as the new bill becomes law, Telecom Namibia must indicate to the revamped NCC, which will then be called the Communications Authority, within 90 days, for which telecommunications services it requires a licence.Under the new legislation, licence holders must be Namibian-controlled with 51 per cent.The new communications authority will in future be able to force owners of ICT infrastructure to lease it to other companies to spur competition.Radio licences will only be issued for five years and television licences for eight years, with the option of renewal.The authority must also monitor all radio and TV stations to ensure that they report in a fair and neutral way and that advertisements do not exceed 20 per cent of daily broadcasting time.However, these rules will not apply to the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), which will be exempted.Any licence holders operating outside the scope of their licences will be fined N$ 1 million or three years imprisonment.The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the NCC will organise a workshop from July 25 to 27 for stakeholders and interested people to discuss the bill and to give an opportunity for more input.On February 27, Cabinet resolved that the bill should go to the National Assembly within three months.Cabinet also directed that another round of consultations be held within that time frame.”This process is to be driven by a task force, chaired by the Ministry of Justice,” together with an international expert, the Cabinet briefing paper, published on March 1, stated.According to the draft bill, the NCC, which grants and issues television and radio licences, also grants licences in the telecommunications sector.As soon as the new bill becomes law, Telecom Namibia must indicate to the revamped NCC, which will then be called the Communications Authority, within 90 days, for which telecommunications services it requires a licence.Under the new legislation, licence holders must be Namibian-controlled with 51 per cent.The new communications authority will in future be able to force owners of ICT infrastructure to lease it to other companies to spur competition.Radio licences will only be issued for five years and television licences for eight years, with the option of renewal.The authority must also monitor all radio and TV stations to ensure that they report in a fair and neutral way and that advertisements do not exceed 20 per cent of daily broadcasting time.However, these rules will not apply to the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), which will be exempted.Any licence holders operating outside the scope of their licences will be fined N$ 1 million or three years imprisonment.The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the NCC will organise a workshop from July 25 to 27 for stakeholders and interested people to discuss the bill and to give an opportunity for more input.