Telephone Penetration Reaches over 13 Percent in Central Africa

APA-Bangui (Central African Republic) At least three mobile telephone operators provide services in each member-state of the Central Africa Telecoms Regulations Association (ARTAC) and telephone penetration has reached 13.2 percent.

ARTAC chairman Valeri Saï said in Bangui on Thursday that about 93.3 percent of the telephone owners are mobile telephone consumers and 1.7 percent fix telephone users.

He was speaking at the second general assembly of the ARTAC, which opened on Wednesday in Bangui.

Saï said the sub-region has made some progress with the opening of the telecommunication market to competition, noting that the sub-regional operators use their foreign partnersÃ' services to sell their intra-community traffic.

"The volume of the intra-community traffic is not high. It falls on us to ponder on the ways and means to improve the sub-regional indicators," he said.

Central African Republic Telecommunications Minister Fidel Gouandjika urged the ARTAC to use telecommunications to achieve regional integration and ensure a balance between the market requirements and national interests.

Gouandjika said the member-states should embark on eliminating problems hindering free competition to enable the sub-region to become a leader in the digital revolution.

Created in November 2004, the ARTAC regroups the member-states of the Central African Monetary and Economic Community (CEMAC) and the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC). Telephone penetration reaches over 13 percent in Central Africa

Posted to the site on 14th December 2007