Bangladesh to take over SATRC chairman in 2023

Bangladesh will take over as chairman of the South Asian Telecommunications Regulatory Council (SATRC) in 2023.

Dhaka, O3 Nov :  Bangladesh will take over as chairman of the South Asian Telecommunications Regulatory Council (SATRC) in 2023.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder was elected vice-chairman of SATRC for the current year and chairman for 2023.

The decision was taken at the 22nd meeting of the SATRC during November 1-3, with the supervision of the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT), the BTRC said Wednesday.

Given the ongoing Covid-19 situation in the Asia-Pacific region, the APT Secretariat in consultation with the chairman and vice-chairman of SATRC decided that SATRC-22 would be organised virtually.

The meeting was attended by the heads of telecommunication regulatory bodies, designated senior-level officers of SATRC members – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran.

SATRC-22 discussed the key policy and regulatory issues in SATRC member countries. It approved the outcomes of SATRC Action Plan Phase VII and discussed and adopted SATRC Action Plan Phase VIII.

SATRC was formed in 1997 by an initiative of the APT and the International Telecommunication Union Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

The council is responsible for the discussion and coordination of all the issues relating to regulations in telecommunication and ICT which are of common interest to the telecommunication regulators in South Asia.

The issues include radio frequency coordination, standards, regulatory trends and issues, strategies for telecommunication development and telecommunication related international affairs.

The council also identifies and promotes areas of potential cooperation in telecommunication among South Asian countries and facilitates the exchange of information in these areas through activities such as seminars, training and workshops.

SATRC activities are conducted by the involvement of the highest level representations by the regulatory bodies of the South Asian countries, reports UNB.