Vientiane’s ITU-BSG Program: Issues of Nepal

In my previous post, I had written about my THAI v6 training organized at TOT Academy of Thailand summarizing about the latest migration approaches in IPv6. I am now (29 oct. 2012) at Hyderabad IPv6 training conducted by BSNL (a government owned enterprise of India) under APT fellowship. I can benchmark this training only after the completion. Before this, I am reminding the ITU-BSG program organized at Lao-PLAZA hotel, Vientiane on 30-31st July, 2012.

I found myself lucky when the day I got opportunity to attend as a speaker(speaker biography: http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/Workshops-and-Seminars/bsg/201207/Pages/bios.aspx#BRDawadi) in this BSG  (bridging the standardization gap, http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/Workshops-and-Seminars/bsg/201207/Pages/programme.aspx) workshop where I presented about “ICT promotion and Standardization challenges of Nepal”( http://www.itu.int/dms_pub/itu-t/oth/06/5B/T065B0000200024PPTE.ppt) .

Group Photo, src: BSG website

The BSG programme is a continuation of ITU’s historic mission and concern about the digital divide and development disparities in information and communication technologies. The overarching goal of the BSG programme is to facilitate increased participation of developing countries in standardization, to ensure that developing countries experience the economic benefits of associated technological development, and to better reflect the requirements and interests of developing countries in the standards-development process. The standardization gap can be defined as disparities in the ability of developing countries, relative to developed ones, to access, implement, contribute to and influence international ICT standards, specifically ITU Recommendations. (src: http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/gap/Pages/default.aspx).

During the program, in my twenty minutes presentation, I talked briefly about the Nepal’s ICT Policy Issues and its standardization GAP especially about telecom Act, TELECOM and IT policy as well. I realized that we have different policies and also can see the duplication in legislation which is to be harmonized. The legacy telecom policy is not sufficient for Nepal to move into converged network environment. Government interest seems only to control the telecom sector in its traditional way. Recently slight changes in the telecom policy 2004 (authorization from government is required for infrastructure setup, deployment and sharing) by the government implies that central government is holding over all the control over sector rather than sensitizing the technology change and market liberalization.

We are lacking the policy on ccTLD .NP domain regulation/management, cyber security issues like formation of CERT, Standardization of QoS parameters for newer technologies (LTE, 3G, VoIP…), migration to IPv6 network etc.. Hence BSG is the mission program which helps developing countries to reduce the policy gap between developed and developing countries, reduces digital divide (technology gap between developed and developing countries), bring services of developing countries into global standards and also creates global competitive and regulatory environment.

AT D'Rose Hotel, Vientiane

My two days Vientiane stay during BSG program was quite fruitful. LAO-PDR is also a developing country like Nepal. The capital of LAO-PDR so called Vientiane city amazed me with its very peaceful environment. Low traffic even in peak hours and seems well managed city as compared with Kathmandu. Definitely, i don't forget to write about the experiences at Hyderabad, an electronic city of INDIA.