Azerbaijan - EBRD is helping telecoms regulation through training and support of the Ministry

[finchannel] The EBRD is supporting the development of market regulation in the fast changing telecommunications and information technology sector by providing a programme of training and support to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) of Azerbaijan.

The electronic communications sector has seen significant growth and structural change in recent years in Azerbaijan, following international trends and technological advancements.

According to EBRD, the project will cooperate with MCIT to deal with the challenges of improving market conditions for investors and providing more consumer choice and protection under fully competitive market conditions. The training programme will explain how regulators in other countries have made important changes. The project will bring to Azerbaijan a team of experts with significant policy, regulatory and operational experience.

The training programme commences on 8th November 2010 at MCIT’s offices in Baku. Representatives from the industry’s service providers will be invited to attend. The topics of training are spread out over eight weeks of training to be held over an extended 6 month period between November this year and April next year. Throughout, the visiting experts will also cooperate with MCIT experts to solve specific regulatory issues currently facing the electronic communications market in Azerbaijan.

The programme is being implemented through the EBRD Legal Transition Programme and is supported by financing from the Government of Finland.

“This is the first step in a longer term commitment by EBRD to the development of the electronic communications sector in Azerbaijan” said Paul Moffatt, Senior Counsel, of the EBRD Legal Transition Team.

“We have developed the legislative framework and infrastructure in the field of electronic communications technology. Our activities have been focused on building up a free competition environment, introducing fair and transparent regulations and attracting new investments. With the new EBRD training programme, we will be able to satisfy the growing demand for new IT specialists and offer better services to our people,” said Iltimas Mammadov, the Deputy Minister at MCIT of Azerbaijan.

In Azerbaijan EBRD invests in the enterprise, financial and infrastructure sectors to promote rapid and sustainable growth. Since the beginning of its operations in Azerbaijan, the EBRD has invested about €1.2 billion in 105 projects, with over 60 per cent of the projects being investments into the development of the private sector.

EBRD funds technical assistance to Ministry of Communications and Information Technology of Azerbaijan