11-13 November 2024: The 25th Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication Regulators’ Council (SATRC-25) was held from 11 to 13 November 2024 in New Delhi, India. It was hosted by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
The meeting was inaugurated by Honorable Mr. Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Minister for Communications, India, with a special address by Honorable Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications at the opening on 11 November 2024. The meeting was attended by the heads of telecommunication regulatory bodies of SATRC Member countries and designated senior-level officers, totaling 90 delegates who represented 9 SATRC Members and 12 Affiliate Members.
The meeting elected Mr. Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India as Chair of SATRC and Maj General (R) Hafeez Ur Rehman, Chairman, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority as Vice-Chair of SATRC. The meeting noted the report on the status of implementation of SATRC Action Plan Phase IX, report of the SATRC Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services, and report of the SATRC Working Group on Spectrum. The meeting also approved the activities of SATRC in 2025 under SATRC Action Plan Phase IX.
The SATRC-25 included sessions for Regulators’ Roundtable, Regulator-Industry Dialogue, Industry Session, and Sharing best practices and regulatory experiences. The theme for this year’s Regulators’ Roundtable was “Accelerate the development of telecommunication/ICT for fostering growth of economy and society in the South Asia region”. The Regulators’ Roundtable was held exclusively for the heads of regulators to discuss and share thoughts on the important regulatory issues that focused on digital transformation and digital inclusion.
The Regulator-Industry Dialogue sessions focused on enhancing accessibility, availability, and affordability of broadband in unserved and underserved areas, along with promoting efficient spectrum use through supportive policies and regulations. The Industry Session allowed the telecommunications and ICT industry within SATRC to discuss important regulatory issues and share their insights on various topics. These included best practices for satellite licensing, artificial intelligence and sustainability, Wi-Fi spectrum for enterprise connectivity, and ongoing reforms in India’s telecommunications industry. The Sharing Best Practices and Regulatory Experiences sessions discussed and shared policy and regulatory best practices and experiences on supporting the digital transformation of the economy and society, and recent achievements from SATRC Members.
The next SATRC meeting (SATRC-26) is expected to be held in Pakistan in the fourth quarter of 2025.