Communications and Information Technology Commission signs 3 new universal service projects

The Communications and Information Technology Commission announced today, Monday, the signing of 3 new projects among the Commission's universal service projects, which aim to provide voice services and internet services in a number of villages and hamlets in a number of regions of the Kingdom.

His Excellency the Governor of the Communications and Information Technology Commission, Engineer Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Darrab, explained that the Commission's Board of Directors approved awarding the ninth, tenth, and eleventh universal service projects, which aim to deliver voice services and internet services to a number of villages and hamlets in a number of governorates belonging to Madinah region, Hail region, Jazan region, Asir region, and Tabuk region. He noted that these projects come amid the great care and generous support enjoyed by the communications and information technology sector in the Kingdom from the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques - may God protect him - as the Kingdom has taken great strides in spreading communications and information technology services in villages and hamlets spread throughout the Kingdom, noting that licensed telecom companies are responsible for providing services in all areas they have committed to, according to their issued licenses and relevant regulations. As for remote population clusters with low population density that do not fall within these companies' obligations, the state - may God protect it - has been keen to spread communications and information technology services in all regions of the Kingdom, including all remote population clusters with low population density. Therefore, the Commission prepared a policy for serving all remote population clusters, and this policy was approved by His Excellency the Minister of Communications and Information Technology. The Commission also established a Universal Service Fund within its administrative apparatus to oversee the implementation of the Commission's projects to serve these clusters.

Engineer Al-Darrab noted that, thanks to God, the Commission has been able to launch eleven (11) projects to deliver voice services and internet services to a number of villages and hamlets belonging to 119 governorates distributed across all regions of the Kingdom, noting that the implementation of such projects comes with full government funding, as part of enhancing the state's efforts - may God protect it - towards achieving comprehensive, sustainable, and balanced development for all regions of the Kingdom, and delivering services to citizens and residents.

Al-Darrab revealed that the Commission aims to launch three other projects during the second half of this year, to serve a number of villages and hamlets belonging to 28 governorates in a number of regions of the Kingdom, and it is expected that the completion of these projects will complete the targeting of all villages and hamlets with services throughout the Kingdom.

Regarding the progress of the Commission's universal service projects, the Director General of the Universal Service Fund, Engineer Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al-Sabhan, explained that the projects have been completed according to the timeline for each project's progress, as projects 1, 2, 3, and 4 have been fully completed, delivering voice services and internet services to the targeted villages and hamlets in these projects, while work on the fifth and sixth projects has been completed at 90%, with work continuing to complete the remainder of these projects according to the timeline. In 2013, the seventh and eighth projects were awarded, and 44% of them have been completed so far, with work continuing as planned to complete these projects.

It is worth noting that the method followed for awarding universal service projects is through inviting all companies licensed to provide communications and information technology services in the Kingdom (fixed and mobile telephone operators), after which the technical and financial proposals submitted by them are analyzed, and the selection falls on the service provider that requests the least financial support and meets the technical requirements. All necessary regulatory procedures have been completed for evaluating and analyzing the technical and financial proposals submitted by companies competing for the projects, with these procedures resulting in Saudi Telecom Company winning the ninth, tenth, and eleventh projects. The winning universal service provider for a project is obligated to implement the services in the targeted villages and hamlets and monitor coverage levels and service quality in those areas.