Communications link vital

TELECOMMUNICATIONS is essential and should be available to every citizen.
In Papua New Guinea, with its geographical terrain and chain of islands, many rural populations still find it hard to connect with the outside world.
Lives can be saved at sea if we have more cellphone towers build in the islands, for example.
If all places were connected, timely evacuation process could be carried out to save lives during times of natural disasters.
The national government, through the department of communications and technology, should work with all district development authorities to identify locations that do not have network coverage and draw up a partnership with the three major telecommunications providers – Digicel, Telikom and bmobile Vodafone – to build more telecommunications towers. These companies pay huge taxes to the government. The government should therefore provide rebate or give tax incentives in the form of logistical support and meet some costs to enable these providers to build more towers.
In return for the investment, these telecommunications firms will benefit from the business generated.
That’s a fair deal.
We have a ministry, a department responsible to deliver this essential service to the people of Papua New Guinea.
The most important and sensitive issue to worry about is the ownership of the land on which this project will be built on.
Over to you Sam Basil.

Hanam Bill Sandu
Lae