A five-day training programme that uses Singapore as a learning model and is based on Singapore's own infocomm experience – the issues, challenges and successes – is attracting high-level participants from around the world.

26 delegates from 19 countries took part in the joint Singapore-International Telecommunication Union (ITU) training programme on "Enabling Frameworks for ICT Development - The Singapore Experience", which was held last month.

Mrs Forbes: I came expecting a lot and I have not been disappointed.

Mr Pheko: The course handles both theory and practice and is highly relevant to the industry.

Mr Mushtaq Ahmad: We are moving to uniform licensing and I was particularly interested in those topics.

Pengiran Salleh Aji: It was good of IDA to be so transparent in telling us the issues they faced.

Mrs Wanjau: It shows me how Singapore went from a third world country to a first, and that gives hope.

One of them was Mrs Marcia Althea Forbes, Chairman of the Spectrum Management Authority of Jamaica. "I came expecting a lot and I have not been disappointed," she said. "This is an exceptional course. If it is continued, we will make it our business to be here, every year, representing our region."

Mr Thari Pheko, Chief Executive Officer of the Botswana Telecommunication Authority, concurred. "The course is very informative as it handles both theory and practice and is highly relevant to the industry," he said.

Aimed at senior officers of developing countries, the course aims to promote regulatory cooperation at the sub-regional and regional levels, assist ITU members to develop various policy and regulatory skills and framework on common current telecommunication/ICT issues and establish and implement mechanisms for sharing and exchanging information, experiences and best practices.

It covers key policy and regulatory principles that IDA faces such as policy and competition, licensing, interconnection, as well as radio and spectrum issues.

Mr Mushtaq Ahmad, Director of Telecoms, Ministry of IT and Telecoms (MOITT) of Pakistan, was particularly impressed by the comprehensiveness of the course. "We are moving to uniform licensing and I was particularly interested in those topics. I have not been disappointed."

According to Mr Andy Haire, Deputy Director-General (Telecoms & Post) from the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), the course uses Singapore as a learning model and is based on the marketplace experience gained from Singapore's telecom sector. "However, the intention is not to promote a single model of ICT development. Rather the purpose is to help participants better appreciate the complexities, challenges and opportunities of a market, assisting them to develop a foundation to realise their own regulatory frameworks based on their particular objectives," he said.

Pengiran Salleh Aji, Assistant Chief Executive to the Authority for Infocommunication Technology Industry (AiTi) Brunei, said using the Singapore model was a great help as issues, challenges and successes were discussed based on real-life experiences.

"The critical issues were all brought up during the case studies. It was good of IDA to be so transparent and honest in telling us the issues they faced. The principle here is transparency and that is so important in the sharing of knowledge. It really helps the people attending the course. Like me, they are responsible for regulating our environment. The value-add to us is we can implement some of the ideas that we have learnt from here to resolve our own issues when we get home," he added.

Apart from the classroom style learning, the course also included site visits to service providers' facilities. "The exchange was excellent. We saw their issues and they were not afraid to speak their mind about IDA, criticising them in areas where they think that it had not done a good enough job and giving praise, where praise was due. It is good to see such open relationships between the regulator and service providers," Mr Pheko of Botswana said. "IDA really showed us that it walked the talk."

Interacting with officials from other countries was also a plus point. As Mrs Forbes of Jamaica pointed out, it gave her a chance to gauge where other countries were going.

The course helped to open up new thought frontiers. "It shows me how Singapore went from a third world country to a first, and that gives hope," said Mrs Mercy Wanjau, Principal Legal Officer at the Communications Commission of Kenya.

For programme details on "Enabling Frameworks for ICT Development - The Singapore Experience", click here.