Colombia. The World Association of Mobile Operators - GSMA - recognized Colombia as the country with the best government strategy for spectrum management for mobile broadband communications. The award was presented within the framework of the Mobile Globe Awards, awards that highlight the government initiatives with the greatest impact in telecommunications.
The country received this recognition as a result of the spectrum management being carried out by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies and the National Spectrum Agency, to support the expected growth of mobile internet connections and long-term planning that will achieve the goals of the Vive Digital Plan for the people.
"The task that the ICT Ministry has been carrying out hand in hand with the ANE is intended to prepare our country for the new scenarios posed by the digital revolution. Proper spectrum management will allow us to respond to increased demand for connectivity and services, which in turn will translate into benefits for our people. This recognition reaffirms that we are doing the task as it should," said the Minister of Information and Communications Technologies, David Luna Sánchez, who from Colombia celebrated the award given in Barcelona.
In 2012 the policy implemented by the Colombian Government for the ICT sector was recognized by this same association, as the Best Public Policy for broadband access, an aspect that shows the growth of the country in this regard.
In granting the recognition, the GSMA takes into account proper planning, vision for the future and how the availability of spectrum for mobile broadband communications is promoted and aspects such as transparency and working with stakeholders.
For this year, the participation and results obtained in the World Radio Conference 2015 held in November in Geneva, Switzerland, where Colombia took its positions derived from several studies of the frequency bands that can be used in the future for mobile communications in the country, were evaluated in a special way.
"This is the highest recognition that a spectrum regulator can receive in the world and we are very proud that Colombia has won it. It is an award for the well-done management that we have been advancing in recent years, with which we guarantee that there is availability of spectrum to favor mobile broadband communications in the country, as well as greater quality and coverage" says Martha Liliana Suárez Peñaloza, Director of the National Spectrum Agency.
Thanks to the adequate planning of spectrum requirements for broadband in the coming years, the migration costs of active users of the bands can be reduced. Thus, the money that would be spent on such migrations can be used in other matters of greater importance to the country.
In the same way, with the adequate planning and management of the spectrum, it is sought to give certainty to the mobile operators that they will have enough spectrum for the expected growth of their connections and their capacity, thus allowing them to offer new and better services in the future, which ultimately benefits users who can access broadband connectivity with the best quality.
