SA’s Electronic Communications Bill passed
The Bill – previously known as the Convergence Bill – will now be sent to the second chamber of Parliament – the National Council of Provinces – for concurrence.
The objects of the Bill included refining "the legal and regulatory framework in order to allow us to drive the convergence of technologies and services that have historically been developed and regulated separately", said Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri.
The minister said the Bill provided for "a dramatic increase in the number, types and quality of licensees thus enabling South Africans from all walks of life to have a vast range of services at their disposal".
She said the Bill set out a new licencing framework separating the licensing of services from that of infrastructure. The Bill provides for the development of the national frequency spectrum plan "which will allow for better management and planning for future use of the spectrum", she added.
In terms of the Bill a national emergency number is established – on the number 112. Accordingly 112 emergency centres "must transmit a request for an emergency service to an emergency organisation".
The Assembly also passed the related Independent Communications Authority of South Africa Amendment Bill. This provides for the regulator to consist of a chairperson and eight councillors appointed by the Communications Minister after a panel selected by National Assembly presents names to the minister. It must provide a list of potential councillors one and a half times longer than the vacancies on the council.
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