LLU and cheaper broadband
The South African Communications Forum (SACF) organized a Local Loop Unbundling (LLU) workshop today (14 July 2011), aiming to answer the question of whether Local Loop Unbundling can contribute towards developing South Africa’s national economy, or whether it is just a worthless, contentious and costly distraction in the national development debate.
The SACF focuses heavily on broadband and Internet access, citing the SA Stats household survey 2010 which showed that 17.1% of households had fixed lines.
The SACF further highlighted that South Africa should have a high internet growth rate percentage due to the fact that the country has a low internet penetration rate. South Africa’s current internet growth rate is significantly lower than similar developing countries. Fixed line broadband access can go a long way to boost these rates, raising the question of whether LLU is the way to achieve this goal.
“South Africa’s broadband prices far exceed the pricing of peer countries. Broadband prices are declining, but is this fast or deep enough?” the SACF questioned. “Only wealthy South Africans can afford continuous self-development through access to broadband ICTs. Can shared broadband over LLU be a broadband entry point for the urban poor before FTTx rollout reaches their communities?”
The SACF said that Local Loop Unbundling has the potential to be a potent start to delivering affordable services to South Africa’s marginalized population, but also warned that it can be a costly distraction and a short-term failure if handled through confrontation and lack of commitment and conviction by stakeholders.
The SACF concluded that LLU is not a panacea for South Africa’s development via ICT, but rather a small but vital component of the vast potential of ICTs to help solve the many socioeconomic challenges faced by the nation.
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