October 2021

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Recent Events

The 28th Meeting of the APT Wireless Group (AWG-28)

6 – 14 September 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The 28th Meeting of APT Wireless Group (AWG-28) was held virtually from 6 to 14 September 2021. AWG-28 was attended by 425 participants from APT Members, Associate Members, Affiliate Members, International Organizations and other organizations. 

During AWG-28, there were sessions of Working Groups, Sub-Working Groups and Task Groups to discuss the work progress on various work items. In addition, an Ad-Hoc Group was formed to discuss “AWG Restructuring” and “Focus of AWG Work”.

AWG-28 considered 86 contributions and developed following tangible outcomes:

·         New AWG Structure and ToR

·         Revision of the Working Methods of AWG

·         APT Report on operational scenarios and relevant national regulatory experiences upon systems of train positioning application of RSTT in some APT countries

·         APT Report on studies on implementation aspects of IMT-2020 in the frequency bands below 6 GHz in Asia-Pacific regions

·         APT Report on Vehicle Mounted Earth Stations (VMES) operating with GSO FSS networks in the Ku-band in APT countries

·         APT Report on current status and future plan of implementation and deployment of IMT-2020 (5G) in Asia-Pacific region

·         APT Report on mitigation measures to improve sharing and compatibility between 4G-LTE and 5G-NR systems and other systems operating in portions of 3300 – 4200 MHz

·         Liaison Statements to APG; ITU-R SGs; and 3GPP RAN, 3GPP RAN4 and 3GPP TSG SA & SA6

·         Questionnaires on:

-         Radio Frequency Beam Wireless Power Transmission

-         Wireless Power Transmission for Moving Machines

-         Non-beam WPT in 300 – 400 kHz, 1610 – 1950 kHz and 1950 -2150 kHz (revised)

In order to embrace the rapid changes in the radiocommunication sector, the 25th meeting of the AWG felt the necessity to change the structure of AWG which was last structured about a decade ago. AWG established Correspondence Groups to study a possible new structure that is suitable for APT members keeping in mind the overall objective of AWG. After many rounds of discussion at Correspondence Groups as well at AWG-26, AWG-27 and AWG-28, finally AWG-28 approved a new structure for AWG. The overview of the new structure is provided in the following table:

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APT Web Dialogue “Machine Learning and Deep Learning – Machines Getting Smarter and Smarter (tech03)”: 16 September 2021

Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication Regulators’ Council (SATRC) Working Group on Spectrum

20 September 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The Meeting of the SATRC Working Group on Spectrum (SATRC WG SPEC) was held virtually on 20 September 2021. The meeting was attended by 33 participants including the enlisted experts from 6 SATRC Regulators and a number of representatives from Affiliate Members.

SATRC WG SPEC discussed on the final report on the work items for Action Plan Phase VII as follows:

•        Assessment of current practices in spectrum management and developing spectrum roadmap

•        Spectrum re-farming

•        Spectrum consideration for the deployment of IoT

The meeting also discussed on new work items for study in Action Plan Phase VIII submitted by India, Islamic Republic of Iran, and Nepal. The final report will be submitted to the 22nd Meeting of the SATRC to be held in November this year.

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The 14th APT Policy and Regulation Forum for Pacific (PRFP-14)

21 - 23 September 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The 14th APT Policy and Regulation Forum for Pacific (PRFP-14) was held from 21 to 23 September 2021 as a virtual meeting. PRFP-14 was attended by 130 participants from Members, Associate Member, Affiliate Members, International Organizations, and other organizations.

This year, the Forum had a special high level roundtable inviting Ministers, Head of Regulators and high-level officials to share their insights and experiences in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. During the session, challenges they face and opportunities they try to leverage were introduced.

The Forum also covered several thematic sessions, including broadband connectivity, cybersecurity, OTT, and disaster management in which many prominent experts shared their invaluable information and insight.

The revision of the working method PRFP was approved by PRFP-14 which included Terms of Reference of a working group under PRFP. Members were invited to submit a proposal of the topics of working group for the consideration at the PRFP-15.

The meeting welcomed the proposal to host PRFP-15 from the Republic of Vanuatu in 2021 if the PRFP-15 is organized as face-to-face meeting.

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APT Web Dialogue “Unsolicited Commercial Communications-Challenges and Strategies (policy02)”, 24 September 2021

SATRC Workshop on Recent Trends and Technologies

27 - 28 September 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

SATRC Workshop Recent Trend and Technologies, which is a part of SATRC Action Plan Phase VII, was held virtually from 27 to 28 September 2021. The workshop was attended by 83 participants from SATRC Members, Affiliate Members, International Organization, other organization and invited expert speakers.

The workshop featured the keynote speech on Evolution of Technologies & Trends in Innovation sharing the role of the Policy Makers & Regulators by Dr. Manodha Gamage, ISaC (Pvt.) Ltd., Sri Lanka. There were presentations from BICMA Bhutan, TRAI India, NTA Nepal, PTA Pakistan, Axiata Group, OneWeb, KISA, GSMA, SoftBank, which covered topics including requirements and challenges for implementation of enhanced mobile broadband, 5G, new technologies for delivering connectivity until the last mile including LEO satellite, High-Throughput satellite, Non-Terrestrial network strategy, Policy and Regulatory Aspects of IoT and creating a roadmap for future, Data Privacy, Blockchain and its applications. The experts also shared their experience and use cases in their countries.

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Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication Regulators’ Council (SATRC) Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services (WG PRS)

29 September 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication Regulators’ Council (SATRC) Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services (WG PRS) was held virtually on 29 September 2021. The meeting was attended by 37 participants including the enlisted experts of this Working Group from  SATRC Member countries.

This meeting was organized as a part of the activities of SATRC Action Plan Phase VII which was adopted by the 19th Meeting of SATRC (SATRC-19) held in Islamabad, Pakistan. Later, the 21st Meeting of SATRC (SATRC-21) extended the implementation period of SATRC Action Plan Phase VII up to 2021 due to the prevailing COVID situation. SATRC WG PRS has been assigned the following work items for Action Plan Phase VII:

·       Regulatory approaches to enhance QoS of Mobile Operators

·       Digital Financial Services

·       Harmonizing ICT indicators in SATRC

The meeting discussed in detail and finalized the report on each work item assigned to WG PRS by the Council. The meeting also developed proposal for new work items to be studied in Action Plan Phase VIII. The reports on each work item and the proposal for new work items will be presented at the 22nd Meeting of SATRC (SATRC-22) for consideration and final approval.

 Click here for more details.

Upcoming Events

The 3rd Meeting of the APT Preparatory Group
for WTDC-21 (APT WTDC21-3)

5 - 8 October 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

APT WTDC21-3 is expected to consider the input contributions from APT members; review outcomes of RPM-ASP; review outcomes of the views of other regional organizations; review outcomes of TDAG and Council 2021; and develop Preliminary APT Common Proposals for WTDC-21.

The 9th Meeting of the Working Group of
Management Committee on APT Legal Instruments (WGMC-9)

20 - 21 October 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

WGMC-9 will review and discuss the tasks assigned by MC-44, i.e., Guidelines on Public Access to APT documents, use of terminology reflecting gender neutrality in APT documents and needs on collaboration or to conclude Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with other international/ regional organization

The 22nd Meeting of the South Asian Telecommunication
Regulators’ Council (SATRC-22)

1 - 3 November 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

SATRC-22 will discuss the key policy and regulatory issues in SATRC Member countries, approve the outcomes of SATRC Action Plan Phase VII and discuss and adopt SATRC Action Plan Phase VIII.

The meeting will also include special sessions such as Regulators’ Roundtable and Regulator-Industry Dialogue to facilitate the development of the telecommunications and ICT sector in South Asia region. The Regulators’ Roundtable will be held exclusively for the head of regulators to discuss and share thoughts on important regulatory issues that need regional collaboration among SATRC Members. Regulator-Industry Dialogue will provide unique opportunity to exchange opinions among regulators and industry on the issues of common interests.

The 3rd Meeting of the APT Conference
Preparatory Group for WRC-23 (APG23-3)

8 - 13 November 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The objectives of the APG23-3 are to review the results of the APG23-2 meeting; update APT preliminary views on WRC-23 Agenda Items based on input contributions from APT Members; consider the progress in ITU-R Study Groups in relation to WRC-23 Agenda items and take necessary actions as appropriate; review the activities of other regional organizations, in particular, their preliminary views/positions with a view to fostering inter-regional cooperation.

APG23-2 will also review issues related to RA-23 and develop preliminary views of APT, if any; contribute, where necessary, to the activities of APT Preparatory Group related to PP-22 with respect to the issues relevant to the purview of the APG; finalize review of the Working Methods of APG in relation to preparation for RA-23 and WRC-23 and submit draft amendments accordingly to the APT Management Committee; and discuss APT preparations for the ITU Inter-regional Workshop on WRC-23 Preparations.

Extraordinary Meeting of the APT Preparatory Group
for WTSA-20 (APT WTSA20-e)

17 - 19 November 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The main objectives of the meeting are to review the status of APT Members’ endorsement to the Preliminary APT Common Proposals (PACPs); review the ITU Preparation and outcomes of TSAG meeting; review the outcomes of the preparatory process of other regional organizations; review the proposals to WTSA-20 by other regions and develop possible APT Positions as appropriate; finalize the nomination of Office Bearers for WTSA-20; and develop necessary procedures and APT coordination arrangements during WTSA-20.

Seminar on Progress in the APT for the year 2021 (SPA-2021)

29 November 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The SPA-2021 is being held in conjunction with the 45th Session of the Management Committee of the APT (MC-45) to be held from 30 November to 3 December 2021.

SPA-2021 is a place where the progress made in the implementation of the APT Work Programmes and APT activities during the year 2021 are explained. 

The 45th Session of the Management Committee of the APT (MC-45)

30 November - 3 December 2021, Virtual/Online Meeting

The MC-45 will review the activities in 2021, which have been implemented under the Strategic Plan of the APT for 2021-2023 and will consider and approve the Work Programme and Annual Budget for 2022.

Quick Links to APT Work Programmes and Activities