WORLD RADIO COMMUNICATIONS CONFERENCE BEGINS IN GENEVA

 By Innocent Mungy

Geneva, 3 November 2015 

The 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference, the international treaty-making Conference, opened in Geneva yesterday. The treaty-making Conference is expected to allocate spectrum for rapidly evolving ICTs”

The conference which started yesterday 2^nd November to 27 November, will review the international regulatory framework for radiocommunications – the Radio Regulations – and revise them as needed. This process will take into account the rapid evolution of information and communication technologies (ICT), ensuring the global management of the radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits, and enabling people to live and travel safely while enjoying high performance radiocommunications.

During the opening Ceremony, Mr Festus Yusufu Narai Daudu of Nigeria was appointed Chairman of the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference along with six Vice Chairmen: Mr A. Jamieson (New Zealand), Mr Y. Al-Bulushi (Oman), Mr D. Obam (Kenya), Ms D. Tomimura (Brazil), Mr A. Kühn (Germany), and Mr N. Nikiforov (Russian Federation).

3800 delegates, representing more than 160 out of ITU’s 193 Member States are attending the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15). About 100 observers from among ITU’s 700 private sector members along with international organizations also attending the conference.

ITU Secretary General during the opening ceremony said the 2015 World Radio Conference will set new and better ways to regulate radio services and applications.

“The 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference will define new and better ways to regulate radio services and applications,” said ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao. “In a world where radiocommunications play an increasingly important role in connecting people, I am convinced that the outcome of the conference will contribute towards making the world a better place for all.” He added.

“With the relentless expansion of wireless services worldwide, all services relying on radio waves are competing for a share of the radio-frequency spectrum to support new applications, growing user numbers and exploding traffic,” said François Rancy, Director of ITU’s Radiocommunication Bureau in his speech during the beginning of the conference.

“The deliberations at WRC-15 and its outcomes will ensure that we can maintain a stable, predictable and universally applied regulatory environment that secures long-term investments for a multi-trillion-dollar industry.” Said Mr. Rancy.

Tanzania, an ITU member is participating in 2015 World Radio conference with participants from Ministry of Communications, Science and Technology, Ministry of Infrastructure (Zanzibar Government), TTCL, Tanzania Maritime Agency, TCRA and other stakeholders.

World radiocommunication conferences (WRC) are held every three to four years. It is the job of WRC to review, and, if necessary, revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of the radio-frequency spectrum and the geostationary-satellite and non-geostationary-satellite orbits. Revisions are made on the basis of an agenda determined by the ITU Council, which takes into account recommendations made by previous world radiocommunication conferences.

The general scope of the agenda of world radiocommunication conferences is established four to six years in advance, with the final agenda set by the ITU Council two years before the conference, with the concurrence of a majority of Member States.

Background Information To Media Houses:

WRC-15 will address a number of key issues, in particular:

•   Mobile broadband communications: Provision of additional frequencies to meet the rapidly growing demand for mobile broadband communications.

•   Emergency communications and disaster relief: Allocation of frequencies for advanced public protection and disaster relief.

•   Monitoring the environment and climate change: New allocations for earth-exploration satellite services with higher resolution radar imagery for improved global environmental monitoring.

•   Unmanned aircraft and wireless avionics systems: Spectrum for the aeronautical sector, related to the use of unmanned aircraft systems, and wireless avionics intra-communications to allow for the heavy and expensive wiring used in aircraft to be replaced by wireless systems.

•   Global flight tracking for civil aviation: WRC-15 will consider allocating spectrum for global flight tracking for improved safety.

•   Enhanced maritime communications systems: Maritime communications, facilitating the use of on-board digital transmissions and automatic identification system on vessels for improved navigation safety.

•   Road Safety: Allocation of frequencies for short range, high-resolution radars for collision avoidance systems in vehicles for increased road safety.

•   Operation of satellite systems: Allocation of spectrum for broadband satellite systems; providing for earth stations on-board moving platforms, such as ships and aircraft; and improving coordination procedures to make more efficient use of spectrum and satellite orbits.

•   Universal Time: examining the feasibility of achieving a continuous reference time-scale, by modifying Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).