Fishing telecom style
p. 45 · Read in the full issue
“GIVE a man a fish, says an ancient Chinese proverb, and he is certain to come back and ask for more, teach him to fish, and he will never come back to bother you.”
This proverb is true of the increasing emphasis the Forum Secretariat’s Telecommunications Division places on training as part of its regional mandate.
Each year, the Division’s Re gional Telecommunications Train
ing Co-ordinator, Fiji’s Yugeshwar
Prakash draws up a comprehensive training program for future telecom managers, senior technicians and others from the 13 Forum island countries.
Participants undergo up to three weeks of intensive training pro vided by an overseas consultant, specialising in human resource de velopment.
By the end of this year alone, some 200 senior telecom workers from technicians to managers will have attended one of these courses.
This program began in May 1990 initially for three years.
But increasing need for highly-trained management within telecom organisations in Forum island countries mean the program has to be extended.
“It seems that we have only scratched the surface of the need to train manpower resources in Forum island countries,” said Prakash.
“The ever-changing technology of telecommunications only compounds the manpower problem faced by island states in the region.
“Our task now is to keep training island people in key areas so they keep abreast with the changes,” Prakash said.
The Forum Secretariat’s Telecommunications Division keeps abreast with the changes.
For instance, the secretariat has established links with such organisations as the British Executive Service Overseas (BESO), the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Netherlands International Telecommunica
tions Training Co-operation (NITTC).
The Secretariat-ITU association has been a long one with ITU providing specialist consultants to run a number of courses organised by the Telecommunications Division.
But soon after a visit to the United Kingdom and the Netherlands late last year, Prakash scored a major coup with BESO and NITTC agreeing to provide free (except for airline tickets and accommodation), human resource devel opment specialists as consultants for on-going telecom management courses.
BESO, an organisation of retired executives based in Britain, has already sent a consultant to run a basic supervision course for telecom middle managers from Forum island countries.
NITTC has provided two consultants so far this year to run telecom management courses in Fiji including one in August/September at which 19 participants from the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Niue, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa took part.
At the same time, NITTC has agreed to provide placings for candidates from Forum island countries if such specialised courses are not available locally or in the region.
Prakash noted the secretariat’s use of Telecom Training Centres (TTCs) in Fiji and the Solomon Islands for these courses, saying the availability of these facilities has been very useful.
Papua New Guinea is the only other Forum island country with its own Telecom Training Centre and the secretariat hopes to use it from next year.
The secretariat is encouraging co operation among the three TTCs.
The first step was taken last Decem ber when top managers discussed how to work together to maxiise resources aimed at infrastructural self-sufficiency. The result would be other Forum island states which do not own a Telecom Training Centre
benefiting from this co-operation.
Funding for the Regional Tele
communications Training Program comes largely from the European Community (EC), supplemented by Australia and New Zealand.
The SFI million EC funding, however, is restricted to participants from the eight Forum island country states who are AGP Pacific Group Members of the EC, namely, Fiji, Kiribati, PNG, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa.
EC funding also enables the secretariat’s Telecommunica tions Division to provide a two-year technician certificate course at the Fiji TTC. As well, in-country courses, tailored to the specific needs of Forum island countries are conducted from time to time, although the frequency is determined by country requests.
The cost of participants from other Forum island countries to these and other telecom courses are picked up by other donors.
The training program only forms part of the work that the secretariat’s Telecommunications Division undertake in telecommunications.
For instance, the division has the overall responsibilities over a multi-million dollar regional telecommunications construction projects funded under Lome 111.
These projects involved building works associated with coastwatch stations on Kiribati’s Kiritimati Island, in the Solomon Islands and in Tonga. These stations with state-of the-art equipment are due to be completed next year.
From next year, EC funding under Lome IV will focus on human resource development, hence training.
Efforts by the Telecommunications Division to stage workshops and seminars in other areas such as rural telecommunications services and an initiative to develop a regional policy position on the use of Low Earth Orbiting Satellites (LEOs) will continue.
Support for the division’s other activities for next year and beyond is also expected to come from a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) proposal now under consideration.
Other offers of assistance have come from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in a technical assistance package to undertake a South Pacific Regional Study on various aspects of telecommunications including tariffs and billing systems.
This project was unanimously supported by officials at the August 4-6 Fourth Regional Telecommunications Commit tee Meeting in Tonga. □