Last Wednesday the Libya Telecommunications and Technology Company (LTT) organized a preparatory forum with the private sector Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and investors in the communications and information technology sector in Tripoli.
The state LTT has a monopoly on the government supply of internet services selling directly to end users and wholesale to private sector ISPs. LTT is owned by the state telecoms holding company, LPTIC.
The event was held in the presence of the Chairman of the Telecommunications Holding Company (LIPTC), Mohamed Ben Ayad, and the Chairman of the Libya Telecommunications and Technology Company (LTT), Emaar Al-Bouzaidi, with the participation of private sector operating companies in communications and Libya’s leading private sector ISPs such as Giga and Rawafed as well as several businessmen and investors.
A smooth and advanced digital life for Libyan citizens
Commenting on the forum and its objectives, the Chairman of LTT, Emaar Al-Bouzaidi, said, “Preparations have been made to organize a preparatory forum between the company and private sector companies, including ISPs and investors, to establish effective partnerships that develop the internet services sector provided to end users. He said the forum also aims to listen to the problems of the private sector that arise and are faced while providing services to customers until solutions are developed to achieve one goal, which is to provide a smooth and advanced digital life for the Libyan citizen throughout the country.
Internet sector provides good returns for private sector
Al-Bouzaidi believes that the telecommunications sector, especially internet services, is a promising sector with many private sector companies and investors seeking to enter it because of its good returns with safety and low-risk. He said during the forum, the LTT will sit with private sector companies and investors individually to listen to them. It will evaluate their capabilities, and hear their problems, and discuss how to solve them, and to establish long-term, fruitful relationships. LTT will provide all support to investors and private sector companies, he stressed.
Quality of internet service to customers
Regarding his satisfaction with the quality of the internet service provided by LTT to customers, Al-Bouzaidi said, “The company does everything it can to provide high-quality internet services at acceptable prices, but the internet service often suffers due to piracy and cyber-attacks to which the LTT is exposed, as are all operating telecommunications companies in the country’’. He said with the necessary technical and preventive measures taken, an advanced and effective protection system has been installed, with a completion rate reaching 40 percent. He said it will be completed next month so that it completely prevents any future hacking or cyber-attacks, resulting in internet users feeling that the service has improved significantly.
2024 will witness qualitative shift in service provision
As for network development work, Al-Bouzaidi reported that the company is increasing the number of communications towers and increasing the network’s capacity, so that 2024 will witness a qualitative shift in internet services and the level of service provision and will gain customer satisfaction.
Private sector ISPs limited by their technology
Regarding the ability of the private sector to provide an ideal, high-quality internet service, Al-Bouzaidi stressed the limited capabilities of private sector ISPs companies due to the technologies they use. However, he said these companies continue to strive for the best since they were first allowed to work in this field in 2016, and the LTT will provide its full support to help them advance and provide high-quality internet service at competitive prices. Nevertheless, he stressed that the LTT will continue to provide its services directly to customers in partnership with the private sector so that there is no shortage until the stage of saturation, after which the company will seek to expand in other countries.
Forum is a basis for PPP
Al-Bouzaidi stressed that the forum is a new basis for partnership between telecommunications companies in the public and private sectors, and unifying efforts to improve the level of services and work on implementing projects to digitize sectors and government departments, and to govern data and information within the vision of the LPTIC.
