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Staying in Touch - Lebanon Strengthening IT Sector

Tuesday, 22 March 2011 14:51

Strengthening the IT sector, cutting costs to consumers and improving internet services are among Lebanon’s priorities, although more than a few hurdles stand in its way, Global Arab Network reports according to OBG.

At the end of January Charbel Nahhas, the caretaker telecommunications minister, said the country’s IT services were on the verge of a revolution, with the face of the industry set to change dramatically. Before the close of 2011, internet speeds would be increased to 21 Mbps, he said in an interview with English-language newspaper The Daily Star.

This increase, combined with improved telecoms services and reduced costs, would be the result of a new fibre-optics grid being installed by Swedish telecoms firm Ericsson, said Nahhas. Any speeding up of existing internet services would be welcomed by users and the industry alike, both of whom have long complained about slow transmission rates and a weak infrastructure backbone.

These complaints were given substance by a report issued in early March by web-based network diagnostic applications assessor Ookla, which showed that Lebanon had the slowest internet speeds in the world. The company’s Household Download Index ranked Lebanon in last place out of 169 countries around the world in terms of internet download speed, and gave it the same ranking in the upload index.

According to Ookla’s study, conducted in February 2011, the average download speed in Lebanon was 0.49 Mbps, dramatically below the global average of 9.14 Mbps and short of the 4.74 Mbps average enjoyed by countries in the Arab world. Lebanon’s average upload speed was no better at 0.1 Mbps, well below the global average of 2.55 Mbps and the Arab world’s average of 0.85 Mbps.

Another report, released in mid-February, was more optimistic, with market research firm Business Monitor International forecasting a near-12% increase in Lebanon’s IT sector in 2011. This growth comes after a year in which total sales of technology amounted to $321m. Stepping up programmes to put technology into Lebanon’s classrooms, as well as the prospect of increased sales to the private sector, bode well for retailers in the industry.

With personal computer ownership rates below 20% in Lebanon, the potential for sales to the public is also extensive, more so if the economy continues to perform well and the effects flow through to a broad swathe of the population.

The IT sector is expected to benefit from the huge investments in telecoms infrastructure that have been announced by the state, though this assessment could give rise to some scepticism. Many of the proposed investments in IT and communications infrastructure have been in the pipeline for a number of years, being dusted off and updated on a regular basis but never fully followed through.

Experts have warned that the economy will suffer if better services are not provided. Late last year, Gabriel Deek, the president of the Professional Computer Association of Lebanon, warned that the country risked missing out on foreign investment if it did not improve broadband capacity and cut costs. Deek also said state agencies such as the Telecommunications Ministry needed to understand that better services would garner higher revenues.

“The ministry must be aware of the fact that providing people with more bandwidth will increase revenues, and not the contrary, because the number of subscribers will go up,” he said.

One project that is well on the way to completion and will give a significant boost to IT and communications is the planned implementation of third-generation (3G) mobile phone technology. When in place, mobile phone users will be able to access the internet through their handsets, with connection speeds up to 40 times faster than the current DSL connectivity rates.

Though long delayed, with initial trials of 3G technology previously announced for early 2009, mobile phone service providers Alfa and MTC Lebanon are planning to have their upgraded networks on-line soon. This would mean more than 2.75m mobile subscribers would have access to vastly improved internet services.

Lebanon will still need to do more to expand and improve internet links, cut costs and encourage greater usage if it wants to take advantage of the IT available and integrate it into the national economy. Doing so will see the country become increasingly connected to the online world.

Global Arab Network

This article is published in partnership with Oxford Business Group

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