Premier Appoints Communications Authority Head

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) has named Balcha Reba as director-general of the newly formed Ethiopian Communications Authority.

Balcha, who holds a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Addis Abeba University's Faculty of Technology, was appointed as the head of the Authority in mid-September. Until his appointment, Balcha has been serving as director of the  Communication & Information Technology Standardization & Regulation Directorate under the Ministry of Innovation & Technology.

He has also served at the then Ethiopian Telecommunication Agency in different capacities including director of standards & type approval, acting director and head of standards. Before joining the Ethiopian Telecommunication Agency, he had worked at the Oromia Water Resource Bureau as an electrical engineer.

The Authority replaces the Communication & Information Technology Standardization & Regulation Directorate that has been operating with 60 employees. It will be mandated with licensing and regulating telecommunications operators, postal service providers and broadcasters.

Directly reporting to the Office of the Prime Minister, the Authority will also regulate tariffs, types of telecommunications equipment that are connected to a telecommunications network, authorise and supervise the radio frequency spectrum and manage internet protocol addresses and domain names.

Though it will directly report to the Prime Minister's Office, the Authority will have a seven-member board of management, whose members will be named by the Prime Minister. Four of the board members will be from government institutions, while the remaining members will be filled by candidates from the private sector and academia.

The proclamation, which established the Authority, has been in the making for over a year and was legislated by the parliament two months ago. It has liberalised the telecom industry by allowing both local and foreign investors to invest in telecommunications operations and services.

Along with privatising the minority share of Ethio telecom, the Ministry of Finance is working to let two international telecom operators join the sector next year. The Authority will be mandated to regulate these operators.