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TRA Annual Report 2017 en PDF
TRA Annual Report 2017 en PDF
The Journey Thus Far – A Look-back (TRA Timeline) 13 The Roadmap to Smart Future 60
Leading by Example 20
TRA
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
VISION&
MISSION VALUES
Inspiring:
Our imagination, clarity of thought
and clear leadership stimulates
innovative thinking that meets the
needs of tomorrow.
Commitment:
OUR MISSION Our drive and determination to
To develop a competition led achieve excellence, our discipline
market for the provision of in the execution of our duties, our
innovative communications services, focus on the development of our
available to all, which: encourages team, and our sense of responsibility
sustainable, economically efficient instil passion for the development of
investment; respects the interests the Kingdom of Bahrain.
OUR VISION of consumers; fosters ecologically
A communications environment that
friendly initiatives; and supports the Respect:
enriches the social and commercial
social and commercial welfare of the Our respect for each other is ensured
fabric of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Kingdom of Bahrain. by listening, collaborating and
having consideration for each other,
To continue to build as an exemplar the public and licensees we work
regulator within the region through for, the environment and future
thought leadership and to be the generations.
employer of choice by: investing in
our people to develop a professional, Balanced:
passionate team; transparency Our evidence based approach to
and fairness in operations; and decision making and our adaptability
adherence to quality assurance. ensure that we remain proportionate,
consistent, fair and just
Transparency:
Our open and inclusive approach to
regulation ensures that we are held
responsible and our actions and
decisions are understood.
2017 5
A FOCUSED STRATEGY
With the aim of achieving its mission and vision objectives, as well as ensuring it is moving in the right direction, TRA has designed a Focused Strategy
Framework, which outlines the Authority’s guidelines to create a communications environment that enriches the social and commercial fabric of the
Kingdom of Bahrain. TRA will ensure its plans and initiatives are consistently implemented in line with the following strategic points:
2017 6
OVERVIEW
2017
2017 7
A PROLIFIC YEAR
An accomplishing year, 2017 ushered in a new era in the Another highlight of 2017 was Initiating the groundwork
Bahrain telecommunication sector, setting the stage for the for the implementation of 5th generation of mobile
introduction of next-generation ICT infrastructure, while networks (5G). The Telecommunications Regulatory
enhancing the Kingdom’s presence on the global level. Authority laid down the roadmap to establishing a 5G
ecosystem in Bahrain, in its position paper titled: ‘Fixed
Initiating the implementation of the Government policy Point to Point Links’, along with a workshop with the
outlined in the Fourth National Telecommunications concerned entities, to discuss and facilitate the imminent
Plan (“NTP4”), the TRA commenced development of a deployment of 5G networks.
new economic regulatory framework, defining the rules
and obligations for operators to support the Plan’s goals In light of the critical importance of the telecommunications
and deliver the single network policy, one of the core sector to the Kingdom’s digital economy and businesses,
objectives of the plan. TRA issued the ‘Critical Telecommunications Infrastructure
(CTI) Risk Management Regulation’ in 2017; an effective
In line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the goal of framework to elevate the telecommunications sector
becoming a ‘Smart Kingdom’, TRA started establishing cyber security readiness, and harmonize efforts between
appropriate support and incentives to promote ICT local and global best practices.
investment as well as training programs and capacity
building to foster the development of a Bahraini knowledge Bahrain also attained a mature stage of Cyber Security
base, talent and entrepreneurs in the internet space – readiness as per the assessment of the International
committed to transform the nation into a leading regional Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) ‘Global Cyber Security
business and ICT hub for internet businesses, content and Index 2017’.
applications, by 2018.
TRA also continued to shine on the world stage. Among
A core objective set by TRA in this direction is the others, TRA was awarded the ‘Employer of the Year –
development of optical- fiber based National Broadband Public Sector’ at the Human Capital Forum Mena 2017,
Network (NBN) capable of delivering ultra-fast broadband for the second time consecutively.
to consumers and businesses across the Kingdom; a key
development underpinning all of the policies established The operational excellence of TRA reaping rewards;
by NTP4. Kingdom of Bahrain stood 1st in the Arab world, and
31st globally, in the ICT Development Index (IDI). The
A clear spectrum policy plan has also been adopted in Kingdom was also ranked 1 globally for mobile broadband
2017, for assignment of appropriate bands through clearly penetration, and 2nd for internet users.
identified processes in order to support the continued
evolution and demand in the mobile data services. TRA remains steadfast in its commitment to transform the
Kingdom’s telecommunication sector; constantly breaking
A review of the entire supply chain of international new grounds, and creating new avenues of opportunity,
connectivity was also set in motion to assess the progress, and prosperity.
effectiveness of current regulation relating to the ability
of licensed operators to access international connectivity
at cable landing stations in Bahrain.
2017 8
CHAIRMAN’S
STATEMENT
Driving Digital Demand
Setting many new things in motion; opening many new horizons, 2017 was yet
another prolific year for the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA),
The Authority is dedicated towards fostering new technologies for an efficient
telecommunications sector, with first class infrastructure. This is reflected in another
the highlight of which has been the Initiating the implementation of the Fourth important mission that TRA undertook in 2017: Initiating the groundwork for the
National Telecommunications Plan (NTP4). implementation of 5th generation of mobile networks (5G).
As the world arrives at the cusp of another digital revolution, that will accelerate The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) laid down the roadmap to
changes to business, government and society; Bahrain is leaving its footprint as a establishing a 5G ecosystem in Bahrain, in its recently published position paper
technology-savvy nation on the globe – with TRA proudly being the catalyst, playing titled: ‘Fixed Point to Point Links’, in collaboration with relevant government
an active role in shaping the country’s ICT (Information and Communications bodies – taking into account all the vital aspects related to realizing the project.
Technology) landscape. Subsequently, a workshop was also organized involving telecommunications
operators, relevant government entities and telecom equipment manufacturers,
The sector’s relentless progress furthered Bahrain achieving 1st rank in the Arab to discuss and facilitate the imminent deployment of 5G networks.
world; and 31st globally on the ICT Development Index (IDI), published by the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The Kingdom of Bahrain is also at TRA ensures cybersecurity and cyber safety are important ongoing objectives
the global forefront in terms of internet penetration and usage; ranked 1 globally and confirms that its critical telecommunications infrastructures are as secure
for mobile broadband penetration, and 2 for internet users. and resilient as possible. In 2017, TRA issued the ‘Critical Telecommunications
As the nation’s demand for telecommunications services continues to evolve with Infrastructure (CTI) Risk Management Regulation’; an effective framework to
innovative online high-bandwidth applications and content, TRA responds to these elevate the telecommunications sector cyber security readiness, and harmonize
developments by prioritizing investment in new high-speed infrastructure, with efforts between local and global best practices.
evolving services such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine-to-Machine
(M2M) communications, under the auspices of the NTP4. In this direction, we feel pleased to announce that Bahrain reached a mature
stage of Cyber Security readiness as per the assessment of the International
We at TRA, recognize the need for an energetic digital services sector to drive social Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) ‘Global Cyber Security Index 2017’. The index
and economic development and job creation, and focus to ensure that Bahrain measured the cyber security commitment levels of all 193 ITU state members
attracts the talents of the future; driving digital exports across the region and beyond. based on five key pillars ranging from legal, technical, organizational, to capacity
building and cooperation.
IoT constitutes a next phase of the development of the Internet. Enabled by rapid
performance increases in the ICTs, we are hoping the Internet of Things will greatly Recognizing regional coordination and cooperation as key in the international
expand the digital footprint in Bahrain. arena, TRA continues its efforts to exchange knowledge and coordinate various
projects with regional regulators. TRA participates in key projects and takes the
Foundations are being laid for a robust telecommunications platform that will lead on the Arab Price Benchmarking report, which is considered one of the most
transform the Kingdom of Bahrain, by 2018, into a leading regional hub for internet important reports that allows the region to evaluate the current market status.
businesses, content and applications, by establishing appropriate support and To conclude, TRA is fully committed to achieve and accomplish the pursuits it
incentives to promote ICT investment. newly acquired during the very fruitful year 2017, to stimulate wider economic
growth, consistent with the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 and the
The dynamic ICT eco-system, will also enhance the ability of the Kingdom and its goal of becoming a ‘Smart Kingdom’, i.e., one that uses ICT to optimal effect for
citizens to achieve a range of societal objectives, including improvements in health the benefit of consumers, business, Government and the environment.
care, education and the ability of citizens to communicate with governmental
bodies. Steps are also being taken by TRA to ensure that legislative, policy and TRA has been fortunate to have a dedicated workforce with focused leaders
regulatory frameworks reflect the new reality and evolving architecture of a and competent employees, who strive endlessly to ensure success for TRA in its
converged ICT eco-system. endeavors. I would like to take the opportunity to thank the Board of Directors
and Acting General Director, as well as the TRA staff members for their highly
At TRA, we emphasize on the training and development of “local talent” ― skilled commendable performance.
Bahraini ICT professionals, applications and online content developers, and
internet entrepreneurs; as part of plans to foster the development of a Bahraini We look forward to your continued faith in TRA’s exciting journey into the future.
knowledge base in the sector and maintain Bahrain’s position in the development
of the regional telecommunications sector. DR. MOHAMMED AHMED AL AMER
Chairman
Telecommunications Regulations Authority (TRA)
2017 9
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Major General Riadh Eid Abdulla Sh. Hamed Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Tareq Jalil Al Saffar
Board Member Board Member Board Member
2017 10
Message
REDDEFINING CONNECTIVITY
GENERAL DIRECTOR’s
Building on the Kingdom’s aspirations to be- Another area of major achievement for 2017
come global ICT leader, 2017 saw the adop- was consumer welfare, with focus on efficien-
tion of the government’s vision under the 4th cy and affordability. Consumers in the King-
National Telecommunications Plan (NTP4). dom now enjoy better cellular privileges and
Delivery of Ubiquitous Ultrafast Broadband price benefits including reduced GCC roaming
2017 11
EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT
Sh. Nasser bin Mohamed Al Khalifa Faisal Ali Aljalahma Mohamed Albinali
Deputy General Director Director of Finance, Information Director of Market and Competition
Technology and Human Resources
Dr. Khalid Bin Duaij Al Khalifa Mohamed Alnoaimi Dr. Jean Pierre Scerri
Director of Cyber Security Director of Technical and Operations Acting Director Legal Affairs
2017 12
THE JOURNEY
THUS FAR - A LOOK BACK
2017 13
TRA TIMELINE
A crucial need for progress in the With our launch, a newfound approach With the plans set and the telecommunication Pushing connectivity and progress forward From a base of BD152 million in 2003, the
telecommunications sector arises, thus to the telecommunications industry was market becoming more of a level play field, we granted the license to Bahrain Internet telecommunications industry generated BD253
the Telecommunications Regulatory revealed. Our dealings brought about a 2004 provided operators with an opportunity Exchange. Although Bahrain Internet million in 2006; equivalent to annual average
Authority was established, and clearer perspective to the oft-confusing world to shine. The launch of a second mobile Exchange (BIX) began to operate the growth of about 20%. At this point, focus has
the Telecommunications Law was of telecom. We adopted an; Open Dialogue operator in the Kingdom of Bahrain breathed kingdom’s Internet connection point in shifted solely on targeting the needs of the
implemented for the first time in Bahrain. policy that encouraged interaction and new life into the market; providing consumers 2004, full effects were felt in 2005. BIX consumer. Realizing the importance of the end
feedback by exchanging ideas. Additionally, with the ability to choose. This historic move acted as the hub for Internet connectivity user we wanted to provide a means of dialogue
we simplified and clarified the processes in created a more transparent environment for all and traffic within the kingdom. This license that encouraged active participation. When
the sector, by making a lot of our information telecommunications stakeholders. The impact established an advanced, competitive offering the campaign; Keep Asking was launched, the
public. With fixed lines in the country growing was extensively evident; mobile penetration in the kingdom aimed at reducing costs of consumer finally had a voice in the market.
from 175 thousand to 185 thousand in one rose from 45% to 57%, broadband internet connectivity and increasing Internet usage. We initiated a consumer helpline where by all
year and mobile customer penetration at penetration was at 20%, and fixed lines rose Not only did these initiatives change the users could dial in directly and provide their
45%, this approach aimed to build consumer to 191,553 thousand. With a steady growth of telecommunications market; it provided job honest feedback on matters that could not be
trust through transparency. revenue at 5% the role of telecommunications opportunities for Bahraini residents which solved by their operator. This awareness push
in the Kingdom of Bahrain became essential. resulted in a 20% increase in the sector. created a 35% increase in call-ins compared
The next step to create a healthy to last year.
telecommunication environment was our Interconnection was also an area of interest, since During this active year a panel of industry
implementation of the liberalization plan. it was crucial for all operators to link to their experts was commissioned to analyze and To keep the consumer voice heard and our
This plan provided the country with an networks. Without effective interconnection the review our current performance. The panel performance consistent various panels were
opportunity for economic advancement since subscribers of one network would not be able recommended working towards a more invited again for a review, making sure our
different sectors could converge and create to communicate with another. This created a robust framework to allow more access to focus was clear and that nothing could deviate
new business prospects, as well as more larger pool of cross network opportunity. Keeping new operators and increasing consumer us from our mission as a regulatory authority.
global exposure for Bahrain. We provided consumer interest at heart, we implemented protection by directly communicating to The common goal of protection, fairness
18 licenses in the year; encouraging the the numbering initiative that introduced 8 them. This is where we decided to bring and transparency was being highlighted and
growth of the telecommunication market digits to the public and laid the foundations consumer awareness to the forefront of our referred to consistently. Also, as number of
to BD152 million and making it the fourth for current and future expansion of lines. We activities and we launched our first consumer internet subscribers rose incredibly in 2006
impactful industry in the country. At the also introduced the pre-carrier selection where campaign. Since mobile penetration in 2005 to 38,628 from 21,432 in 2005, the idea of
end of 2003 the second telecommunication by the consumer now had a choice to pick rose to from 57% to 81% this year, awareness protection and education became something
operator license was granted; MTC-Vodafone which carrier they wanted, and supported this amongst younger and older generations that we wanted to encourage when surfing
began to function, and for the first time in by initiating educational telecoms campaigns became crucial, so we moved to educate the net.
Bahrain there was actual competition in to create awareness among the public. By July them about the uses of mobile phones.
telecommunications. 2004, we could announce in confidence that In conjunction, we commissioned a Consumer
the telecommunication sector had been fully Advisory Group to provide feedback on issues
liberalized, as we had met each of our milestones that the Bahraini consumer had. As consumer
head on in a transparent manner. confidence soared, a more solid relationship
began to surface between the public and the
TRA.
2017 14
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
A WIRELESS NATION FOSTERING GROWTH REAPING SUCCESS EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON VARIETY BREAKING BARRIERS
2007 showed great signs of growth. Internet In 2008, we updated our direction By 2009, we began to establish ourselves The year 2010 proved to be lucrative in In 2011 the competitive barriers were
revenues rose 13% to 5.4 from 4.8 million, and published the second National as a forward thinking authority; resulting many respects. The launch of a third mobile eliminated with the successful launch
mobile penetration was 107% and Bahrain Telecommunications Plan. Although in our efforts being regionally recognized operator in the kingdom was the most of the, “I Love My Number” campaign,
had one of the highest penetrations in the there has been growth of 11.6% in total by both CommsMEA and SAMENA Telecoms significant step towards open competition. promoting more freedom and churn in
GCC comparing well with their European telecommunications revenues during this Council. This was when TRA Bahrain STC (Saudi Telecommunications Company) the market. This initiative provided the
counterparts. year, as well as 38% growth in the number would stand out with the best and most launched VIVA; their arm into Bahrain, consumer with the flexibility and power
of staff working in the telecommunications progressive regulator of the year awards. and the challenge of innovation was set to move where they felt they could benefit
As Bahrain moved forward, the hunger sector since liberalization in 2003; this These awards were acknowledgment for our in motion for the three existing operators. the most. A significant advancement for
for innovation in the telecommunication document set out objectives for the Telecoms efforts in regulating the market, introducing Each company went head to head; trying to the operators came in the form of the
industry provided an opportunity for us to sector that needed to be implemented in healthy competition and creating choice launch the newest products and driving the Loop Unbundling initiative (LLU). This
license two operators with national fixed the next three years. Removing barriers for our consumers throughout the years. telecommunication industry into dynamic provided operators with fair access to
wireless services successfully. This meant to competition, encouraging investment The data provided in 2009 was a testament growth. The new challenge propelled the infrastructure services. With the Loop
that with two more providers for national within the country, and developing a to our efforts in telecommunication. importance of our role in the sector. Unbundling initiative, we provided the
fixed services the market was injected regulatory framework were just some ways Mobile subscribers had increased steadily necessary tools to all service providers
once again with healthy competition and we sought to make communication more since 2005. By 2009, there were over Between 2009 and 2010, the number of and created more room for innovation by
greater choice. efficient and reliable within the kingdom. 1.24 million mobile subscribers in the broadband subscribers increased by 19%. ensuring that there are no constraints for
Kingdom of Bahrain from 300,000 in 2002. Now was the time to push education progress. The (LLU) also made sure that we
The telecom landscape began to change as International traffic grew by 55% between and clarity of the telecommunications provided fair and unbiased solutions for
the new National Telecommunications Plan 2008 and 2009, so the challenge at this world to the end user. The introduction all operators in the market.
set the primary objectives for the kingdom. point was to maintain this consistency of the online safety initiative provided an
the Strategic and Retail Market Review; and progression by opening up more educational walkthrough of the Dos and Moreover, our advancements continued
published in 2007, set the milestones for channels of opportunity for the kingdom Don’ts when surfing the Internet. The their contribution to job creation. In
the year and the market began to prepare and its people. campaign maintained and attempted to 2011 approximately 2,700 employees
itself as the prospect of a third mobile grow the supportive relation- ship we had worked directly in the telecoms sector.
operator was on the horizon. One of these important steps was opening created with our consumers. This showed a 50% growth in the number
up the market for new mobile operator bids. of employees since liberalization in 2003.
The introduction of a third party provided Once again, our efforts were recognized by
a broader spectrum of telecommunications SAMENA Telecom council as a beacon of
opportunities that were available to the determination, transparency and positive
public, a fact which encouraged operators impact; landing us with telecom regulator
to drive telecommunications innovation of the year award.
to greater heights. Another was to break
the barriers of number portability which
we began working towards at the end of
the successful year. This way we could
encourage the operators to perform at
their best; guaranteeing greater value for
the consumer.
2017 15
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
THE CONSUMER AND THE FUTURE 4G LEADERSHIP BEYOND BORDERS EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON GLOBAL ACHIEVEMENTS LOCAL DRIVING DIGITAL DEMAND
VARIETY TALENTS
2012 demonstrated a clear presence of In keeping with the recommendations One of the highlights of 2014 for In view of the Kingdom’s ever-evolving
progression. There were approximately of the Third National Telecommuni- the telecommunications industry TRA has always enabled healthy The year 2016 witnessed an influx of demand for telecommunications services,
1.9 million mobile subscribers in cations Plan (3rd NTP), the TRA com- and Bahrain came in the form of competition in the local change and a culture of transformation TRA responded by prioritizing investment
Bahrain; representing a mobile menced the license award process for the 14th Global Symposium for telecommunications market and across the sector. TRA paved the way in new high-speed, converged ICT
penetration rate of 158%, as well as 4G mobile services in early 2013, and Regulators (GSR14), which took place empowered consumers with greater towards the adoption of sustainable eco-system, with advanced, futuristic
a gross turnover of BD406 million by Q1 2013, both Batelco and Zain had in the Kingdom of Bahrain under choice and a generous array of solutions and best practices across the services such as 5G, the Internet of Things
representing 4% of the Bahraini GDP. launched their commercial Long-Term the auspices of the TRA. Organized services. Moreover, TRA’s focus has sector, through collaborative sharing with (IoT) and Machine-to-Machine (M2M)
After the 3-year plan launched in Evolution (LTE) services. To enable the by the ITU’s Telecommunication been, and shall continue to be, on local ministries, telecom providers, and communications, under the auspices of
2009, it was time again to take a look provision of LTE based and any other Development Bureau and hosted by the consumers. Listening carefully global market sector leaders. Workshops the 4th National Telecommunications
at the regional and global telecom services, in September 2013, additional the Government of Bahrain, under to their complaints and trying to for TRA people and industry professionals Plan (NTP4).
industry and evaluate Bahrain’s spectrum have been allotted to the the patronage of HRH Prince Khalifa resolve them was a primary role were conducted towards the goal of
telecommunication advancements current three mobile operators via bin Salman Al Khalifa, the Prime of the Authority and indeed, 2015 cultivating a culture of positive values Plans and initiatives were consistently
and future challenges. Managed Assigned Process. Minister, the GSR14 saw the assembly attests to the TRA’s dynamic efforts and transformation in the sector. implemented, to address critical areas
of the largest gathering of the global to follow such a customer-focused such as international supply, digital
Market leaders came together with regulatory community in Manama. direction. In 2015, the TRA also reaped Market indicators also revealed steady security and barriers to entry; in line
the government once more, and Over 700 leading specialists from the success of its endeavors when it growth in the revenue of the sector. On with the TRA ‘FOCUSED’ strategy and
we published the third National 113 countries registered to attend was proclaimed the best regulator a parallel track, the year presented new the vision to transform the Kingdom of
Telecommunications Plan to establish the event, which also attracted of year for the 10th edition of the opportunities for consumers with high- Bahrain into a fully ‘Digital Economy’.
short and long term objectives. approximately 80 leading participants, annual CommsMEA Awards. This capacity solutions on network coverage,
F ocusing more on broadband including government ministers, heads award, won by the TRA in Bahrain quality of service, cyber security and Fostering effective and sustainable
initiatives and propelling the Internet of regulatory agencies and industry for the 5th time, acknowledged safety, billing, choice of provider, likewise competition; establishing ubiquitous
as a center for business convergence, chief executives. An important show the regulator’s accomplishments in the year presented new opportunities ultra-high speed networks; and security
we saw e-commerce in the nation of confidence in Bahrain and the TRA, cultivating an environment in which in the industry and ways to overcome & cyber safety remained the important
soar and global reach becoming GSR14 was a landmark event for the the telecommunications sector across challenges ongoing objectives for TRA.
more prominent. These actions drew industry on a global level as it allowed Bahrain was able to flourish.
attention to the telecoms model for a review and working discussions The year sustained the steady stream of
the Kingdom was using and the of telecommunications developments effective policies and regulatory actions
environment we had fostered, which and futuristic planning in addition established over the previous years, which
created another success story in the to the conclusion of supportive drastically stimulated competition in the
form of the-Economy award from the agreements. sector, and resulted in price reductions,
e-Government. 2012 culminated with innovative communications services
the award of the “Regulator of the improved consumer experience.
Year” from CommsMEA commending
all our advancements and our active A notable achievement of the year is the
role in cultivating Bahrain’s economy. highest accolade received as First Place
Winner for Employer of the Year in the
Public Sector category at the MENA HR
Excellence Award, 11th Human Capital
Forum MENA.
2017 16
2017
HIGHLIGHTS
2017 17
TRA through 2017
JANUARY FEBRUARY • T RA Leads Bahrain’s Delegation to key • TRA holds QOS Regulation Workshop
• TRA holds a technical workshopwith • TRA conducts Economics for Competi- US based annual cyber security confer- with telecom operators.
Qualcomm to discuss 5G spectrum re- tion Law training course for staff. The ence – the ‘Central Region Communi- • TRA facilitates medical checkups for its
quirements for the region and use of course aims to expand and develop cations Conference (CRCC). staff members at its headquarters, in
applications in the 5G era. TRA staff’s knowledge and skills in the collaboration with Aster Clinic.
• TRA conducts a delegation visit to TRA economics of the competition law. • TRA prepares for 5G; publishes Posi-
Oman. The visit aimed at achieving tion Paper titled: “Fixed Point to Point
closer collaboration and joint efforts Links” and organizes workshop involv-
between Bahrain and Oman in the ing all the concerned entities, to dis-
field of telecommunication regulation cuss deployment of 5G networks.
on the regional and international lev-
els. • TRA’s new ‘Electronic Approval System’ JULY
registers significantly higher efficiency in • TRA announces commencement of
• TRA Publishes Study in collaboration processing Telecom Equipment Imports. provisions implementation of SIM Card
with University of Queensland, Austral- • TRA First Board Meeting 2017; Sector Registration Regulation issued in 2015.
ia on the achievements and potential Progress and the Kingdom’s achieve- • TRA shares its latest statistics with the
of Bahrain’s Telecom Sector. ment of international targets in broad- public concerning number portability
band affordability hailed. for the first half of 2017.
MARCH • TRA shares its vision and experience • National Internet Safety Review (NISR)
• T RA participates in the Regional Pre- • TRA holds “Family Day’ event for in relation to “Meeting the Demands Launched on TRA Website.
paratory Meeting for the ITU’s World staff. of the Digital World” during SAMENA • TRA Launches Roaming Awareness
Telecommunication Development • TRA participates in Al Ahlia University’s Telecommunications Council’s Telecom Campaign.
Conference 2017 (WTDC), in Khartoum Career Day where TRA highlighted em- Leaders’ Summit held in Dubai. • TRA Issues Regulation to Manage Risks
–Sudan. ployment opportunities in the telecom in Critical Telecommunications Infra-
• TRA conducts EFQM (European Foun- sector. AY
M structure, to evaluate and determine
dation for Quality Management) • TRA Participates in Al-Iman School IT • TRA Wins “Employer of the Year” how key telecoms infrastructure meas-
Training Course for its staff members Expo. Award in MENA region for 2nd year in ures up against international cyberse-
to enhance their performance to the a row curity best practices and address any
world-class standards by adopting APRIL • TRA Holds Bank Roadshow at HQ, of- gaps.
EFQM Excellence model. • TRA Cyber Security Director honored fering special rates for staff members.
with Chief Information Security Officer
(CISO) Award and recognized as one of JUNE
the top 100 Cyber Security leaders in •
TRA organizes Ramadan Ghabga for
Middle East. employees.
2017 18
AUGUST OCTOBER NOVEMBER • T RA organizes second Mobile Network Audit Work-
• TRA Publishes Broadband Quality of Service Re- • TRA facilitates mobile operators’ move towards • Bahrain achieves rank 1 in the Arab world and shop with mobile operators regarding new meth-
port for the First Half of 2017; notes a rise of LTE the NTP4 vision for a single network for Kingdom rank 31 globally on the ICT Development Index odologies for Mobile Network Audit.
Mobile data performance across the sector from of Bahrain in a key meeting. (IDI), according to the ITU’s Report.
Q1 to Q2, 2017. • TRA publishes its latest Telecommunications Ser- • TRA Third Board Meeting of the Year Concludes;
• Bahrain Achieves ‘Maturity Stage’ in ITU Global Cy- vices Residential Market Survey Report. The King- key issues related to the Kingdom’s telecommuni-
ber Security Index 2017. dom of Bahrain is at the forefront of countries in cations sector are discussed.
• Second Board of Directors Meeting: TRA’s out- terms of internet penetration and usage; Bahrain • TRA wins CommsMea 2017 “Regulatory Initiative
standing efforts in the development and growth is ranked 1st globally for mobile broadband pene- of the Year” Award.
of the telecommunications sector in the Kingdom tration and 2nd for internet users according to the • TRA participates in the ITU Standardization Forum
praised; in particular the significant efforts made World Economic Forum’s Report. for the Arab Region, in Riyadh- Saudi Arabia.
by TRA contributing to the progress of the projects • T RA acquires specialized equipment to measure the • TRA holds a bilateral meeting with the Saudi
related to the Fourth National Telecommunica- ambient level of emissions produced by radio-com- Communications and Information Technology
tions Plan (NTP4). munications stations of telecoms operators within • T RA asks consumers to complete registration of
Commission (CITC). The meeting was held in con-
the kingdom. Radio frequency emissions in Bah- their SIM cards to verify their identities.
junction with the Regional Standardization Forum
rain are within international safety limits. • TRA begins SIM Registration Regulation Awareness
held in collaboration with the ITU. The bilateral
• TRA organizes blood donation event in collabora- Online Campaign.
meeting touches base on the importance of co-
tion with BDF Hospital. • TRA Holds a workshop with Ericsson on LTE Evolu-
operation between the two regulators as well the
• TRA is awarded the “Best Nationalization Initiative tion, Spectrum Requirements and 5G Standardi-
current regulatory trends in the region and at the
in the GCC”, at the 2017 GCC GOV HR Summit in zation to discuss the requirements for establishing
global level
Abu Dhabi. 5G ecosystem in Bahrain.
• TRA organizes NFV-SDN Technologies Develop-
ments workshop with Huawei.
DECEMBER
• TRA celebrates Bahrain National Day.
SEPTEMBER
• TRA organizes Mobile Network Audit Workshop to
familiarize mobile operators with new methodol-
ogies for the upcoming Mobile Network Audit.
2017 19
Leading
By Example
2017 20
2017
Thanks to the untiring efforts of TRA, Bahrain
has achieved rank 1 in the Arab world and rank
31 globally on the ICT Development Index (IDI) –
a composite index that monitors and compares
ICT developments across countries and over
Mobile services revenue account for more than
half of the telecom retail services revenue,
reaching 54%, after including revenues
MARKET
INDICATORS
generated from international calls using mobile.
Add-on to voice and pay-per-use mobile
broadband represent 85% of mobile broadband
subscriptions at the end of 2017.
time; in the “Measuring the Information Society The latest market indicators issued by TRA growing faster than voice, in Bahrain. For 2014 2015 2016 2017
Report 2017” published by the International show mobile services prices to have fallen by the first time since 2008, total revenue and
Telecommunication Union (ITU). 73% between 2008 and 2016, and the number traffic for local and international calls made a Total 2.33m 2.54m 2.99m 2.36m
of mobile subscriptions reaching 2.36 million, significant drop during 2016 in favor of higher
Bahrain also achieved rank 1 in Mobile- with 163% penetration rate by the end of 2017. data consumption in Bahrain’s telecom market.
broadband penetration and rank 2 in the % of Prepaid 78% 78% 81% 74%
percentage of Individuals using Internet, The fixed-wired telephony services continue
according to “The Global Competitiveness to increase as it has recorded an increase of % of Postpaid 22% 22% 19% 26%
Report 2017–2018” published by the World 14,435 subscription from end of 2016 to end of
Economic Forum (WEF). 2017, compared to decrease of 8,376 of fixed
wireless subscriptions over the same period.
The telecommunication services generated
BD 430 million in revenues in 2016, with a At the end of 2017, there were about 2.37
CAGR of 13% from 2012 to 2016. The revenues million broadband subscriptions, a decrease
represented about 4% of the GDP as of 2016, of 1.4% compared to Q4 2016, with Broadband Number of fixed telephony subscriptions in 2017
and the proportion of mobile revenue rose penetration reaching 164%. The main drive for
to 40% of retail services revenues in 2016, growth of broadband subscriptions has been the 239,976 / 17% Penetration rate
compared to 38% of retail services revenues in mobile broadband subscriptions, representing
2015; despite a decrease in the overall revenue, 93% of total broadband subscriptions at the 2014 2015 2016 2017
and mobile revenue specifically. end of 2017.
2017 21
Break down of retail services revenue in 2016 Telecom Sector revenues (in BD million)
10%
300
250 8%
Internet services 21%
Mobile 40% 200
6%
150
4%
100
International calls
(Other) 1% 2%
50
41%
40%
39%
38%
26%
26%
25%
21%
20%
19%
19%
19%
17%
16%
15%
15%
14%
13%
12%
5%
5%
4%
4%
4%
2012
2013
2014
2012
2013
2014
2012
2013
2014
2012
2013
2014
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2015
2016
2015
2016
2015
2016
2015
2016
Fixed line Mobile Internet International calls Leased line
2017 22
Mobile subscriptions and Penetration Mobile Broadband - 2017
Mobile penetration reached 163% in 2017.
3.5 250%
Millions
213%
3.0
187% 200% Pay-per-use Standalone Add-on to voice
177%
2.5 163% 24% 16% 61%
2.0 150
1.5 100%
1.0
50% Proportion of broadband subscriptions by access type-Q4 2017
0.5
2.33 2.54 2.99 2.36
0.0 0%
14 15 16 17 7% 93%
20 20 20 20
Total mobile subscriptions Mobile penetration Rate
Fixed broadband (wired+wireless) Mobile broadband
3.000
Thousands
300
Thousands
171%
164%
2.500 247 242
142% 146%
2,407 250 234 240
2,375
2.000
1,980
1.500 1,678 200
1.000 150
500
100
0
14 15 16 17 50
20 20 20 20
0
Total broadband Subscriptions
Broadband penetration rate 14 15 16 17
20 20 20 20
Total fixed line subscriptions Fixed (wired) Fixed wireless (e.g WiMax)
2017 23
Annual data consumption (Petabyte) OECD Mobile basket time series for Bahrain
Fixed broadband data consumption increased by 83% between 2016 and 2017, while (Voice, Messages and Data)
mobile broadband data consumption increased by 32% over the same period
Up to 64% drop in the prices of mobile telephony with data services (2013 – 2016).
233
211
200 30 calls + 100 MB
14 15 16 17
20 20 20 20
50
Bahrain results
compared to
Bahrain results
compared to
Bahrain results
compared to Residential fixed broadband time series for
GCC averages Arab averages OECD averages
Bahrain, OECD basket
PSTN (Low usage)
Up to 83% drop in residential fixed broadband prices (2010 – 2016)
PSTN (High usage)
Leased lines * 0
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
* Only 2 Mb/s speed can be compared with the OECD data.
Better Than ... on par with ... more expensive than ... (source: 2016 Telecommunications Retail Price Benchmarking Report for Arab Countries)
2017 24
Bahrain Telecom Penetration Benchmarking (global and regional)
38%
217%
204%
11% 12%
10%
Bahrain Developed Kuwait Oman Saudi United Arab Bahrain Developed Kuwait Oman Saudi United Arab
Countries Arabia Emirates Countries Arabia Emirates
Percentage of individuals using the internet 2016 Fixed broadband penetration 2016
31%
98%
91%
80% 78%
74%
70%
17%
13%
11%
6%
3%
Bahrain Developed Kuwait Oman Saudi United Arab Bahrain Developed Kuwait Oman Saudi United Arab
Countries Arabia Emirates Countries Arabia Emirates
2017 25
Services offered by active operators Main telecom indicators
IMC International calls through wholsale Percentage of %52 %53 %55 %77 %88 %90 %91 %93 %98
individuals using the
Infonas internet
Kalaam Telecom Telecommunications 303 338 360 406 409 423 430 450 430 (%4) %4
revenues (BD in
Mada communication company million)
Menatelecom Number of 2469 2504 2584 2708 3141 3000 3092 3206 3230 %1 %3
employees in the
Mobiltel Communication VALUE ADDED SERVICES telecommunications
Moving Gulf Telecom sector
2017 26
TRANSFORMING
2017 27
From educating the consumers towards wise deci- The Spectrum Department was also at the helm of trans- SMD participated in two Arab Spectrum Management
sion-making and efficient use; to negotiations with tele- forming the quality of service of mobile communications Group (ASMG) meetings in Abu Dhabi in 2017, to discuss
com operators for better services, and consultations with in the Kingdom, with regular monitoring of cross border important points and issues related to spectrum and Ra-
industry experts for implementations of the latest and spill-over signals from neighboring countries: impor- dio-communication. SMD also attended Task Group 5/1
best technology; to awareness campaigns about digital tant for the sovereignty of the Kingdom, the protection Meetings in Geneva in May, which are held by the In-
safety and security – TRA is leaving no stone unturned to of roaming services provided by Bahraini operators and ternational Telecommunications Union. The aim of this
make the Kingdom’s telecom sector scale newer heights protection of consumers from receiving roaming bills by working group is to prepare the conference preparatory
of success. connecting to a foreign network while being in Bahrain. meeting for the World Radio communication Conference
in 2019.
Driving the Kingdom towards a futuristic and converged The Spectrum Management Department (SMD) is also in
ICT ecosystem, the TRA’s efforts in 2017 were crowned continuous monitoring of the level of electromagnetic The meetings also discussed the aspects related to the
by the initiation of the implementation of the Govern- emissions from base stations of public telecommunica- development of a better regulatory framework for the
ment policy outlined in the Fourth National Telecommu- tions operators in the public, occupational and residen- provision of satellite services, as well as the preparation
nications Plan (“NTP4”), as the ambitious plan creates a tial areas. of proposals and working papers to be submitted by the
roadmap for the Bahrain telecom sector to enter a whole ASMG to WRC.
new era of digital connectivity; with 5G being the high- The same scope of work was extended to Hawar Island,
light. Al Dar Island and Jarada Island as an additional delivera- Showing utmost commitment towards all its stakehold-
ble to the Spectrum Measurements of Telecoms Network ers: the consumers, the market players, and above all,
To ensure a robust telecom sector throughout, TRA close- Project without additional cost. EMF measurements were the citizens and residents of the Kingdom of Bahrain
ly monitored the developments in the sector, year round, conducted on the Islands specifically Hawar as it has ra- – TRA has been dedicated to developing an advanced,
and prepared reports that covered a wide range of tele- dio-communications stations operated by operators. healthy, safe, and competitive telecommunications sec-
communications indicators and statistics, including mar- tor, with consistent efforts in the direction.
ket statistics and financial reports, consumer and busi- SMD is also actively participating with the Spectrum
ness surveys, and the Arab Price Benchmarking report. Strategic and Coordination Committee (SSCC) and its
The authority also addressed competition complaints in sub-committees. The TRA shall lead and coordinate the
a timely manner ensuring a level playing field between activities related to the preparation of national positions
operators and a sustainable competition environment. on the Agenda Items (AI) 1.13 and 9.1 (issue 9.1.1) of the
Retail Tariffs were also reviewed and analyzed to prevent World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 (WRC-19),
monopoly and abuse of dominance. which shall be held in Geneva under the umbrella of ITU.
2017 28
SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT KPIs - A New Level of Efficiency
5
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
1.71 2.57 1.30 1.43 1.61 1.82 1 1 2 1.46 1.68 1.16 2.36
Months of year 2017 4
Days
2
0
Total TRA (Spect) to DWL&FM Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2016
DWL&FM to TRA (Spect) TRA (Spect) to applicant - Links provided
Months of year 2017
Target: Total Target: TRA 2 LIC
Average application processing time Target for application processing
Target: DWL 2 TRA Target: TRA 2 DWL
Average processing time per month
2017 29
Telecom Equipment Importation Report for number of devices entering Bahrain TRA’s Electronic Approval System registers significantly higher efficiency in processing
Despite the huge number of requests for telecom equipment importation through Ofoq system, Telecom Equipment Imports - April
the SMD managed – through outsourcing this task – to quantify the imported equipment and to
categorize them.
Telecommunication equipment imported between
Approved number of devices from imported shipments Feb 2016 and Feb 2017 (units)
200.000 185.946
159.113 160.710
153.754
150.000
122.854 120.528
108.742 111.260 105.068 110.844 110.807
100.000
69.027
50.000
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Months of year 2017
Adopted in early 2016, the new ‘Electronic Approval System’ renders the processing of telecoms
equipment imports highly efficient with overall requests taking less than 2 days on average,
compared to just over 4 days via the manual process – an improvement of over 50%.
Network Equipment 4,174 (0.27%) According to the statistics issued by TRA on telecommunications equipment imported from
February 2016 to February 2017, the total number of units imported into the Kingdom reached
Antennas 1,707 (0.11%)
about 1.8 million.
Passive Equipment 87,021 (5.73)
Other 139,257 (9.71)
Terminal equipment 1,286,476 (84.71%)
2017 30
Increase in the number of reported interference incidents
The number of reported interference incidents has increased from 27 in 2016 to 64 in 2017. This was mainly due to a
large number of interference complaints submitted by Viva in the month of October.
No. of Interference Cases and their Solving Average Time (2017) Cross Border Spill-over Signals Monitoring
60 10 • There were 2 incidents where signals in dedicated mode (i.e. consumers could connect to the network)
were observed from operators in neighboring countries.
9
0 51
Average Solving Time, days Solved/Closed Cases
8 • SMD was able to negotiate with its contracted vendor to extend the jurisdiction of conducted measurements
7 for spillover to Hawar Island, Al Dar Island and Jarada Island without any additional cost.
0
Target, days
6
0 5
4
0
3
12.7
9 8.4 2
0 7 5.5 7 8
4 1
2 2 5 5
4 5 2 0 5
0 3 0 0
0
100 0
1582 1581 1585 1593 1602 1623 1618 1627 1626 1620 1620 2000
of each month
80
1500
60 76 3 1
3 0
3
1 0 3 1 1000
1
40 3 1 11 1
9 4 0
26
2 23
10 500
20 8
2
1 1 17 17 20
6 1 1
1
12 3 3 22 10 8 9 30 12 19 16 13 25
0 0
Months of year 2017
Re-allocate Re-configure Update No. of Links Cross Border Spill-Over Measurement Route
2017 31
Redefining Telecommunications - Telecommunications Utility Infrastructure KPIs
Received and cleared Central Planning Office (“CPO”) Central Planning Office
and TRA e-wayleaves (“CPO”) consultations received and cleared by TRA
50.00
Number of applications
70.0
Number of days
800 30.00 150 65.0
Approved WL
Processing days
679 122
705 60.0
122 119
25.00 55.0
607
600 103 104 50.0
103 96 102
19.48 20.00 100 92 95 91 89 45.0
87 90
79 84 78 40.0
400 72 68 35.0
15.00 65 28.7 65
34.2 30.0
11.16 54 54
10.87 7.09 9.80 42 25.0
8.04
8.52 8.60 10.00 50 20.0
8.58 5.87 6.17 7.07 4.73 5.30 16.3 22.6
200 13.3
6.80 5.10 10.5 15.0
6.13
5.00 6.2 5.7 5.7 10.0
5.29 4.75
3.86 4.69 4.83 4.80 4.79 4.16 7.3 6.2 6.6 8.3 5.0
0 34 150 112 92 122 3.07 59 68 81 14 41 116 105 31 0.00 0 0.0
Dec/16 Jan/17 Feb/17 Mar/17 Apr/17 May/17 Jun/17 Jul/17 Aug/17 Sep/17 Oct/17 Nov/17 Dec/17 Dec/16 Jan/17 Feb/17 Mar/17 Apr/17 May/17 Jun/17 Jul/17 Aug/17 Sep/17 Oct/17 Nov/17 Dec/17
Wayleaves performance Consultations performance
TRA WL CPO WL TRA WL Average time CPO WL Average time TUI KPI CPO KPI Received CN Cleared CN E2E Processing time TUI KPI CPO KPI
Central Planning Office “CPO” planning permissions received and cleared by TRA
100.0
91.0 95.0
90.0
200 85.0
80.0
75.0
Number of applications
70.0
150 65.0
Processing days
60.0
29 55.0
49.0 50.0
100 45.0
21 40.0
17 35.0
15 14 30.0
12 13 12 12 13 12 25.0
50 11 11
9 8 8 8 9 8 9 20.0
17.0 8 7 15.0
5 11.0
10.0 3 3 9.0 6.0 10.0
7.0 6.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 6.0 5.0
0 0.0
Dec/16 Jan/17 Feb/17 Mar/17 Apr/17 May/17 Jun/17 Jul/17 Aug/17 Sep/17 Oct/17 Nov/17 Dec/17
Planning permission performance
Received CY Cleared CY E2E Processing time TUI KPI CPO KPI
2017 32
ICT Department KPIs – Excellence in Competence
2017 33
Domain Name Approvals
A total of 318 requests for Domain Name approvals were 33 requests were also received for SSL Certificates
received in 2017; representing a drop of approximately compared to 37 SSL requests received in 2016, which has
16.3% compared to 2016 (380 requests); with an average been responded to within an average of 4 days, exceeding
response time of 133 minutes representing a drop from the Target set of 2 days. This task will also be automated
2016 average response time of 220 minutes. This is better once the Registry system is launched and the ‘WHOIS’
than the Target of 180 minutes to approve a .bh domain service is activated.
name request.
2017 34
EMBRACING THE FUTURE - The TRA Initiatives through 2017
2017 35
• QOS Regulation Workshop with Operators - • Internal Legal Affairs Directorate (LAD) TRA organized the workshop to familiarize mobile operators
June workshop for contract drafting – October with the methodologies that TRA were to undertake in its
In preparation for TRA’s latest Quality of Service The comprehensive three-day program focused on upcoming Mobile Network Audit. A report was published
Regulation (QOS), TRA Held a workshop with telecom delivering practical and applied training of the key drafting during December 2017, and the results of the audit were
operators to introduce and create understanding skills needed to create transparent and direct contracts to made available for public viewing. The results of the audit
about, the latest amendments in the regulation. deliver on a legal and commercial level. were included in the TRA’s ‘Annual Mobile Quality of Service
Report’– published in December; and were made available
• NFV-SDN Technologies Developments workshop for public viewing.
with Huawei – November
TRA held Technologies Developments Workshop with • Future Leaders Program - December
Huawei regarding the NFV/SDN (Network Functions With the aim of building insertional and innovative
Virtualization / Software Defined Networking) for a better leadership hub through sustainable youth development, the
understanding of the role of these technologies in 5G. Telecommunications Authority initiated the ‘Future Leaders
Program’, which is to be implemented throughout 2018.
2017 36
EMPOWERING
2017 37
TRA continued making unprecedented progress in the Now in its second year, the trend is to continue until 2020 The Authority has made it mandatory for the telecom op-
direction of consumer empowerment through exten- for data roaming services – with further reductions every erators, as per condition of licenses to ensure that emis-
sion of improved and constantly evolving services to tel- year. sions from each radio installation are within ICNIRP limits.
ecommunication consumers in the Kingdom. They are also required to comply with any future radiation
TRA also announced commencement of implementation emission standards set by ICNIRP, or have been or will be
The Telecommunication Authority’s latest ‘Telecom- of SIM Card Registration Regulation issued in 2015. The adopted by the Kingdom of Bahrain.
munications Services Residential Market Survey’ report provisions were created as part of its mission to safeguard
confirmed competition in the telecommunications sec- citizens and residents of the Kingdom from fraud and For increased consumer satisfaction, TRA also published a
tor has significantly contributed to the provision of tele- identity theft related crimes. As of July 12, 2017 Service webpage to allow public access to data on emissions from
communications services to citizens and residents in the providers in the Kingdom of Bahrain had begun imple- telecommunications masts, amidst a rapid increase in the
Kingdom of Bahrain. menting the provisions of the regulation. use of wireless radio technologies and services, and the
establishment of several base stations close to residential,
Results indicate all respondents have access to a mobile The new registration process requires subscriber identity public and business areas.
phone, and 98% of respondents have access to internet verification in two steps: presenting the applicant’s iden-
services compared to 89% in 2015. The percentage of tification or passport and biometric scan. The latest ‘Telecommunications Services Residential Mar-
individuals using the Internet also reached 98% in Bah- ket Survey Report’ confirmed healthy competition in the
rain. The regulation has also introduced measures that limit telecommunications sector to be significantly contributing
the sale of SIM-cards in shops as the regulation only per- to the provision of telecommunications services to citizens
TRA’s consumer support efforts touched a new apex in mits selling SIM-cards through the operators’ outlets and and residents in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
2017, with its call center operations achieving 99% suc- their resellers who obtain a formal approval from TRA to
cess rate in resolving caller issues on the spot, and an conduct the registration and verification processes on be- With respect to internet usage, the survey cites the use of
exceptional service level at 96%, up 2% from 2016. half of the mobile operators. social networking sites as the main internet activity for
93% of internet users, followed by the email by 71% and
Residents in the Kingdom have also been enjoying the Another very commendable step taken by TRA towards downloading multimedia content by 70%. 29% of the sur-
flexibility of transferring their personal numbers freely public safety has been the acquisition of specialized vey sample also reported engaging in e-commerce activities
between telecoms service providers. The average time equipment to measure the ambient level of emissions mainly for shopping.
to port mobile numbers in 2017 was just 27 minutes on produced by radio-communications stations of telecoms
average.” operators within the kingdom, and address consumer The Telecommunications Services Market Survey also con-
concerns regarding the safety of radio frequency emis- firmed the overall user satisfaction with telecommunica-
However, reduction in number portability transactions sions. tions services in Bahrain to be high. The survey shows that
was reported by the survey, indicating mobile services 82% of respondents are satisfied with their overall fixed line
had evolved to suit the requirements of users. The num- In the last two years, TRA measured 2,500 sites; and none services; 90% are satisfied with overall mobile services; and
ber of accepted mobile numbers ported reached 17,846 were found to be exceeding the limits and radiation 84% are satisfied with the overall internet services.
in 2017, compared to 55,656 in 2016. The survey also standards of International Commission on Non-Ionizing
revealed improved mobile services, with 10% dip in the Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). In 2017, EMF (Electro Mag- Throughout the year, TRA conducted events, workshops,
number of respondents using multiple SIMs, from 2015, netic Frequency) of 500 sites, across varying frequency and campaigns to ensure that all sections of society enjoy
reaching to 31% in 2016. bands, was measured till August, and all of them were hassle-free and transparent services in the telecom sector.
found to be well within the limits set by ICNIRP. The campaigns also led to a major increase in the aware-
TRA’s continuous efforts towards the benefit of consum- ness about TRA among consumers.
ers, were once again reflected in further significant re-
ductions in the GCC Data Roaming Rates. Benefitting 91
Million mobile users across the GCC, data roaming in the
GCC now costs 35% less, compared to the previous year,
among other roaming price reductions.
2017 38
TRA Consumer Support Continues to Improve
EOY Call Center KPIs EOY Complaints KPIs
In 2017, the Consumer Call Center received 4,053 calls with a 99% response success rate. These results were in Compared to 2016 the number of complaints jumped by 18.50%; from 796 to 942. 95% (895) of complaints
line with the TRA’s objective of promoting consumer communication frameworks for all complaints and in- were closed in 2017, within an average 16 days
quiries related to telecommunications service providers. An exceptional service level was also achieved, rising
to 96%, a 2% increase from 2016.
First Call Resolution rate rose to 99%, while the Abandoned Rate came down further to 1.2% in 2017. The
average speed of answering calls also came down to just 2.7 seconds, compared to 5.5 seconds in 2016 – high-
lighting the ever-enhancing efficiency in TRA’s operations.
Complaint Categories
The total complaints received were broken down into the following categories: Billing (33%), Network Service
Performance (25%) and contracts (20%), while the remaining categories combined for (22%). TRA’s efforts have
also resulted in increased awareness among consumers of the risks of roaming bill shocks as roaming com-
plaints have fallen to about 4% compared to previous years.
2017 39
Further reduction in GCC Data Roaming Rates in 2017 Satisfaction with mobile service providers
1516 1575 1199 1199 317 376 518 543 499 533 499 499
33% 34%
31% 32%
38%
28%
25% Survey 1 35%
34%
Survey 2 33%
25% 25%
55,656 11,839 1,399 331 562 385 141 135 421 250 161 166 119 59 184 96 98 64
2017 40
Satisfaction With TRA’s Role
39 36
2016 Business Market Survey (published in 2017) 2016 Residential Market Survey (published in 2017)
69% 98%
Internet service How satisfied are businesses
with telecom services in Bahrain? How satisfied are customers with
Top 3 Internet Activities
telecom services in Bahrain?
95%
of Businesses Fixed Mobile Internet Fixed Mobile Internet Social networking sites
have access
to internet Sending or receiving e-mail
95% 97% 98% 82% 90% 84%
Satisfied Satisfied Downloading movies, images, music, watching TV
2017 41
TRA Consumer Awareness Campaigns 2017
Contract Awareness Campaign – January Third Technology Expo, Al-Iman School – March GCC Roaming Campaign – April International Roaming Awareness Campaign – July
Emphasizing on the importance of service contracts, TRA’s TRA presented a lecture titled “SafeSurf and online privacy”, TRA organized the online campaign to inform the consumers TRA in 2017, launched the ‘Roaming Awareness Campaign’,
‘Contract Awareness Campaign’, impelled consumers to read aimed at educating the students to take advantage of the best about further reductions in GCC roaming prices, as part of the aimed at informing the public on risks of roaming bill shocks
their telecommunications service contracts with their ser- aspects of the digital world and protecting their privacy on- collaboration with the GCC countries. Citizens across the six na- and the options available to reduce mobile data and phone bills
vice providers before signing, to ensure familiarity with their line. This included a session of training the children to train tions enjoy further price reductions on roaming rates since April while roaming abroad.
rights and the provider’s responsibilities. other children during the Expo. 1, 2017.
A booth was also setup at the Bahrain International Airport, un-
The playful campaign video featured renowned social media A number of SafeSurf-awareness animations produced by TRA der the campaign, informing passengers about the importance
influencer Ahmed Sharif. were also showcased at the expo to highlight the dangers that of turning the data roaming off.
may be encountered by students online, as well as solutions
to mitigate these risks, and promote safe and responsible use TRA also published a ‘Roaming Guide’ on international roam-
of the new technology. ing in public interest, educating about the roaming rules and
guidelines, and how best to use telecom services when out on
roaming.
2017 42
Your SIM Your Responsibility - November Major Increase in Awareness of TRA Campaigns
To educate mobile subscribers of the serious legal and financial risks faced by losing track of their SIM Cards or 2017 witnessed a major increase in awareness of TRA Campaigns, owing to their well-researched, effective and informative,
giving them away to others; the TRA launched “Your SIM, Your Responsibility” campaign on its website and social consumer-focused content:
media channels, to create awareness towards SIM card protection; highlighting the importance of individual roles
in the control and prevention of SIM card related frauds. The Campaign has been running successfully ever since
its launch. Seeing TRA Awareness
Campaigns
Awareness about TRA
Campaigns No
Not Sure
Yes 9%
Survey 2: 19%
Survey 1: 6% 19%
73%
39%
OnlineLive Chat 31%
30%
Whatsapp Number 24%
15%
Video Calls 23% 7%
2% 2%
Social Media 5%
am
ok
be
In
tte
sit
d
bo
tu
gr
ke
No Answer /
eb
i
25%
Tw
u
ce
sta
Lin
W
Yo
Do not Know
Fa
In
Base: Who are aware of TRA presence of Social media; 54
Base: Who are aware of submitting complains through TRA; 215
2017 43
PROTECTING AND
REGULATING EFFECTIVELY
2017 44
As the ever-evolving digital technologies unfold newer TRA also laid down the ‘Guidelines on Traffic Man- TRA Cyber Safety Research and Statistics
possibilities and opportunities; their all-encompassing agement and Pricing Practices’, aimed at creating
nature and ubiquitous use, at the same time, raise new awareness about subscriber & user rights in terms of In- TRA National Internet Safety Review (NISR) Launched on TRA Website
concerns regarding information security and privacy, ternet access service; give Licenced Operators a clear un-
and other implications, many of which may not yet be derstanding of the acceptable and reasonable conduct in TRA also launched crucial youth-oriented research the ‘Nation- • After correlating the data, it was determined that a 23.1%
fully known. terms of traffic management policies and practices and al Internet Safety Review’ (NISR) on its website; measuring the overlap existed who were both cyberbullies and were cyber-
pricing practices; while also indicating how the Authority exposure and awareness behavior of youths to risky online be- bullied.
TRA ensures cybersecurity and cyber safety are impor- intends to supervise compliance by operators and take havior in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The study was made possible
tant ongoing initiatives, and that the Kingdom’s critical enforcement action when appropriate. through the vital cooperation of schools around the country; was • According to the study, instant messaging, text messaging
telecommunications infrastructure is as secure and resil-
conducted from a survey sample of 2,433 people, 1,637 of which and social networking platforms are the three most com-
ient as possible, by enabling, supporting, and if neces- Due to rapid adoption of OTT communications, both re- were (12 -18 years old). mon mediums used for cyberbullying in the Kingdom.
sary, mandating the security initiatives by the regulatory gionally and globally, TRA developed a report on ‘Security
bodies on a constant basis. Measures for Over-the-Top (OTT) Applications’, establish- Among all of the risks identified, Cyberbullying was found to be Another problem identified as a substantial risk was the possi-
ing an informed position on security risks associated with the largest threat to young people surveyed: the NISR identifying bility of meeting strangers online. Although as a result of TRA’s
For optimum utilization of the ever evolving digital OTT communications and applications such as “live” ser- it as a key government and educational priority in safeguarding Cyber Safety initiatives, the number of people sharing private
technologies, TRA has been making continuous efforts vices, social media, VOIP calls. Recommendations were young people online. information with strangers online, and subsequently meeting
toward deployment of next-generation network and also developed to mitigate the identified risks. them, has dropped significantly from 43% in 2010 to 16.4% in
service infrastructure, and integrating them with broad-
• It was reported by 37.9% of youths that they were victims of 2015. While this is a positive indicator, meeting strangers is still
er initiatives toward the digital economy. To enhance effectiveness of its strategies, the TRA also cyberbullying, but it’s just as alarming that 30% admitted to a major issue due to the severe nature of the potential negative
conducted a public consultation on the ‘Regulation on engaging in cyberbullying themselves. impact it could have on young people.
The TRA also has been adopting policies that are con- the Privacy of Individuals and Data Protection in the Tel-
ducive to innovation and advancement in the telecom ecommunications Sector’. The regulation is devised to
sector. In 2017, TRA issued the ‘Critical Telecom- provide framework for regulating user privacy regarding
munications Infrastructure (CTI) Risk Management the protection of personal data processing.
Regulation’; an effective framework to elevate the tel-
ecommunications sector cyber security readiness, and For improved control over SIM card related frauds, TRA
harmonize efforts between local and global best prac- implemented the new SIM Card Regulation, which
tices. lays down new registration and verifications processes for
SIM card subscribers, to control the SIM Card resellers in
Owing to TRA’s advanced approach, and active cooper- order to prevent unauthorized sale of SIM Card.
ation from the stakeholders, Bahrain has attained the
‘Mature’ stage of Cyber Security readiness as per
the assessment of the International Telecommunica-
tions Union’s (ITU) ‘Global Cyber Security Index 2017’.
The index measured the cyber security commitment
levels of all 193 ITU state members based on five key
pillars ranging from legal, technical, organizational, to
capacity building and cooperation.
2017 45
Keeping
a Tab
2017 46
TRA undertook a number of initiatives throughout 2017, to keep a constant check of its progress, and monitor its key success factors.
• Market Indicator’s Report 2016 and 2017 The Consumer web portal that has been developed with the Total Bahrain international The Annual Mobile QoS, Billing and Coverage
Highlighting the continuing move towards data consump- platform has been revamped and is planned to be published cable capacity (gbps) Audits
tion, the 2017 report revealed important trends in how cit- in Jan 2018. 600 After awarding the IMT Licenses to Mobile operators in 2013,
izens in Bahrain used telecommunication services during the authority obliged operators to cover 99% of the popula-
2016; this data-driven shift was the most noticeable change 500 tion; the Mobile Network Coverage Audit was conducted in
that continued in occurrence during 2017. QoS Monitoring & Reporting Framework 400
Sep-Oct 2017.
TRA aimed at evaluating and benchmarking quality levels of-
While the number of fixed line telephony has increased by 300 fered by Mobile Network Operators (MNO) in the Kingdom of
3% between the end of 2016 and end of 2017, mobile and Bahrain, Batelco, Viva and, Zain from an end-user perspec-
200
broadband subscriptions services dropped by 21% and 1.44% tive, for the following set of services:
consecutively, over the same period. 100 • Voice
• Short Message Services (SMS)
0
With 2.36 million mobile subscriptions, to a population • Smartphones data tests (Web surfing, HTTP file transfers)
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
of 1.45 million, and the penetration rate already having • Smartphones data tests on hotspots (HTTP file transfers)
reached 163%, the market became saturated and the growth • The Annual International Capacity Report Available Provisioned Used • Video streaming assessment using Smartphones
rates fell to their lowest level during 2017. The ICT department produced the International Connectivity • Social networks using Smartphones
and Capacity report for 2017. The data required were collected International IP transit
Uptake of faster broadband services was on the rise as 48% of from the operators and were analyzed, to study the evolution The purpose of this audit is to conduct the assessment using
all fixed broadband subscriptions were able to receive access capacity, Mbps a test method designed to gather a faithful qualitative record
of the international capacity on the different international
speeds of 10Mbit/s or more in 2016, up from 36% in 2015. cables landing in Bahrain and the internet peering points. from an end-users’ point of view, avoiding assessing quality
200.000
The fixed wired broadband subscriptions also continued to The purpose of this report was to assist the TRA in assessing through a pure technical angle as this is performed by Mo-
rise due to increased demand for optical-fiber connections. the overall status of the telecommunications connectivity be- 180.000 156.628 bile Operators themselves on a regular basis.
tween the Kingdom and the rest of the world. The following figures summarize the recorded results:
120.000 107.460
• Quality of Service Management 86.771
A number of QoS initiatives were also executed during 2017. The report highlighted a number of key issues including: 80.000
The ICT department managed to publish ‘Quarterly Broad- • Update on the number of physical routes and the usage 59.220
40.000 30.500
band QoS Report’ biannually, which tested the Fixed and Mo- of those routes;
bile Broadband services, and monitored the level of quality • Updates on the Capacity usage of individual cables sys- 0
provided by Fixed and Mobile Broadband services from the tems; 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
consumers’ prospective. Tests on service provided by Internet • Updates on IP transit capacity, usage and commercial ar-
Service Providers (ISPs) and Mobile Network Operators were rangements; The report concluded the following major findings based on
conducted at five stationary locations across the Kingdom. • Peering arrangements for local exchange of IP traffic; the above captured results:
• International voice usage patterns through 2016/2017 • International available capacity (leased or owned by Op-
The ‘Broadband Quality of Service Report’ for the first half • Potential issues as reported by the operators. erators) grew by 32% to 499 Gbps. This was reported as
of 2017 noted a rise of LTE Mobile data performance across
377 Gbps in 2016.
the sector from Q1 to Q2, 2017. While average performance
• International provisioned capacity increased by 35% from
dipped to 16.6 Megabytes per second (Mbps) in the first quar-
182 Gbps to 245 Gbps.
ter, the average rose back to 23.4 Megabytes per second in
• International Used capacity increased by 28% from 119
the second quarter of 2017.
Gbps to 152 Gbps.
• In 2017, 49% of the Available capacity has been provi-
TRA also announced it was in the process of publishing an
sioned, and 62% of the provisioned capacity is being used.
updated regulation on the quality of service to ensure users
enjoy the best service possible.
2017 47
Voice service - Rate of perfect calls HTTP DL Throughput (Mbps) with a 4G handset SMS - RS10 - Rate of SMS received within 10 seconds
99.3%
96.3%
94.5%
94.1% 94.1% 93.8%
Voice Quality - Rate of perfect 2 minutes calls HTTP DOWNLOAD - Average download Throughput (Mbps) VPQR: % of videos set-up, held for 2 min, and marked 3 or 4
Batelco 98.9%
VIVA 99.6%
Zain 99.2%
The Authority with RIPE NCC conducted a workshop with the local operators in Bah-
rain in April, 2017 to present the current global IPv6 state as well as in the region
with special focus on Bahrain.
2017 48
PROMOTING
A CULTURE OF DISTINCTION
2017 49
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has Localizing Excellence
been whole-heartedly building on its idea of global
excellence – firmly embedded in the development
of Bahraini human capital in the sector; through
potent initiatives aimed at creating a localized in- The TRA Employment Status • PROPORTION OF MALE AND FEMALE WORKING IN THE TELECOMMUNICATION SECTOR
sertional and innovative leadership hub through • Local – Expat Ratio 80%
sustainable youth development; and adopting the 2012 - 3:7 73% 73%
72% 71%
73%
72% 72% 72%
continuous enhancement and upliftment of its hu- Bahrainis 30% Expats 70%
man resources; its stakeholders; and of the King- 60%
dom as a whole.
2017 - 4:1 50%
span of just five years; the TRA in 2017, achieved a 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
2017 50
Fostering Amity – TRA Internal Activities & Events
2017 51
Blood Donation Drive – 30 October Baharaini Women’s Day - 29 Nov Pre National Day Mini Gathering – 12 December
TRA staff donated blood as part of the blood donation drive conducted by TRA in
collaboration with BDF (Expand Abbreviation) at its headquarters.
TRA celebrated the arrival of Kingdom’s National Day at its headquarters. The highlight of the
jovial gathering was the ‘Sherafat Fayrouze Station’ serving drinks & chocolates to the TRA staff.
TRA Held an internal event in honor of women’s day, celebrating and acknowl-
edging the significant contribution of the TRA female workforce.
Festival held at the Bahrain International Circuit. During the festival, the TRA briefed the attend-
ees on its functions, responsibilities and awareness campaigns in the interest of the consumer.
2017 52
MAKING
THE MARK – GLOBALLY
2017 53
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, with its global With a high emphasis on relevant interactions with global busi- Participating in key projects at the Arab Regulators Network meeting
approach, has had an active presence in the international tele- nesses and nations, and forging relations with its international (AREGNET), TRA Bahrain took the lead on the Arab Price Benchmark-
communications arena, since its very inception. counterparts in the sector, TRA acknowledges the importance ing report – considered one of the most important reports that allows
active participation in the world events to gain a comprehensive the region to evaluate the current market status; as well as the Inter-
All through its illustrious journey, the Authority’s efforts have worldview and a better understanding of the complex and con- national Mobile Roaming (IMR) Study at the Arab Level. The leadership
been coordinated towards putting the Kingdom of Bahrain verging industry processes. on the International Mobile Roaming initiatives comes as a result of
amongst the leaders of the world of telecommunications glob- the success that TRA Bahrain has demonstrated in its leadership of the
ally. Result of these tireless efforts of has enabled the Kingdom TRA Bahrain has been active with the ‘International Telecommu- GCC Mobile Roaming project.
to stand at the verge of transforming into a ‘Smart Kingdom’: an nications Union Standardization Bureau Economic and Policy
international ICT hub. Study Group’ (Referred to as ITU-T Study Group 3). Study Group During 2017, TRA attended many prominent international telecom
3 provides a unique global forum to improve the understand- conferences and symposiums as well, gaining a better perspective on
Keeping with the latest and best within the telecom industry ing of the financial and economic aspects associated with the the situations and solutions of the world telecommunications sector;
has been TRA’s forte, and the consequence is reflected in the growth of ICT, particularly with respect to the shift to IP-based the future of the telecommunication and ICT sector and its contribu-
ever-improving international rankings of the Kingdom across services and future networks and the exponential rise in mobile tion to social and economic development.
various crucial variables in the telecommunication sector. wireless communications.
TRA Bahrain also participated in several Arab Preparatory meetings
2017 saw the extension of the regional and global achievements TRA presides over Study Group 3 as one of the Vice-Chairs of for the World Telecommunications Development Conference (WTDC)
of the Kingdom’s telecom sector. Consolidating its position in the management team, as well as the lead on International Mo- 2017. The meetings were key to coordinate the Arab regional positions
the league of ICT savvy nations, the Kingdom of Bahrain secured bile Roaming aspects; while also participating in various remote as well as identify the issues to be addressed in the conference. TRA
top positions across 6 key metrics in the international ICT rank- meetings, with a focus on particular topics such as over the top contemplated various issues including over the top (OTT) services and
ings for 2017. In the overall ICT Development Index (IDI), Bah- (OTT) and Mobile Financial Services (MFS). the future of the telecommunication industry in general, across the
rain stood at 1st place amongst the Arab Countries, and 31st region.
globally. In 2016, the study group, under the leadership of TRA Bahrain,
approved the recommendation on International Mobile Roam- Recognizing the importance of regional coordination and cooperation
As much as ‘What You Do’ matters, ‘How You Do it’ matters as ing (IMR) (the recommendation is referred to as ITU-T Recom- in the international arena, TRA also conducted regional bilateral visits,
well. The TRA’s operational excellence and adoption of the best mendation D.97), which sets basic instructions for member to telecommunication regulators in the Sultanate of Oman and the
international methods and practices is highlighted in the global states while indulging in discussions to lower International Mo- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, during 2017.The visits aimed at strength-
recognitions it has been garnering constantly on the interna- bile Roaming (IMR) rates and prices. ening ties with the regulators in these member states, and creating a
tional stage. better understanding of the regional members’ individual priorities
TRA also vice-chairs the Arab Regional Group for Economic and and establish more avenues of cooperation and coordination amongst
For the second time, TRA was honored with the ‘Employer of Policy Study Group of the International Telecommunications the GCC member states.
the Year Award’ in the public sector for Middle East & North Union (ITU), as well as chair the IMR group falling under it. TRA
Africa region (MENA), in recognition of its excellence in human coordinates the efforts carried out on an international level be-
resource management. tween member states and sector members by demonstrating
and practicing TRA’s strength in terms of being the parties in-
TRA also bagged the ‘Chief Information Security Officer’ (CISO) volved towards a consensus agreement in relation to topics of
Award for best cyber-security initiatives, and practices, and the interest to the industry.
‘Best Nationalization Initiative in the GCC” award for human
capital development. The TRA’s commitment to developing a
healthy, safe and competitive market was also acknowledged
with the “Regulatory Initiative of the Year” Award, at 2017
CommsMea Awards.
2017 54
The Success Numbers - Bahrain 2017
International ICT Rankings Continuing the Tradition of Success - TRA 2017 Awards and Accolades
• ‘Employer of the Year Award’
‘Measuring the Information Society Report 2017’ by the International Tele- • ‘Chief Information Security Officer’ Award (CISO)
communication Union (ITU) Recognizing excellence in Human Resource Management, TRA was announced the winner in the
• World Rank 31, Arab Rank 1: ICT Development Index (IDI*) The award was conferred upon the TRA Cyber Security public sector for Middle East & North Africa region (MENA), at the 12th Human Capital Forum MENA,
*IDI is a composite index that monitors and compares ICT developments across countries and over time. Director Dr. Khalid Al Khalifa at the Annual Middle East Dubai. TRA won the honor for the second time in a row.
• World Rank 2, Arab Rank 1: Mobile Broadband Subscriptions per 100 Security Awards Gala in Dubai, as he was recognized
Inhabitants – 162.1 among the top 100 Cybersecurity Leaders in the Middle
• World Rank 2, Arab Rank 1: Percentage of households with Internet – 98% East.
• World Rank 6, Arab Rank 1: Percentage of Households with Computer –
94.8%
• 26.11% – Increase in International Bandwidth Bits per Internet User in
a Single Year
• World Rank 2, Arab Rank 1: Mobile Cellular Subscriptions per 100 Inhab-
itants – 216.9
• World Rank 2, Arab Rank 1: Percentage of Individual Internet Users –
98.0%
26
2017 55
• ‘Best Nationalization Initiative in the GCC’
Telecommunications Regulatory Authority Bahrain won the “Best Nationali-
Gaining Lead on the World Stage - TRA International Participation
zation Initiative in the GCC” award at the 2017 GCC GOV HR Summit in Abu
Dhabi. • Bilateral Regulatory Visits • Arab Regional Development Forum and Regional Preparatory Meet-
Recognizing regional coordination and cooperation as the key in the inter- ing for WTDC-17, Khartoum, Sudan, 30 January – 01 February 2017
The prestigious event is dedicated to redefining the human capital function in national arena, TRA continued its efforts to exchange knowledge and coordi- TRA represented Bahrain at the Regional Preparatory Meeting (RPM) for the
public sector organizations in the Middle East. nate various projects with regional regulators. During 2017, TRA Bahrain has Arab States, in the lead up to the World Telecommunication Development
had bilateral meetings with the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority of Conference (WTDC-17).
Oman and the Communications and Information Technology Commission of
the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Participants at the meeting assessed the ongoing implementation of the Du-
bai Action Plan adopted at ITU’s last World Telecommunication Development
• Telecommunication Regulatory Authority of the Sultanate of Oman Conference (WTDC-14) and identified priority areas for information and com-
– January 2017 munication technology (ICT) development strategies in the Arab region.
Five draft regional initiatives for the Arab States region for the years 2018-2021
were identified at the RPM for discussion and consideration at the upcoming
WTDC-17, which were as follows:
The delegation visit to TRA Oman, led by the General Director of TRA Bahrain,
Mr. Mohamed Hamad Bubashait, aimed to achieve closer collaboration and
• CommsMea “Regulatory Initiative of the Year” Award
joint efforts between Bahrain and Oman in the field of telecommunication
CommsMEA announced TRA Bahrain as winner of the “Regulatory Initiative of
regulation at regional and international levels.
the Year” Award for 2017 in the 12th edition of the annual CommsMEA Awards
in Dubai - UAE.
2017 56
• Central Region Communications Conference (CRCC), 17 – 19 April 2017, Washington, DC, USA • International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Standardization Bureau Economic and Policy Study
TRA led the Bahrain delegation to the prestigious annual ICT conference – the ‘Central Region Communications Conference Group, April, 2017
(CRCC)’, organized by the United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), in conjunction with the Department of State and Federal The International Telecommunications Union
Communications Commission (FCC), at Washington, D.C. (ITU) Standardization Bureau Economic and
Policy Study Group (Referred to as ITU-T Study
Themed “Cyber Incident Response: Key to Mission Assurance” for the year; there were various outcomes to the conference regard- Group 3) provides a unique global forum to im-
ing cybersecurity and incident response initiatives, including legal, regulatory, government policy, and international standards prove the understanding of the financial and
issues. economic aspects associated with the growth
of ICT, particularly with respect to the shift to
IP-based and NGN/Future Networks and the
exponential rise in mobile wireless communi-
cations.
TRA Bahrain has been active in the work of ITU
including holding position as one of the Vice-
Chairs of the management team of this Study
Group as well as the lead on International Mo-
bile Roaming aspects. TRA Bahrain has also
been participating in various remote meetings relation to the study group with a focus on particular topics such as
over the top (OTT) and Mobile Financial Services (MFS).
In 2016, the study group, under the leadership of TRA Bahrain, approved the recommendation on International
Mobile Roaming (IMR) (the recommendation is referred to as ITU-T Recommendation D.97), which sets some basic
instructions for member states in reaching lower IMR rates and prices.
• Arab Regulators Network meeting (AREGNET), Abu Dhabi, 18–20 September, 2017
With H.E. Sheikh Nasser Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa heading the delegation, TRA attended the Arab Regulators Net-
work meeting (ARGNET), aimed at joining the efforts of regulators from all over the Arab region to tackle key regu-
latory initiatives at both the Arab and International levels.
• SAMENA Telecom Leaders’ Summit, Dubai, 30 April, H.E. Sheikh Nasser Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa represented TRA at TRA Bahrain participates in key projects
2017 the SAMENA Telecommunications Council’s ‘Telecom Leaders’ in AREGNET and takes the lead on the
Summit’; the renowned annual telecommunications confer- Arab Price Benchmarking report, which
ence, designed to verbalize critical business, policies and regu- is considered one of the most important
latory challenges in an ambience conducive to open communi- reports that allows the region to evalu-
cation among a diverse group of key stakeholders. ate the current market status; as well as
well as the International Mobile Roaming
Appearing on the elite speaker panel concentered on digi- Study at the Arab Level.
tal-services ecosystem, Sheikh Nasser shared valuable insights
and expertise on building a digital-services ecosystem support- joint efforts between Bahrain and Oman
ed by a sustainable, progressive industry environment and im- in the field of telecommunication regula-
plementable strategies and outcomes, required for sustaining tion at regional and international levels.
digital progress.
The report also supports any required decision making at the head of regulators meeting which takes place on the
The outcome of the Summit was achieving clarity on evolving last day of the meeting. Bahrain will be chairing the coming work of AREGNET for the period 2018-2019 following
imperatives in stakeholder cooperation, for fostering collabo- the current chair by TRA UAE.
ration between telecom operators, regulatory authorities, pol-
icy-makers, and other industry stakeholders, with the ultimate
objective to enhance progress in digital development and cre-
ate business efficiencies and value-creation, among others.
2017 57
• World Telecommunications Development Conference (WTDC) 2017, • ICANN60, Abu Dhabi, 28 October – 3 November, 2017 • Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) of the
Buenos Aires, Argentina, 09–20 October 2017. TRA Bahrain attended and participated in the ICANN60 conference held in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – November 2017
TRA Bahrain attended and participated in the World Telecommunications De- Abu Dhabi, representing the Kingdom of Bahrain on the Governmental Ad- H.E. Sheikh Nasser Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa, TRA’s Acting General Director held a bilat-
velopment Conference (WTDC) 2017. visory Committee (GAC). The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and eral meeting with H.E. the Governor of Communications and Information Technology
Numbers (ICANN) is a nonprofit organization responsible for coordinating the Commission (CITC) Dr. Abdulaziz Bin Salem Al-Ruwais.
The key International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Conference held every maintenance and procedures of several databases related to the namespaces
4 years, represents a unique opportunity for the international community to of the Internet, ensuring the network’s stable and secure operation. The meeting was held in conjunction with the Regional Standardization Forum of the
gather together and discuss the future of the telecommunication and infor- International Telecommunications Union (ITU). The bilateral meeting conferred on
mation and communication technologies sector and its contribution to social • 15th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS the importance of cooperation between the two regulators as well the current regu-
and economic development. 2017), 14-16 November, 2017, Hammamet, Tunisia latory trends in the region and at the global level.
TRA Bahrain shared platform with ICT leaders from across the world to discuss
issues related to information society trends and their measurement, at the
WTIS 2017, the main global forum for telecommunication and information
society measurements, organized by the Telecommunication Development
Bureau (BDT) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The Conference was attended by more than 180 member states and over 600 partic- ITU’s latest ‘’Measuring the Information Society Report - 2017’’ – the leading
ipants including governments, operators and ICT providers from all over the world. global index benchmarking the level of ICT development in over 170 econo-
mies worldwide; was also launched at the symposium.
2017 58
• ITU–T Regional Standardization Forum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 19 No- • SAMENA Convergence to Kuwait 2017, Kuwait, 4 December 2017
vember 2017 TRA Bahrain’s head of international relations Mr. Adel Mohamed Darwish par-
TRA Bahrain Participated in the Arab Regional Standardization Forum; ticipated as a speaker in the Convergence to Kuwait conference held in Kuwait
the Forum focused on the future and trends of Internet of Things (IoT) and in December 2017.
Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The event focused on the collaboration between stakeholders to allow the
The forum opening key note was presented by Mr. Chaesub LEE, Director of industry to continually push innovation to the next level. The event shed light
the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) at the International on Regulatory Transformation for Fulfilling the Digital Agenda, Data Regula-
Telecommunication Union. tion, Preparation for the 5G World, and Public Policy Considerations for Over-
The-Top (OTT) services and applications.
The Forum brought together experts from all around the world who shared
their experiences, the challenges they foresee and the preparations required
by the industry for the upcoming challenges of IoT and AI.
The key areas of focus at the Forum were:
• IoT Standardization Collaboration
• IoT Emerging Technologies and Future Trends
• Artificial Inelegance (AI) and Machine to Machine communications
• Regulatory and policy aspects of IoT and The Role of SMEs in the IoT
Revolution.
2017 59
THE ROADMAP
TO SMART FUTURE
2017 60
OVERVIEW The Fourth National
Telecommunications Plan
Inspired by its vision of creating an efficient telecommunications sector, that
serves as an important engine for Bahrain’s economic growth and diversification,
The NTP4 Core Objectives • Ensure the Kingdom is ranked within the top 20 countries globally, in key inter-
national telecommunications indices, by the end of 2018.
as well as its social cohesion, the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain (Gov- • Promoting Bahrain as an ICT and business hub in the region, with the tele-
ernment), adopted the fourth National Telecommunications Plan in 2016 (Reso- communications sector playing a central role in attracting new investment • Effective framework to ensure adoption of international best practices in na-
lution No. 29), in conformity with Article 15 of the Telecommunications Law, as to the Kingdom. tional cybersecurity and cyber safety coordination, preparedness, and response,
promulgated by Legislative Decree No. 48 of 2002 (Telecommunications Law). by the relevant entities in the Kingdom telecommunications/ICT sector.
• Affordable, secure, and robust, ultra-high speed fixed and mobile broad-
The ambitious plan paves the way for Bahrain’s telecom sector to enter a whole band network access to Bahrain consumers. • A high level of demand for services utilizing ubiquitous ultra- high speed net-
new era of digital connectivity; setting the stage for the introduction of next-gen- works, based on next-generation fixed and mobile infrastructure that fosters a
eration Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure. • Develop a strong and dynamic telecommunication sector by maintaining converged internet eco-system.
effective and sustainable competition in the Bahrain telecom market
Emphasizing the need for a robust digital services sector, the NTP4 – while prior- • A comprehensive review – and modification, if necessary; of the Kingdom’s leg-
itizing investment in new high-speed infrastructure; outlines the idea of an ad- • Prioritizing investment in new high-speed ICT infrastructure, with cut- islative framework for the telecommunications sector to address developments
vanced telecommunications platform, as part of a dynamic and converging ICT ting-edge technologies, to stimulate wider economic growth, consistent with in the rapidly evolving sector since the promulgation of the Telecommunica-
eco-system, which will enhance the digital competence of the Kingdom at un- the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 and the goal of becoming tions Law in 2002.
precedented levels, establishing it as a regional as well as international ICT HUB. a ‘Smart Kingdom’.
2017 61
The Instruments of Success
1- Ubiquitous Ultrafast Broadband Infrastructure 3. Spectrum allotment/assignment and wireless infrastructure 4. National Security of Electronic Communications Networks and
evolution Services
The Outline
• The development of fiber-based National Broadband Network (NBN) ca- The Outline The Outline
pable of delivering ultra-fast broadband to consumers and businesses • Identify spectrum that should be allocated for commercial telecommu- • Implementation of cybersecurity and cyber-safety measures across all sectors of
across the Kingdom remains a core objective under NTP4 – a key devel- nications services in line with the current Radio Regulations of the Inter- the Kingdom, in line with the latest international standards and measures being
opment underpinning all of the policies established by the Plan. national Telecommunication Union, while also making necessary plans adopted in other key markets globally, to ensure the Kingdom’s critical telecom-
to free up spectrum, currently held by other entities – for the purpose of munications infrastructure is as secure and resilient as possible.
• The technologies and network architecture in the deployment of the NBN promoting sustainable growth in the mobile industry.
must be “future proof”; ensuring that the network can be upgraded at • Inventory of all critical telecommunications infrastructure in Bahrain. The fa-
minimal cost to deliver state-of-the-art performance in line with interna- • Spectrum awarding for commercial telecommunications services to be cilities thus identified should be evaluated to determine how they measure up
tional benchmarks. in line with international best practices, whilst taking into account the against cybersecurity best practices globally, and any gaps should be addressed
priority placed by the Government on the roll-out and uptake of fiber as a matter of priority.
• A single NBN infrastructure in the Kingdom for ultra-fast broadband prod- services.
ucts and services. This single network will be established and operated by • Measures to secure user devices and improve consumer awareness of online
a separate legal entity, with the right to deploy the network and supply • All allotted radio spectrum for commercial use will be subject to review, threats and how to deal with them, for cyber safety of consumers.
products and services, to all licensed operators within the Kingdom, on a to ensure efficient utilization, management and valuation of the radio
non-discriminatory basis. spectrum to the benefit of the Kingdom. 5. International Connectivity
• Strengthening the existing regulatory framework to ensure that Other • Implementation of regulatory measures as necessary to optimize the ef- The Outline
Licensed Operators (OLOs) are able to compete more effectively in the ficient use of wireless infrastructure and to promote and encourage site • A review of the entire supply chain of international capacity, including the pro-
provision of services to end-user customers. and mast sharing amongst all commercial wireless networks wherever vision of cross-border dark fiber, and adoption of necessary measures for effi-
feasible. cient functioning of the relevant markets.
2. Mobile Competition
• Ensure compliance with the established procedures, requirements and • Review of the effectiveness of current regulation relating to the ability of li-
The Outline technical rules for the construction, siting and design of radio communi- censed operators to access international capacity at cable landing stations in
• Ensure the Kingdom’s strong and competitive telecom sector continues cations stations and supporting structures. Bahrain, along with effective interim measures to minimize the anti-competi-
to deliver significant customer benefits and sustainable competition is tive impacts of any bottlenecks.
safeguarded while maintaining high quality of service standards for mo- • To further facilitate the provision of advanced mobile services, the Gov- • Review the continued need for ‘Bahrain Internet Exchange’ (BIX) and its role
bile voice and data. ernment will coordinate with relevant Government agencies, to secure going forward, with a view to making the most efficient and effective use of
sites in private and public developments, necessary for new mast con- Government resources.
• To sustain the current healthy and effective level of competition in the struction.
telecom market, and avoid regulatory uncertainty; TRA is not to issue • Implementation of measures to ensure effective local peering arrangements be-
individual mobile telecommunications license to any new applicants tween internet service providers, so that local internet traffic remains within the
during the NTP4 timespan. Kingdom. TRA shall monitor the arrangements to ensure maximum amount of
internet traffic remains within Bahrain.
2017 62
6. Access to Internet Applications and Services 7. Developing Bahrain as a Regional ICT Hub 8. Review of the Telecommunications Law
• Lead coordination with the rest of the GCC and put forth initiatives which
will support the development of the telecommunications sectors and
the digital economy of the region.
2017 63
APPENDIX
2017 64
2017 65
2017 66
2017 67
Annex A Service Licenses - 31 December 2017
LICENSES GRANTED AS OF 31 DECEMBER 2017 REVOKED LICENSES (IN 2017)
Revoked
Licensee Licenses VAS ISL ISP IFL NFL NFWS IMTL VSAT IEX Licensee Name VAS ISL ISP IFL NFL NFWS IMTL VSAT IEX Revocation Mode
Date
Ascentech Technical Services 3 √ √ √ Atyaf Telecommunications & Infrastructure Bahrain W.L.L √ √ √ 06 Apr 2017 Voluntary
Order No. 1 of 2017 - Bahrain Broadband’s breach of it’s obligations under Articles 18(a)(1), 18(a)(2), 18(a)(3), 53, 55 and 78 of
TOTAL 88 20 23 15 13 8 2 3 2 2 1 14 Sep 17
the Telecommunications law, Articles 2 and 4 of the Internet Safety Regulations of its License Terms
2017 68