Director of Bureau Telecommunications and Post St. Maarten (BTP-SXM) Mr. Antony Carty together with supporting staff paid a working visit to St. Lucia to meet with the ECTEL, the Multi-State telecom regulator of the Eastern Caribbean, to discuss bilateral- and regional telecom issues and to establish a working relationship between the two regulatory bodies.
During the visit, Mr. Carty, Mr. King, and Mr. Wijngaarde from BTP-SXM met with the Managing Director of the ECTEL- Mr. Embert Charles, the Director of Technical Services- Mr. Andrew Millet, and Director of HR- Ms. Pat Payne.
Topics discussed during the meeting with the regulatory counterpart were; spectrum management, mobile spectrum interference from neighboring islands, Universal Social Funds, talent management, policy development, the impact of mergers and acquisitions in the region and opportunities & threats within the telecom industry.
Mr. Carty and Mr. Embert Charles mutually agreed that ECTEL and BTP-SXM will work together in the future by effectively making use of each other’s level of expertise. Mr. Carty stated: “we are operating in the same region, performing similar activities, carry the same responsibilities, facing the same challenges and sharing the same objectives. To operate as efficient and effective as possible, it’s beneficial to all parties to establish good working relationships, join forces, learn from each other and assist each other in finding solutions for national, regional and global issues in the sector. All with the overall goal to further enhance telecom services in our region”.
The working visit was deemed productive, fruitful and successful and Bureau Telecommunications and post St. Maarten will continue to develop strategic alliances in the region.