It may have taken nearly a year longer than originally planned, but the country`s telecommunications sector finally got to celebrate a decade of democracy in the industry.
The Decade of Telecoms industry banquet, held last night at The Carnivore restaurant in Muldersdrift, witnessed many of the sector`s top names rubbing shoulders as they commemorated a decade of change and growth in the industry.
Originally scheduled to take place in November last year, the banquet was first postponed until February, although following "heated" discussions between several key players, it was again called off, only hours before guests were supposed to arrive.
This time, however, it went off without a hitch, with keynote speaker Telkom chief sales and marketing officer, Nombulelo Moholi, saying the earlier postponements had in fact been fortuitous.
"In the telecommunications business, timing is everything. In this case, however, the timing is even more telling than usual," she said.
"Had this celebration taken place as initially scheduled, it would have occurred in something of a vacuum. However, in the matter of a few weeks, we have moved from a state of uncertainty to one of unprecedented clarity, thanks to the recent policy announcements made by the minister of communications."
Moholi mentioned the highlights of the past decade in the industry, including the work done by Dr Pallo Jordan and his successor, Jay Naidoo.
She also touched on issues such as the drafting of the Telecommunications Bill, the formation of the Independent Communications Authority of SA and its predecessor, the SA Telecommunications Regulatory Authority as being important events in the past 10 years.
"Someone else without whom the industry would not be where it is today is the former director-general of the Department of Communications, Andile Ngcaba, who - in his nearly 10 years at the helm - never once lost sight of the bigger picture."
Moholi also believes that new energy has now been breathed into the sector, with more to come next month when the minister sheds more light on service-based competition, the Convergence Bill and the ICT black empowerment charter.
"There is no doubt that the result of these announcements will be accelerated competition, which Telkom welcomes, as everyone benefits. None more so than the customer.
"This banquet allows the telecommunications industry to celebrate its vibrant past, its eventful present and it exciting future."
A coffee table book detailing the highlights of the past 10 years of the telecoms industry will also be made available later in the year.
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