The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) is seeking comment from interested parties on the draft numbering plan, published recently in the Government Gazette.
According to the regulator, telephone numbers are a limited resource and the need for numbers is constantly growing as new services emerge and the number of industry players grows.
The draft plan, covering landline and mobile numbers, has also been drawn up in response to a dire need to extend services to more people in order to achieve universal service and access to telecommunication services.
This calls for careful planning of numbers to ensure their efficient and orderly allocation, to accommodate competition and anticipate market needs way into the future.
"The purpose of this draft numbering plan is to provide sufficient capacity for new entrants into the telecoms market, such as the proposed second national operator and the underserviced area licence-holders," says Harrish Kasseepursad, manager for numbering administration.
"In order to keep the proposed numbering plan simple, we have chosen to exclude certain issues which will be dealt with separately, such as the 10-digit dialling plan and number portability."
Kasseepursad says the 10-digit dialling plan will more than likely be dealt with towards the end of this year, while the number portability issue will meet the requirements set for it by 2005.
Since the numbering plan is a national resource, its design, adoption and management should be in the public interest, hence ICASA`s call for public and industry comment.
Numbering administration requires the authority to establish an initial framework for numbering conventions that: meets the future demands of the country`s telecoms services; ensures seamless transition to a competitive environment; enables the assignment of numbers on a non-discriminatory basis that is reasonable and equitable; and that does not unduly favour or disadvantage any particular industry segment nor unduly favour one technology over another.
Interested parties have until 12 July to make submissions to the authority, and once ICASA has received the submissions, the draft numbering plan will be refined and finalised, before being submitted to the minister of communications for promulgation.
"The main aim of this draft plan is to create a climate where we move away from the anti-competitive numbering system that has been used in the past," says Kasseepursad.
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