Private sector involvement gives telephone network operators something to talk about

Teleco: Experience at the service of the community

Haiti’s telecommunications sector has weathered the country’s political crisis far better than most. Good times or bad times, people like to talk. Moreover, telecoms have been far more successful than other activities in attracting foreign direct investment, especially from the United States.

In particular, the state phone company Teleco entered a joint venture with the U.S. corporation Starcom, which the government considers to be a model for development. “It is also a way of improving services for the population as a whole and of making means of communication available to everyone, particularly in more rural areas,” comments Minister of Public Works, Harry Clinton.

“Communication is an extremely important thing,” he adds. “It’s a sector that has to be taken really seriously. The Haitian state needs to encourage other investors to come into the market, as that will also serve to increase competition and boost productivity.”

Moreover, by facilitating communication, new technologies mean people don’t have to make as many journeys as they used to, he explains, thereby saving money.
Foreign investors have been invited into the telecoms sector by Conatel, which is the state regulatory authority for telecoms. This has helped stimulate competition between the public and private sectors, notably in the growing mobile market.

“Even with our difficult past, we have managed to keep the sector very healthy,” Conatel’s Chief Executive Officer Jean Arry Ceant says. “The companies are all working beautifully. They are moving in different directions, and they all have a solid consumer base.”

JEAN ARRY CEANT Chief Executive Officer of Conatel

PATRICK A. JOSEPH Chief Executive Officer of Teleco

The most important player in the telecoms sector is Teleco, whose Chief Executive Officer, Patrick A. Joseph, is overseeing an extension of the network of fixed lines. When he took over two years ago, there were 85,000 lines in the whole country, but a program is well under way to more than double this number.
“I haven’t wanted just to concentrate on a center like Port-au-Prince, but also to extend lines to provincial towns, including Cap Haïtien, Port-de-Paix, Petit Goave — even Cabaret, where before there wasn’t a single telephone,” Mr. Joseph says. “Anyway, the product is much appreciated and works really well.”

Another innovation since Mr. Joseph took over has been the launch of Teleconet, which is bringing Internet services to Haiti. “It’s a service that is working extremely well,” Mr. Joseph says. “In all the provincial towns and in the nine geographical regions, people now have access to the Internet. Teleco has also brought the Internet to students in schools.”

Then there is the involvement of Starcom, which has brought its expertise in wireless telephony. This has enabled Teleco to enter the mobile phone business too, albeit later in the field after two private companies. Mr. Joseph believes that Starcom’s investment stake, in excess of US$50 million, will act as an incentive for others to follow suit.

The competition brought about by such joint ventures has also stimulated Teleco into making greater efforts, Mr. Joseph believes. “I think we should welcome competition, because it can help,” he declares. “The customer always benefits, because competition favors a better service and a better price.”
Indeed, the biggest private mobile phone company, Haitel, has also entered into partnership with the U.S. firm MCI.

Conatel’s Jean Arry Ceant says foreign companies that have invested in the sector are happy with the experience. “They would love to stay, because they can make money,” he maintains. “They have faith in growth, and their money is secure; in fact, they get their revenue before the local companies here get paid.”

Minister Clinton is convinced that developing telecommunications technologies are opening a whole new horizon for Haiti. “You can get an email through your computer, or contact a family member wherever he might be in the world,” he says. “And if the fixed Teleco line is down, you can still get a message if you have a mobile phone.”
One of Teleco’s biggest successes, however, has been with prepaid phone cards, enabling Haitians to speak to relatives and friends overseas. They can even be used abroad.

Coming from a private sector background — in radio and television, as well as property development — Mr. Joseph has been able to institute an improved work ethic for his public-sector labor force. “I have been able to bring something positive, a new attitude towards work, which is helping us to move things forward.”