Speech
Workshop on “Good regulatory governance in the face of globalization”
Notes for an address
by Jean-Marc Demers
Commissioner, Canadian Radio-television
and Telecommunications Commission
at the First Annual Meeting of the Francophone Telecommunications
Regulation Network
Bamako, Mali
October 28th, 2003
(CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY)
Introduction
Hello everyone! It is an honour to have been invited to coordinate this
workshop featuring international experts.
First allow me to introduce them to you. We have:
Mr. Ibrahima Sanou, Chief of the UIT African Regional Office.
Mr. Yann Burtin, TIC Branch, World Bank.
Mr. Papa Lamine Sylla of the Multinational Centre for Higher Studies in
Telecommunications in Dakar.
This workshop will be dealing with the theme of the First Annual Meeting
of the Francophone Telecommunications Regulation Network, which is “Good
regulatory governance in the face of globalization”. Given the quality of
the participants at this workshop, I am sure that it will prove highly
informative and interesting for all of you.
But first, let me get things warmed up a little by offering you the
Canadian point of view on good governance and its relationship to
telecommunications regulation in the context of growing globalization.
Good governance in Canada
The term “governance” can be defined as the manner in which the
government manages a country’s social and economic resources. In Canada,
good governance is notably the exercise of power by the various levels of
government, with a view to efficiency, honesty, fairness, transparency and
responsibility. Essentially, it can be summed up as the good management of
public affairs, by means of rules and principles, in collaboration with
businesses and the Canadian people.
We are convinced that sound governance empowers people and strengthens
their government. It brings stability that promotes the creation of jobs and
businesses, and therefore, economic growth. It supports the efficient
delivery of social programs and improvements in the general health of
communities. For us, sound governance constitutes the cornerstone of vibrant
communities.
As recently stated by the President of the Treasury Board of Canada, the
Honourable Lucienne Robillard, “We are developing an overall strategy of
government services that are clearly geared toward citizens and that offer
them a global vision of the Canadian government. By the end of this calendar
year, we will be in a position to make that vision a reality that is based
on what Canadians and businesses tell us, what technology allows us to do,
and on new approaches for managing information and information systems.”
In Canada, governance is closely linked with certain conditions, notably:
- Accountability: those who wield authority report to the people, for
example, on the use of public resources, on their compliance with existing
laws, on their values and on how they administrate.
- Cooperation and the sharing of certain responsibilities by different
levels of government and society at large.
- The pooling of expertise and knowledge: partnership should be based on
common projects and shared rules.
- And finally, the government’s role as catalyst in supporting the
actions of the various stakeholders.
Ethics and good governance
And there is, of course, the question of ethics, In Canada, all public
office holders must act with honesty and meet high ethical standards in
order to maintain and increase the public’s confidence in the government’s
integrity, objectivity and impartiality. They must carry out their official
duties and organize their personal affairs so that they are above reproach
and can withstand intense public scrutiny. Furthermore, they most avoid
real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest. The public interest must
always take precedence in cases where office holders’ interests conflict
with their official duties.
Last month, the President of the Treasury Board of Canada announced a new
spending policy for the various federal departments and agencies. The
measures that have been adopted are the result of consultations, notably
with the Canadian public. They will serve to increase fairness and
accountability, improve government communications and strengthen the
management of public resources.
It is interesting to note that in most countries, governments and
businesses take ethics seriously. Governments in particular can see the
extent to which corruption can erode their economies and harm their
societies. In order to put an end to corruption, they take specific actions
within the framework of their more general efforts to improve governance.
The evolution of the international climate has indeed greatly assisted in
effecting this turnaround.
We are gradually seeing the importance of strong leadership in a number
of countries. I am convinced that the commitment to good governance will
become more and more widespread in the coming years.
The CRTC and good regulatory governance
It seems clear that an independent, accessible and impartial legal and
judicial system is the key to honest and fair management. In Canada, an
independent agency like the CRTC truly symbolizes that concept. It is
directly financed by contributions from the companies it regulates, based on
very strict and well-established criteria. Its mandate is clearly defined in
the two Acts that govern it. Its role is facilitated by the absence of
direct financial participation on the part of the Canadian government in the
ownership of telecommunications companies.
The CRTC makes its decisions impartially, depending largely on the Acts
and regulations that govern it. Interested parties are encouraged to take
part in proceedings and to inform the Commission of their concerns. For
example, the CRTC Telecommunications Rules of Procedure provide for the
reimbursement of expenses incurred by those who participate in CRTC
proceedings. In order to be reimbursed, interveners must act for themselves
or on behalf of a group of subscribers that will receive a benefit or suffer
a detriment as a result of the order or decision. Interveners must also
participate in proceedings in a responsible way and contribute to a better
understanding of the issues by the Commission. The CRTC taxes the company
involved for the amount of the costs allowed.
Every year, pursuant to an order-in-council, the CRTC reports to the
government on the state of competition in telecommunications markets, as
well as the deployment and accessibility of telecommunications
infrastructure and advanced services. This report is made public and may be
consulted by telecommunications companies, the general public or any other
interested party. You had a preview of the 2003 edition yesterday as some of
the data I provided in my speech came from that report, which is not yet
final. It will be released at the end of November, and you will be able to
consult it on our Web site.
An efficient regulatory system is an important tool that helps the
government to attain its public policy objectives. In terms of regulation,
the CRTC follows the directives established by Parliament in the
Telecommunications Act. Among other things, it should “foster increased
reliance on market forces for the provision of telecommunications services
and (to) ensure that regulation, where required, is efficient and
effective…”
In the telecommunications sector, the CRTC has declined to regulate, in
whole or in part, based on the level of competition in the markets. We
believe that ultimately, the most durable competition would be what we call
competition based on infrastructure. This means that providers of competing
telecommunications services use their own equipment and infrastructure to
provide their services rather than depending on those of other companies. We
believe that in the long term, this infrastructure-based competition will be
the best way to achieve the objectives established by Parliament in the
Telecommunications Act.
While infrastructure-based competition is our ultimate goal, a period of
transition toward this model is necessary. We are therefore currently
adopting a hybrid approach that allows new entrants to use the required
infrastructure and equipment belonging to incumbent telephone companies
(former monopolies), in return for regulated fees. This might involve, for
example, the wires that connect the user from the head office of a telephone
company.
We still have a long way to go before meeting our objective of
facilitating infrastructure-based competition. Competition, particularly in
local markets, is certainly not evolving as quickly as we would have liked.
As the telecommunications regulator, the CRTC assumes responsibility for
improving this situation. Our recent decisions have been aimed at
eliminating obstacles and thereby promoting competition. And we will
continue moving in that direction.
I would like to quote to you from an article published last June by the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) dealing with
this subject:
“The principal challenge for the governments of OECD countries is to
ensure that telecommunications markets remain open, so that competition in
the sector allows for new innovations. Ensuring the liberalization of
local access markets in particular and opening them to competition would
be a great step forward.”
Good governance, a cornerstone of globalization
At the same time, I envisage governance in the face of globalization as
the association of different governments and agencies for purposes of
commercial exchanges and the resolution of collective problems. This
requires the cooperation of the various players.
To differing degrees and over various times in our history, the concept
of good governance has been considered and adopted by numerous private and
public organizations. The globalization of markets has increased the
requirements of good governance. Certain trade agreements, particularly
those of the World Trade Organization dealing with basic telecommunications
services or the regional agreements, contain articles that frame or guide
the practices of telecommunications regulators. Good governance enables the
public, companies, shareholders, partners, and all the players in an
industrial sector to learn about developments, as well as to better
understand the actions of an organization and interact with it.
We are all confronted with the challenge of globalization, an
irreversible and planetary process that is affecting our daily lives. It
clearly offers economic benefits to countries and individuals. Some people
are still asking themselves if globalization doesn’t threaten to undermine
our cultures, our societies, our environments, and increase income
disparities. In Canada, the challenge involves building a society inspired
by “globalization with a human face”, able to protect and enrich
multicultural diversity, linguistic duality, and the quality of life.
Globalization is not the source of all evil. Nor, however, is it a
panacea that automatically improves the existence of whoever opens their
borders to monetary and commercial exchanges. Globalization must be balanced
with a development process.
Canada believes that globalization will be what we make it. The choice
belongs to us. Essentially, everything depends on how we decide to govern
ourselves as an international community. There would appear to be unanimity
on the final objectives – making globalization work and finding global
solutions to global and national problems. On the other hand, there is not
unanimity on how best to achieve those objectives.
Some argue for continuing to intervene on a case by case basis and
dealing with problems as they arise. Canada advocates instead the
development of new structures and new mechanisms that will allow the global
economy to better serve the interests of the world’s citizens – all the
world’s citizens. We think that we have to depend on laws, structures and
approaches that form a more coordinated framework and that will be just as
effective.
Positive results
Before I conclude, allow me to share you with a few elements from a
report that the OECD published a year ago dealing with the Canadian
telecommunications sector:
- Among OECD countries, Canada recorded one of the best performances in
the telecommunications sector.
- The Canadian regulatory system is one of the most transparent in the
world, and its regulatory culture is innovative and future-oriented.
- Finally, competition has meant lower prices, and a real choice in
service providers, as well as the rapid development of access to
high-speed Internet.
It goes without saying that we are very proud of this recognition of the
Canadian telecommunications industry’s results, even though we still face a
number of challenges. But the development and the daily practice of sound
regulatory governance will certainly help us achieve these results.
Conclusion
In closing, I would like to emphasize that governance is more than a set
of procedures or rules, or a revival of corporatism. It is aimed at a new
organization of power and collective action. A society has effective
governance when power, knowledge and resources are well distributed. It
remains an ongoing exercise rather than a static objective. It is a state of
mind that requires constant vigilance and commitment.
As for regulation, I believe that it must not only be developed with the
participation of citizens and businesses, but also with the cooperation of
other national and international authorities, in order to truly reflect our
own interests while taking into account our commercial and cultural
relations.
In a context of globalization, despite their individual differences,
companies and governments can agree on the implementation of certain
measures that will improve the situation of a great many components, notably
telecommunications.
And therefore, a meeting like this one creates opportunities for pooling
ideas, rules, and resources for the benefit of telecommunications throughout
the Francophonie.
Thank you! I will now turn things over to the international regulatory
experts we have invited to this workshop.
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Date Modified: 2004-01-16 |
