ROSEHALL, St James – J Paul Morgan, the chairman of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) and director general of the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), on Monday urged the government to embark on a major consultation with information communications technology stakeholders to ensure the country’s position on the cutting edge of technological development.

“…The focus for the telecommunications, ICT must be geared towards supporting competition and ensuring that innovation is not stifled even while preserving order…..it is for this reason that I believe it is now time again for the government, the regulator, industry and other stakeholders to embark on a major consultation…” he said in his opening address to the CTO’s fifth annual forum at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Rosehall.

The forum, which is being attended by over 100 delegates representing some 34 Commonwealth countries, will end officially today.

It is expected that representatives of the various countries will, after sharing best practices, be better able to contribute to the enhancement of their national information communications technology (ICT) policies.

Speaking on the significance of a national ICT policy, Morgan described Jamaica as a celebrated case in terms of its achievements in the telecommunications sector since 2000 when the country embarked on the path of liberalisation.

Citing the latest figures, Morgan informed participants that Jamaica had recorded over US$1.2 billion of capital investment and moved from 250,000 lines, representing 20 per cent penetration, to 2.5 million lines representing almost 100 per cent penetration since liberalisation.