International experience has demonstrated that telecommunications growth and development are fostered in a competitive market. The outcome of competition has been a wider range of services made available to a larger portion of the population, at lower cost, higher quality and with customer support services more responsive to user needs. Recognising the importance of a competitive telecommunications market to the social and economic future of Timor-Leste, the Government has embarked upon a process aimed at liberalising the telecommunications market and introducing effective competition through private sector participation. As part of that process, the Government thus establishes a new legal framework for telecommunications and creates a new national authority for communications with the functions, duties and powers necessary to ensure its implementation.
The objective of the present Decree-Law is to promote the long-term social and economic well being of the population of Timor-Leste by ensuring the availability, affordability and quality of telecommunications services through:
Establishing and maintaining an open, non-discriminatory, technologically neutral, objective, transparent and proportionate telecommunications regulatory regime;
Promoting effective and fair competition among service providers;
Ensuring efficient use of scarce resources required for telecommunications; and
Encouraging investment in, and efficient use of, infrastructure used to supply telecommunications services.
Click here to view: Decree-Law No. 15/2012 of 28 March 2012 on the Regulation of the Telecommunications Sector