[Africa-ir-public] CHAKULA ISSUE NO. 10, MAY 2004: Telecommunication policy trends in Africa – 'highlights of key issues '

[Emmanuel Njenga]

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

CHAKULA ISSUE NO. 10, MAY 2004:  Telecommunication policy trends in 
Africa – highlights of key issues

A Newsletter on ICT Policy issues in Africa

Newsletter of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) 
Africa ICT Policy Monitor Project to mobilise African Civil Society for 
ICT policy for development and social justice.

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

1. Editorial
2. Main feature
- Telecommunication policy trends in Africa ‘highlights of some key 
issues’
3. Links to news and resources on key telecommunication policy issues 
in Africa
-  News Items
-  Publications and Resources
4. French Monitor now available
5. Important Notices and Events
6. Subscribing to 'Chakula'

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

1. EDITORIAL

In this issue of Chakula, we bring you stories on ICT policy in Africa 
and in particular highlight some of the telecommunication policy issues 
in Africa and their potential to impact on development. Some of these 
issues have been the highlight of discussions at certain events and 
meetings during the month of May and we have selected a number of 
publications, news articles and discussions papers that address these 
issues at length which can be used as resource by civil society 
organizations for awareness of these issues and how they impact on 
development.

Finally we bring to your attention information concerning the upcoming 
World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) PrepCom 1 to be held in 
Tunis later this month.

APC Africa ICT Policy Monitor Team
http://africa.rights.apc.org

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

2. TELECOMMUNICATION POLICY TRENDS IN AFRICA – ‘HIGHLIGHTS OF SOME KEY 
ISSUES’

*Introduction
During the month of May, we saw a number of activities related to policy 
developments in the ICT sector and impacts in Africa, the most 
conspicuous being the recently held ITU Africa Telecoms Conference 
(http://www.itu.int/AFRICA2004/).  

During the ITU conference some major policy issues were discussed with 
some notable remarks on how current policies could not be attributed to 
the high growth and penetration of mobile telephony in Africa . Just two 
weeks ago another major conference in Uganda of Africa’s ministers of 
economic planning were at it again on Africa policies and out of this 
meeting came a key warning regarding Africa’s blind implementation of 
liberalization policies that are not delivering results . Ghana was at 
it last week with a review of its national telecommunication policy and 
the implications and impacts of the liberalisation of the 
telecommunications industry . Chakula takes a closer look at the 
telecommunications sector some key policy issues of concern to civil 
society.

Telecommunications policy in many African countries like elsewhere has 
evolved over the last decade or so with ongoing sector reforms in the 
form of privatisation, liberalization of key market segments and 
consequent competition. Close at hand have also been regulatory reforms 
that have seen the establishment of ‘independent’ regulatory bodies 
meant to referee the market place. Behind these reforms and changing 
trends are policies that cut across many areas and impact on society 
widely.  

Some of the main policy issues surrounding telecommunication policies in 
many countries have been on privatisation and liberalization of 
telecommunication sectors of the African countries. These policy reforms 
-driven primarily by international donor agencies such as the IMF and 
World Bank over the last few years- are now in the implementation 
process and what’s more as mentioned at the Uganda’s meeting, few 
countries are reaping some results as expected. A key question that 
comes to mind is, to what extend are these policies aimed at creating 
trade opportunities that benefit multinational corporations instead of 
contributing to real national development (as the international 
financiers tend to portray)?


*Privatization
A closer look at the status of privatisation of Public 
Telecommunications Operator (PTOs) in Africa shows that less than 1% of 
the countries have reached full privatisation (Only Seychelles) and just 
about 30% have achieved partial privatisation leaving the vast majority 
of African countries still going through the process .

The rationale to privatise has centred around the need to ensure 
efficient operations of PTO through private management as opposed to 
state control combined with expected injections of foreign investment 
capital. Another reason normally downplayed in the public eye -but a key 
factor that determines the process- is the capital inflow expected to go 
to the government coffers following the proceeds of the sale of the PTO.

On the opposite side of the debate, anti-privatisation arguments in 
general point to jobs losses, concerns on affordability and unequal 
access to services that can follow as governments relinquish control and 
management of their telecommunications sector to private corporations.

Without paying too much attention to the statistics of how many 
countries have privatised and to what extent, Chakula questions how the 
privatisation process and its outcomes are impacting on the diffusion 
and much-publicised role of ICT in Development. Policy statements have 
indicate that privatization implementation should results in reliable 
and an efficient telecommunications sectors. At the same time 
privatisation facilitates the injection of foreign capital to the 
corporations intended for the financing of infrastructure development 
and ultimately resulting in improved service provision and increased use 
of ICT services in the country.

Privatization processes in South Africa  and Senegal have achieved 
positive results such as improved teledensity (the number of telephones 
per 100 people) and rural telephony penetration. The telecommunications 
corporations could be said to be a lot more reliable and efficient in 
service delivery today post-privatisation. We believe other countries 
going through the privatization process such as Kenya, Mozambique and 
Uganda could learn from the South African and Senegalese experiences.

Some governments are eager to privatise attracted by the financial 
gains from the proceeds of privatisation and hope to use them as way of 
reducing budget deficits or paying off foreign debts. However, in 
Tanzania the government recently ended up getting a fraction of the 
anticipated amount for privatisation. The failure to accrue a 
significant sum has been cited as the reason the Kenyan government 
abandoned the privatization process altogether in 2001. A recent report 
from Kenya claimed that even where governments have been able to obtain 
good figures from the privatization proceeds, little can be accounted 
for in terms of use of funds for ICT development such as funds aimed at 
ensuring universal service or other development funds as set out in 
national telecommunications policies and ultimately national development 
goals .


*Liberalization and Competition
At the liberalization front things have been taking place at a little 
faster pace compared with privatization as the majority of African 
countries now have some ‘basic’ liberalized sectors where most countries 
now have more than one mobile telephone operator and many others are 
going through the process of allowing a second fixed line operator into 
the market. The internet market segment has also been vibrant where many 
countries have partially liberalized the sector giving rise to a myriad 
of internet service providers (ISPs) although the backbone 
infrastructure (which connects countries to the international internet) 
still remains in the hands of the PTOs.

Liberalization advocates outline the benefits of competition which 
brings about enhanced access to affordable services, new services such 
as VOIP (telephone-type conversations using cheaper internet 
connections) and wireless technologies (which enables people to get 
connected and share high speed internet over a short distance) and 
related social-economic benefits such as increased foreign direct 
investments, employment and growth in the ICT sector.

Liberalization sceptics warn of depending on market forces to provide 
for universe service (where all citizens have access to telephony) and 
the potential danger of foreign investors taking over local markets 
where profits could be expatriated and other factors such as threatening 
local industry and destroying jobs.

The liberalization of telecommunications markets in Africa has been an 
ongoing process with some positive results in selected areas such as the 
increased presence of multiple service providers in both mobile and 
internet market segments. However much remains to be done to open up 
other segments of the market and especially to ensure local stakeholder 
participation. At the opening of the African Ministers conference on 
trade the Executive Secretary of the United National Economic Commission 
for Africa (UNECA)warned countries of opening markets with little regard 
to growth and called for the adoption of policies driven by strategic 
development objectives .


*Regulation

The independence of the national regulator is perceived as the most 
important element that in effect determines how other functions with the 
regulation aspects are carried out. With an independent regulator in 
place, then certain basic regulatory functions are expected to be 
implemented by the regulator the most common among these being

-    Promotion of universal service to basic telecommunication services
-    fostering of competitive markets to ensure efficient, reliable 
quality and affordable services
-    delivery of other regulatory functions such as licencing for new 
services and transparent practices.
-    prevention of the abuse of market power by dominant firms in the 
market place
-    Protection of consumer rights including privacy rights
-    Promotion of increased telecommunication connectivity through 
efficient use of spectrum and interconnection.  

Regulatory authorities are now operational in many African countries and 
can be applauded for their efforts to get to this stage given history 
where regulatory authorities were merely an extension of the government 
ministries they were supposed to regulate. Today we see some aspects of 
independence.

The establishment of independent regulatory authorities have been seen 
as key to the effective development and management of the ICT sector 
especially in the implementation of key policy areas policy directives 
such as liberalization of key market segments and ensuring that 
universal service obligations fulfilled.  

Africa ICT Policy Monitor Team
http://africa.rights.apc.org


References:

Allison Gillward presentation during ITU Africa Telecoms Conference, 
http://africa.rights.apc.org/news-content.shtml?x=19126
2 UNECA ES press release: 37th Conference of African Ministers of 
Finance, Planning and Economic Development 
http://www.uneca.org/cfm/2004/index.htm
3 Ghana reviews telecommunications policy: 
http://www.inteleconresearch.com/regnews/recent.html#040518
5 Mike Jensen: Privatization Status of African PTOs 
http://www.uneca.org/aisi/nici/Documents/status_of_information_and_commun.htm#Annex%204.%20Privatization%20Status%20of%20African%20PTOs
6 Kanu regime got Sh18b from privatisation: 
http://www.eastandard.net/archives/may/tue25052004/financialstandard/news/news25050405.htm
7 Africa needs to remove obstacles to trade, says Amoako.
http://www.uneca.org/cfm/2004/index.htm

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

3. SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES, PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES ON KEY 
TELECOMMUNICATION POLICY ISSUES IN AFRICA.

* Moving ahead in Ghana: New telecommunications policy addresses 
pressing issues in the sector

On May 24, 2004, a public workshop took place in Accra, Ghana, to 
discuss some pressing issues in the telecommunications sector in Ghana.  
A discussion document was sent to all invited participants and served as 
a stimulus for comment and input toward the definition of a National 
Telecommunications Policy for Ghana.  Hosted by the Ministry of 
Communications, the workshop benefited from the presence of various 
stakeholders representing the Ministry of Communication, the National 
Communications Authority, the telecommunications operators, ISPs, media, 
and civil society, among others.

This workshop will be followed-up by a public forum to be organized late 
June (see http://www.ict.gov.gh for details of the workshop and upcoming 
public forum) and for which all stakeholders will have the opportunity 
to review the draft policy and comment on it (via written comments or by 
participating at the forum).

All stakeholders were invited to present their views on the issues 
raised in the discussion document, both through participation in the 
workshop, and in further written form, responding to the various topics 
and questions raised.  This new telecommunication policy is being 
developed in the context of the existing ICT policy and such issues as 
the sector market structure, access network, licensing, universal policy 
and competition policy are being addressed.  The discussion paper 
provided options for most issues and raised critical questions that need 
to be addressed, such as what are essential telecommunications services 
(e.g., basic telephone service, internet access) in the context of the 
universal access policy and what are the license obligations that all 
carriers should comply with, among others.

APC

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

NEWS ITEMS

* Telecoms growth is not the result of government policy – expert 
05/05/2004, (Highway Africa News Agency)

Africa’s rapid growth of cellphones is despite, not because of, policies 
adopted by governments, a South African expert told an international 
telecoms conference in Egypt yesterday.

http://africa.rights.apc.org/news-content.shtml?x=19126

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Privatisation blues: Tanzanian government to lose control of PTO

More investment, less-government control and efficiency in service 
delivery seem to be the operative words used by the Parastatal Sector 
Reform Commission (PSRC) now. The government wants to shed a further 24% 
stake to investors with 10% going to local investors. Are we witnessing 
the government losing its grip on the PTO and perhaps opening up markets 
for a second national operator?

http://www.cinsa.info/portal/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=166&Itemid=2 

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* The African Indicators Report

Advantage Africa! was the theme of the ITU meeting in Egypt which 
traditionally involves an exhibition and conference (Forum). The 
exhibition was relatively small, but considering the size of the ICT 
sector on the continent not unimpressive, with several new technology 
suppliers demonstrating the potential of their wares to provide low cost 
access solutions to the continent.

The access constraints, however, lie not in the technology but in the 
policy and regulatory environments which predominantly prohibit the 
application of many of these solutions outside of the business of the 
incumbent, despite the high cost of service across the continent. But 
such issues were not the focus of most of the Forum's presentations, 
despite its claim to examine and discuss telecommunications policy, 
development, economic and investment issues, as well as their technology 
and applications aspects.

By Alison Gillwald, LINK Centre, University of the Witswatersrand
http://www.regulateonline.org/news/africatelecom04.htm

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Telecommunications bill introduced in Mozambique (05 April 2004 / CTO)

Last week, the Mozambican government presented a bill intending to fully 
liberalise the telecommunications market.

In 1999 the telecommunications market in Mozambique was opened to the 
private sector and it was through this that a second mobile phone 
operator set up a subsidiary to compete withthe cell phone company that 
is currently 100 percent owned by the public telecoms company TDM. The 
proposed bill aims to introduce competition in the fixed phone network 
in order to gradually end TDM’s monopoly over the fixed phone service. 
The government intends to privatise TDM this year and privatisation 
would involve finding a strategic partner to take a majority stake in 
TDM, and attract funding for expanding the network.
http://www.cto.int/index.php?dir=07&sd=11&id=1156

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES


* Evolution of telecommunications policy reforms in East Africa: Setting 
new policy strategies to anchor benefits of policy reforms

This paper is a strategic evaluation of telecommunications policy reform 
over a ten-year period 1993-2002. The focus of the paper is the three 
countries of East Africa - Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The evaluation is 
framed against policy objectives set out by the three governments and 
their outcomes as measured against relevance to stakeholders, 
performance by implementers based on the space created by the reforms, 
and success in terms of sustainability and impact.

By Muriuki Mureithi
Summit Strategies Ltd. Nairobi, Kenya
http://link.wits.ac.za/journal/j0301-muriuki-fin.pdf

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Telecommunication liberalization - what does it mean for the average 
citizen?"

The complex debate around telecommunications liberalization has already 
been faced in the developed world, and the issues now confront almost 
every developing country. The dilemmas are not unique to South Africa, 
but the current situation in this country illustrates the complex issues 
at stake and how real people are affected by the decisions of the 
government.

>From Bridges.org
http://www.bridges.org/e-policy/sa/articles/telcom_liberal.html

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Key Lessons in Telecommunications Reform

This paper examines the factors driving the recent reform trends in the 
telecommunications sector around the world, the alternatives available 
to governments and their implications and interprets empirical data from 
developed and developing countries in order to determine how best 
telecom reform is conducted and assesses the role played by 
privatization, regulation and liberalization in the reform’s success. It 
considers the tradeoffs and key issues in implementing the reform, and 
analyzes the impact on the incumbents’ performance, presents the major 
challenge of corporate governance, which has become in the past few 
years the center of acute debates, particularly in the United States and 
Europe and summarizes the main findings and lessons drawn from previous 
telecom reform.

By Patrick Farajian
http://www.escwa.org.lb/wsis/conference/documents/C31-franjian.pdf

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* South Africa policy brief: Telecommunications overview, commentary, 
and statistics

South African telecommunications policy-making is at a crossroads.  This 
report looks at the current telecommunications sector of South Africa, 
focusing on existing and proposed government policy, and describing the 
interests of telecom businesses and other constituencies that influence 
government decision-making.  It also provides analysis and 
recommendations for balancing the needs of ICT users and the concerns of 
the public and private sectors, while fostering competition and bringing 
down telecommunications costs.  

By Bridges.org
http://www.bridges.org/e-policy/sa/articles/telcom_report.html

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* The Next Step for Telecom Regulation:
ICT Convergence Regulation or Multisector Utilities Regulation?

This paper critically examines the multiple rationales for telecom, IT, 
media convergence regulation on the one hand, and multisector utility 
regulation on the other, and the practical questions of implementation 
they pose, with a view to contributing to informed policy and regulatory 
decisions that are now underway in many countries. The conditions that 
may affect the creation of convergence and multi-sector regulation, 
ranging from underlying commonality of inputs and the behaviour of 
regulated firms to considerations that are specific to the regulatory 
process such as scarcity of regulatory resources and safeguards for 
regulatory independence, are examined. The paper concludes that ICT and 
media convergence issues are primarily about improving the efficiency of 
market economies, and how changes in regulation can facilitate this 
process. It is likely to be of primary interest for countries that 
already have an established effective independent telecom regulator.

By Anders Henten, Rohan Samarajiva and William Melody
http://link.wits.ac.za/journal/j0301-anders-fin.pdf

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Technical and policy advances in rural telecommunications

Providing access to telecommunications services in rural areas continues 
to challenge policy makers and telecommunication operators alike. The 
problem is complex and solutions require an understanding of the 
technical issues as well as the policy instruments used to create 
incentives for rural service providers. To that end this article 
presents a brief overview of both technical and policy innovations in 
rural telecommunications. Technologies discussed include both wireline 
and wireless networks while policy instruments are presented as 
following either an ‘obligation’ or ‘incentive’ strategy.

By R. Westerveld and C. F. Maitland
http://link.wits.ac.za/journal/j0301-westerveldt-fin.pdf

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Telecom developments and investments in Ghana

A general description of the telecom development and present situation 
in Ghana. The aim of this paper is to analyze this development and 
situation and to discuss the reasons behind the successes and failures 
experienced, in particular with respect to investments.

Godfred Frempong and Anders Henten
http://www.regulateonline.org/2003/dp/dp0305.htm   

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Telecommunications policy in a rapidly evolving market

A presentation by Hon. Albert Kan-Dapaah, Minister of Communications and 
Technology, Ghana.

http://africa.rights.apc.org/resources-content.shtml?x=18974

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* ICT Policy: A Beginner's Handbook


APC's new book lays out the issues and dispenses with the jargon to 
encourage more people to get involved in information and communication 
technology (ICT) policy processes. This book is for people who feel that 
ICT policy is important but don't understand much about what is 
involved. Chapters cover basic questions such as "What are ICT and 
internet policies and why should we care about them?", studies markets 
and access, national ICT and internet policy and regulation and looks at 
specific issues in policy and regulation including privacy and security, 
cybercrime and gender and ICTs.

Look out for part three that focuses on National ICT and internet policy 
and regulation. This chapter aims to increase understanding of ICT 
policy and regulatory issues, especially in developing countries, by 
addressing the following questions:

-    What are the objectives of ICT policy?
-    How does it link to legislation and regulation?
-    Who are the key players nationally and globally?
-    Who governs the internet?
-    How has telecommunications reform evolved?
-    What are the objectives of regulation and how does
it work?
-    What are key reform and regulatory issues and their
consequences?
-    What can be done to make decision-making processes
more participatory, democratic and transparent?

http://www.apc.org/english/rights/handbook/originales/ICT_Part_03.shtml
Download “ICT Policy: A Beginner's Handbook” free of charge: 
http://www.apc.org/books/policy_handbook_EN.zip
To buy “ICT Policy: A Beginner's Handbook” ($10.00USD plus postage and 
packing) contact APC at handbook at apc.org

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

4. POLICY MONITOR NOW AVAILABLE IN FRENCH

The Africa policy Monitor Website has gone through some improvements and 
we are now happy to announce that the website can be accessed in French. 
We have been testing the French version for the last two months and we 
are satisfied you will find some interesting content in French mostly 
covering countries from the Francophone Africa. Please do send us your 
comments or ideas on the website.

http://www.apc.org/francais/rights/africa/


Version « bêta » du site francophone de l’Observatoire des Politiques 
des TIC en Afrique de APC

Dans le cadre de son initiative « Africa ICT Policy Monitor Project», 
l’association APC met en place la version francophone du site « Africa 
ICT Policy Monitor », appelée « Observatoire des Politiques des TIC en 
Afrique ».  Tout comme le projet, ce site a pour ambition de mobiliser 
la société civile africaine au sujet de l'importance des politiques 
relatives aux TIC. Il référencera et mettra à disposition les 
informations concernant les TIC en Afrique, du point de vue des 
politiques des TIC et de la société civile. Ces informations concernent 
non seulement l’actualité, mais également:

-    les « Ressources sur les politiques » : il s’agit de tout document 
de fond traitant un aspect particulier des nouvelles technologies de 
l’information, avec un focus sur les questions liées à la société civile ;
-     les « Evénements et Campagnes » liés aux NTIC ;
-    les « Organisations et Initiatives » : il s’agit de présenter, de 
façon non exhaustive, les organisations et initiatives de la société 
civile africaine traitant des TIC ; le choix est fait pour l’heure de 
traiter celles disposant d’un site web ; les initiatives d’autres 
acteurs pouvant intéresser cette société civile seront également 
répertoriées dans cette rubrique ;
-    les « Bulletins d’informations » portant sur les TIC, complétés par 
une sélection de liste de discussion.

D’autres informations plus analytiques seront développées plus tard. 
Toutefois, dans le cadre de la parution de Chakula, le bulletin 
d’information du projet, de courts articles analytiques pourront être 
publiés.

La version française du site vient s’ajouter à la version anglaise qui 
seule existait auparavant. Les informations publiées dans la version 
française concernent d’abord l’Afrique francophone, l’Afrique anglophone 
étant d’abord couverte par le site anglophone. Elles sont généralement 
classées par thème (accès, genre, logiciels libres, cadre réglementaire 
et législatif, sécurité, contenu local, etc.) et par pays.

Une version «bêta » du site est en développement et visible à l’adresse 
http://www.apc.org/francais/rights/africa/  

Vous pouvez nous envoyer vos réactions et informations à l’adresse  
droits.afrique at apc.org

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

5. IMPORTANT NOTICES AND EVENTS

* Tunis Phase: Preparatory Meeting (Prepcom-1 Of The Tunis Phase)

A Preparatory Meeting for the Tunis phase of the Summit will take place 
in Hammamet, Tunisia, from 24-26 June 2004.

Important: Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society and 
private-sector entities who wish to participate in the preparatory 
meeting of June 2004 have to be accredited before registering.

For more details:
http://www.itu.int/wsis/preparatory2/hammamet/index.html

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

* Fellowships For NGOs/Civil Society Participants to attend WSIS Prepcom

For those interested to attend the WSIS Preparatory Meeting in Hammamet 
(Tunisia), 24-26 June 2004: guidelines for fellowships for NGO/Civil 
Society representatives

http://www.itu.int/wsis/documents/doc_multi.asp?lang=en&id=1223|0

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\

6. SUBSCRIBING TO 'CHAKULA'

Contact: chakula at apc.org

For questions, comments and contributions to the Africa ICT Policy 
Monitor Project

If you want to subscribe or unsubscribe to Chakula, please go to:
http://lists.sn.apc.org/mailman/listinfo/africa-ir-public

//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\