South Africa’s Cabinet on Wednesday endorsed the revised National Radio Frequency Plan (NRFP) 2017, submitted by the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services, which aims to ensure the most efficient use of radio frequency spectrum.
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), in February, conducted public hearings on the revised draft update to the NRFP, the framework of which had, in principle, been welcomed by industry stakeholders.
The hearings had formed part of Icasa’s work to align the draft NRFP 2017 with the final acts of the World Radio Conference (WRC) 2015 and the latest version of the International Telecommunications Radio Regulations, as well as to ensure that spectrum allocations reflect the use of the radio frequency spectrum until the next WRC in 2019.
It was deemed the most critical document in the “spectrum domain”.
“The allocation of spectrum by the WRC has a significant impact on the economic growth of South Africa,” Cabinet said on Thursday in its post-Cabinet meeting statement.
The revised draft NRFP update and amendment was released in December last year for public comment.