For the first time in the history of Sierra Leone with regards telecommunications services, the Director General of Sierra Leone’s National Communications Authority (NatCA) in the person of Amara Brewah is now Chairman of West Africa Telecommunications Assembly (WATRA).
In his acceptance speech, NatCA DG Amara Brewah informed his audience that he will do all he can to work collectively and harmoniously with everyone to ensure that the objective of WATRA is achieved for faster/effective connectivity for service delivery for the people of Sierra Leone.
“I will look forward to all of your commitment to support WATRA. With effective collaboration amongst all of us, I have listed out plans to work on. These plans have been categorized as short term, medium term and long term. The plans are as follows: Admin, Finance and HR policy and process manual review and updates; ensure a 2nd Senior Regulatory Advisor is on-board; ensure Members pay new membership dues as was agreed after the end of the Constitution ratification process, in 2024 at which the Secretariat hopes to undertake a rebranding project; build upon the achievements of the first tenure by continuing the effective implementation of the 2022-2025 Strategic Plan and the new constitution amongst other plans,” DG Brewah said.
He added that he also intends to strengthen the Operating Model and further empower Working Groups for collaborative successes; enhance operational efficiency and digital capabilities to optimize processes and improve service delivery; strengthen partnerships with Member States and regional bodies to promote cooperation and joint initiatives for the advancement of the telecommunications/ICT sector in West Africa – MT; deepen collaborations with Members and other regional and international bodies to promote regulatory harmonization and facilitate joint initiatives. Also seek to expand partnerships with other stakeholders to maximize the impact of WATRA in the sub-region; continue to work closely with ECOWAS and other regional bodies to ensure the adoption of cohesive policies that benefit the entire West African region; lead the development of regulatory frameworks in collaboration with stakeholders to create an enabling environment for industry growth and innovation; maintain financial stability through prudent management and explore avenues for revenue diversification while actively seeking to engage observers and secure their active participation to sustain WATRA’s growth and influence in the region; customize Broadband mapping platform leveraging ITU data; make faster/effective connectivity for service delivery among other deliverables.
The new WATRA Chairman, Amara Brewah further stated: “I will look forward to all of your commitment to support WATRA. With effective collaboration amongst all of us, I have listed out my plans to work on. These plans have been categorized as short term, medium term and long term.”
The Minister of Communications, Technology and Innovation Salimatu Bah also addressed the participants, urging them to consider the fact that there are other countries that are far ahead of Sierra Leone with regard AI technology and other technological developments.
Several other speakers that delivered cogent presentations included the outgoing WATRA Executive Secretary Alieu Yusuf Aboki.
Earlier, the outgoing Chairman of WATRA, Saidou Pana Sankare, informed his audience that during his tenure he created a collaborative platform on which WATRA was formed in 2002.
He assured his audience that the new WATRA Chairman Amara Brewah will do all he can to work collectively and harmoniously with everyone to ensure that the objective of WATRA is achieved.
The event which ends today is taking place at the Radisson Blu Mammy Yoko Hotel, Aberdeen in Freetown.
Accordingly, the WATRA membership appointed Cheikh Amado Bamba of Guinea Bissau as First Vice Chair of WATRA. The Second Vice Chair of WATRA went to Ouro-Agoro Kader of Togo.
