Kurdistan (Iraq), -- The end
of the civil war in Kurdistan Region in late 1997 between the
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of
Kurdistan (PUK) market the beginning booming businesses.
Although the war divided the region into two administrative areas,
Sulaimaniyah on one side, Erbil and Duhok administrations on the
other, which made the region politically unstable; entrepreneurs
started companies in various fields. One field which developed
rapidly was cell phone companies.
Two separate companies for mobile telecommunications were
established in both KDP and PUK zones, but they too, stayed at odds.
They gradually became symbols of the political tensions between the
two ruling parties.
In 1999, AsiaCell Company for wireless communications was founded in
Sulaimaniyah, the administrative city of PUK’s authority, by Kurdish
businessman Faruq Mustafa Rasool. Similarly in Erbil, the capital of
the region, Korek Telecom Company started operating officially in
2000. In addition to Erbil, this network also covered the province
of Duhok. |
Faruq Mullah Mustafa, the owner of the Asia Cell
mobile company in Sulaimaniyah
Photo: KURDNET Archive |
The growth of AsiaCell, in terms of subscribers and then the ability
to cover more and more areas, was faster than Korek. This apparently
appeared after the fall of Saddam’s regime when the Iraqi interim
government set a plan for GSM (Global System for Mobile) network
operations in the country.
The Iraqi Ministry of Telecommunications in October 2003 granted
AsiaCell the license to operate in Northern Iraq which consists of 6
provinces: Sulaimaniyah, Erbil, Duhok, Mosul, Kirkuk, and Salahaddin.
The license also allowed the company to expand its services to the
rest of the country the following year.
“Shortly after the fall of the regime, our GSM operator was on the
top. We had a greater number of subscribers and were fully ready to
cover other areas, and we won the grant,” said Othman Faraj, 50. He
was given a license in 2004 to be the manager of AsiaCell-Erbil
Office by the General Directorate for Business and Registration of
Companies of the Ministry of Finance in Erbil. But he is still not
allowed to perform his duty.
That was the offshoot of two separate administrations in Kurdistan.
In November 2000, the Ministry of Telecommunications in Erbil
granted Korek solely, the license for operating a mobile network in
Erbil and Duhok that will expire August 11th, 2006. As a result,
AsiaCell was banned.
For many, the two GSM operators in the same region, but in two
different administrations, without interconnection was another facet
of political tensions between KDP and PUK.
“The fact was that both ruling parties facilitated mobile phone
companies in their sphere of influence,” said Othman.
After getting formal authorization following the 2003 invasion,
AsiaCell expanded to Mosul and Kirkuk. It had also setup towers in
Erbil and Duhok to start work anytime it was allowed. “Right now, we
have all basic facilities to operate,” he added.
Despite the fact that the unification of the two administrations
will be irrelevant to the future work of AsiaCell in the former KDP
region, officials say AsiaCell is expected to cover Erbil and Duhok
by autumn this year, by which time Korek’s license will have been
already expired.
The policy of the KRG Ministry of Communication will help “GSM
operators to work in the same areas under the condition that there
must be interconnections among them,” Othman explained.
Currently, AsiaCell subscribers are more than 2 millions. This
figure is expected to rise once the gate is also open for it in
Korek’s network coverage areas. But that does not mean the drop of
business for Korek which has already established itself in the area.
Korek now has “more than 600,000 subscribers,” according to its
website. Another fact is that the cost of making calls with Korek is
less expensive with 6 cents per minute in comparison with AsiaCell’s
9 cents a minute.
Kurdistan is looking forward to seeing dramatic changes in cellular
phone communications. In addition to AsiaCell, there are chances for
other Iraqi mobile phone companies to start operating in Erbil and
Duhok. Interconnection among the GSM operators will possibly occur
leading to market competition playing better roles in advancing
service.
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