The Rule of Law and Best Practices in Telecommunication Regulation^[1]

OAS/DHDEC/CIR.044/2014

1. Study venue: United States Telecommunications Training Institute, 1150

Connecticut Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20036, United States of America

2. Offered by: USTTI in conjunction with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Department of Justice, the Washington, DC Legal Community and USTTI Board Member Corporations.

3. Coordinator of the course: Mike Beirne, USTTI Curriculum Coordinator, Email: [email protected] Phone: (202) 785-7373, Fax: (202) 785 1930

4. Modality of the course: On site

5. Start and end dates of the course: June 16 to 20, 2014

6. Course duration: Five (5) days

7. Language of instruction: English

8. Course Objectives:

1. Review challenges and opportunities that rapid advances in technology, and evolving marketplace conditions, and increasing privatization and globalization create for telecommunications providers.

2. Develop an understanding of the goals and concerns of national policy-makers and regulators in regard to their countries? respective telecommunications needs in today’s telecommunications environment.

3. Examine the role of the Rule of Law and the advantages and disadvantages of various regulatory practices, procedures, and approaches in use or under consideration in the United States and elsewhere.

4. Identify effective “best practices” that can be adapted by regulators in a variety of settings to achieve favorable policy and regulatory outcomes for telecommunications users and service providers alike.

9. Course Content:

The rapid changes in the field of telecommunications have prompted both regulators around the world and the entities they regulate to examine the effectiveness of regulatory structures, practices, and procedures governing today’s telecommunications marketplace. This course is intended to expose participants to ideas and approaches than can lead to the development of best practices in telecommunication regulation suitable to a variety of settings and circumstances. With an introduction to the concept of the Rule of Law and its role in telecommunications regulation as a starting point, the course sessions will present a variety of regulatory models, procedures, and practices and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each. Course sessions will focus not only on the perspectives of telecommunications regulators, but also will feature presentations in which investors in telecommunications infrastructure, providers of telecommunications services, and consumers who use and rely upon those services will share their views. The course will include on-site visits to several U.S. federal agencies and organizations.

10. Eligibility requirements:

· Be a citizen or permanent resident of an OAS Member State (Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brasil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba[2], Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, México, Nicaragua, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, República Dominicana, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and The Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela), with the exception of the United States since is the host country.

· Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Law or Engineering.

· Participant profile: Government policy-makers and regulators; executives and managers of telecommunications companies subject to existing or proposed governmental regulations; and government and private sector attorneys who advise them with at least three (3) years of experience.

· English proficiency. To be considered for admission, scores must be submitted from either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Exceptions may be made for applicants who hold a degree from a university located in a country in which English is the official language and also the language of instruction at the university. The minimum scores for admission consideration are:

o Academic IELTS: an overall band score of 6.0 with no individual score below 5.0

o TOEFL: 550 on paper-based or 80 on Internet-based test.

· Submission of completed online application form by the deadline set by the National Liaison Organization (ONE).[3] It is the candidate’s responsibility to ascertain the deadline set by the ONE in his or her country of residence

· In addition to the OAS online application, applicants must also submit a formal application through the USTTI. Applications may be filed through USTTI’s web site: http://ustti.org/courses/apply.php3

Please Note: If you were awarded an OAS Professional Development Scholarship in the past twelve (12) months or if you currently hold an OAS Scholarship for Academic Studies, you are NOT eligible to apply for another Professional Development Scholarship.

11. OAS Scholarship Selection Criteria:

In accordance with article 4.2 of the Manual of Procedures of the Scholarship and Training Programs of the OAS, OAS scholarships shall be granted based on the following criteria:

· The objectives and priorities established in the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development;

· The training priorities of the member states;

· The merits and overall credentials of the candidate, including his/her academic and professional background;

· The financial need of the candidate; and

· An extensive and equitable geographic distribution for the benefit of all member states and that takes into account the greater needs of the smaller and relatively less developed economies.

12. Scholarships benefits:

· OAS/PDSP will cover round trip economy class air tickets from country of origin or residence to Washington, DC, United States of America. Funds for terminal and in-transit expenses are NOT provided.

· USTTI will provide: a) a stipend of $400.00 to offset hotel and living expenses; b) waiving the $150.00 administrative fee; c) Health insurance with international coverage for the duration of the course in Washington DC which includes emergency medical evacuation, repatriation of remains, and emergency medical meetings.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: THESE SCHOLARSHIPS ARE SUBJECT TO THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS CORRESPONDING TO THE 2014 REGULAR BUDGET

13. Responsibilities of the scholarship recipients:

· Based on shared accommodations and an arrival date of Sunday, June 15, 2014 and departure date of Saturday, June 21, 2014 the additional amount needed for this course is USD $549.02 as the total estimated hotel and living expenses amount to USD $949.02 and there is a USTTI stipend of USD $400.00 Please be advised that the USD $949.02 correspond to:

o Hotel estimate = USD $529.02

o Living expenses = USD $420.00 (The living expenses are calculated based on US $50.00 per day (including travel days) and an additional USD $70.00 for ground transportation (to and from the airport).)

If single accommodations are requested, an additional amount of USD$529.02 will be required.

· In order to become scholarship recipients, the selected candidates must confirm their acceptance of the scholarship by signing and returning to DHDEE their completed “form of acceptance of the scholarship award”;

· If after accepting the scholarship, the scholarship recipient for whatever reason cannot attend the course, he or she must immediately notify the Department of Human Development, Education, and Employment of the OAS to see if there is an alternate scholarship recipient;

· Scholarship recipients must communicate in writing to the OAS/DHDEE on which dates they will be able to travel;

· Scholarship recipients are responsible for obtaining the necessary visa(s) to enter the country of study and the corresponding transit(s). The OAS will not be responsible for any costs related to obtaining visas or transfer documentation;

· Each scholarship recipient is responsible for arriving on time for the commencement of activities on the date established by the institution offering the course or program;

14. Certification: The participants will receive a diploma from the United States Telecommunications Training Institute (USTTI), regional Training Center of the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission.

15. Application Process:

1. Select the course: http://www.oas.org/en/scholarships/professionaldev.asp

2. After having read the course information thoroughly, click “Continue/Continuar” at the end of the page.

3. Complete application form.

4. After completing application form click “Send / Enviar” at the end of the page 5.

5. A copy of the application form will be sent automatically to your e-mail account.

6. Print and sign application form e-mailed to your account.

7. Submit signed form and required documents with the Professional Development Scholarships Forms & Documents in this link: http://www.oas.org/es/becas/PDSP/Formularios_becas_PDSP.pdf to the National Liaison Office(ONE) in your country, which list can be found in: http://www.oas.org/es/becas/programaregular/one.asp

Any questions regarding submission of applications for this course should be sent to: [email protected]

OAS/DHDEE//LZea-Yonker/ The Rule of Law and Best Practices in Telecommunication Regulation

CITEL/USTTI/USA/201