MANAMA, 23 July 2003 — Bahraini telecom firm Batelco announced yesterday the launch of the first private mobile phone system in Baghdad, where ordinary Iraqis were deprived of such a service during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
“The introduction of a private GSM system allows local Iraqis as well as aid workers and foreign investors to communicate freely and easily,” Batelco Regional Operations Manager Rashid Senan said in a statement.
The service, installed at nearly $5 million, was deemed in the statement as a “major step toward reconstruction in Iraq”.
“Batelco and the government of Bahrain understand this communication capability is an essential contribution to the development of Iraq before formal licenses can be processed.”
The firm also said some telephones would be distributed free of charge to police, fire and ambulance crews to help “reduce crime and improve security in Baghdad”.
Until now, no mobile networks, long banned under the former regime, were available in Baghdad and the US-led administration in Iraq only announced a tender was up for mobile telephony last week.
Khalid Al-Hajeri, deputy director general of MTC-Vodafone, Kuwait’s largest mobile operator, confirmed his company too had started to offer services in its neighbor, but not in the capital. “We have a contract with the responsible authority in Iraq to provide full mobile services in the Basra governorate,” he told AFP in Kuwait.
The coalition forces said last Thursday up to three 24-month licenses were open for bidding and a request for proposals would be formally announced by the week of July 28.
