The Inter-American Telecommunications Commission (CITEL), through its Permanent Consultative Committee 1 (PCC.1), met last week (August 20 – 24) at Organization of the American States (OAS) headquarters in Washington, DC. The group gathered to discuss telecommunications regulatory and development issues and to coordinate OAS strategic telecommunications initiatives for establishing positions in advance of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary Conference (PP-18) this fall.

At the opening session, OAS General Secretary Luis Almagro identified the approval of a revised International Amateur Radio Permit (IARP) as one positive result coming out of the OAS General Assembly earlier this year, noting that representatives of the Dominican Republic and Argentina have signed off on the revision. Almagro encouraged more countries to adopt and implement the protocol.

CITEL Executive Secretary Oscar León also stressed the importance of signing the revision through OAS and promoting national ratification according to the local rulemaking process.

Bruno Ramos, ITU Regional Director to the Americas, also cited the ongoing ITU-coordinated project of an alternative emergency communication network involving Amateur Radio, especially in the Caribbean region, fulfilling the OAS strategic objectives.

Representing the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) at the meeting was Flávio Archangelo, PY2ZX, who is IARU Region 2 Coordinator for CITEL.

The ITU Plenipotentiary Conference is the top policy-making body of the ITU. Held every 4 years, the Plenipotentiary Conference sets the Union’s general policies; adopts 4-year strategic and financial plans, and elects the ITU’s senior management team of the organization, member states of the ITU Council — which acts as the ITU’s governing body between Plenipotentiary Conferences — and members of the Radio Regulations Board.

The 2018 Plenipotentiary Conference will take place October 29 – November 16 in Dubai. — Thanks to Joaquín Solana, XE1R, IARU Region 2 News Editor