Country Readiness Assessment Report – Kyrgyzstan . 3. Present Situation and Trends in the Country’s Informational System 3.1 Main Telecommunication projects The First Telecommunication project was funded via a loan from the World Bank and EBRD to the Kyrgyz Government. The budget of the project was 27,400,000 U.S.D. As a result of this project, the telecommunications infrastructure of the country has been improved considerably: • • • • earth satellite stations of the standards A, F and B were installed; a network connecting regional centers was reconstructed; digital telephone stations were built in Bishkek and regional centers; digital telephone stations in Bishkek were linked by fiber optic cables, with the help of SDH technology. The Chuy Telecommunication project was financed via a loan from the Korean Government of 12,000,000 U.S.D. Digital telephone stations with a capacity of 43 784 lines were established in the Chuy valley. A fiber optic line Bishkek – Kant – Ivanovka – Tokmok – Kemin was built. The Osh Telecommunication project was funded by the Kuwait Fund of Arabic Economic Development, with a sum of 8,700,000 U.S.D. It was used to modernise telecommunications infrastructure in the south of the country, including Osh, Jalal – Abad and Batken provinces. Digital telephone stations with a capacity of 23 400 numbers were installed in Osh City and regional centres. The Trans – Asia – Europe Fiber Optic line, connecting Shanghai, China and Frankfurt – on – Main, Germany, goes through the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic. Right now, eight countries (China, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Iran, Poland, Germany, and the Kyrgyz Republic) have completed their segments, and the total length of the TAE is 27,000 km. In some places in Kyrgyzstan, access to the backbone will be done through radio-relay communication facilities by NERA Co. This backbone will provide access to many countries in Europe and Asia with a speed of 622 Mbps. The National Research and Educational Network (NREN) was sponsored by the NATO Science Programme. Via this project, research and educational institutions have obtained satellite backbone communication lines with a capacity of 2,5 Mbps. 3.2 Communication facilities The prospect of participating in the development of the world’s telecommunications systems has generated increased interest by entrepreneurs in the telecommunications market of Kyrgyzstan. Current conditions The highest growth rates among licenses for electronic communication services relate to licenses (including applications) for data transmission, for telematic services, and for the renting of channels. As a result, the total share of licenses for electronic communication, has increased by 3% during the first 11 months of 2000, totalling 23%. At the same time, the number of applications for this kind of activity is increasing. 22