The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ARPT) of the Republic of Guinea, together with Arcep France, which will serve as interim chair of FRATEL in 2026, will host the 24th annual meeting of the Francophone Telecommunications Regulatory Network. The event is scheduled for Thursday, October 29, through Friday, October 30, 2026, at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Conakry.
This year’s theme is: “What measures can be taken to support the deployment of digital infrastructure?”
Three roundtable discussions will form the basis of the proceedings. The first will focus on innovative public initiatives to ensure comprehensive fixed-line networks and improve mobile coverage. The second will examine measures to achieve the objectives set out in regional digital development plans. The third will explore the support available for the deployment of new digital infrastructure.
The event will actually begin on Wednesday, October 28. On that day, the ITU will host a workshop on its Global Economic Modeling and Simulation (GEMS) tool, which is dedicated to the deployment of digital infrastructure, subject to availability. On the same day, leaders from FRATEL member authorities will meet to discuss the role of various institutional actors in regional digital development.
On Saturday, October 31, an informal gathering of participants will bring the week to a close, allowing discussions to continue in a more relaxed setting.
For French-speaking regulators, many of whom participate in the iPRIS project, this meeting provides a valuable opportunity to share concrete experiences on a key issue: ensuring that digital infrastructure truly reaches the population, including in the most underserved areas. In Guinea, as elsewhere in French-speaking Africa, the quality of regulation largely determines the speed and equity of deployment.
Practical information and the detailed agenda will be released shortly by FRATEL.
