SpeedCast国际

2021年10月4日

据知情人士透露，在美国占领期间，阿富汗的无线运营商在电信行业投资了数十亿美元，现在他们正在努力获得美元并向供应商付款。(彭博社)——据知情人士透露，阿富汗的无线运营商在美国占领期间向电信行业投资了数十亿美元，现在却难以获得美元并向供应商付款。支付给维护通信网络(包括偏远地区的卫星)的公司的大部分大额款项都是用美元支付的。这些人士说，自从塔利班8月份掌权后，美国切断了资金来源并冻结了储备资金以来，这些贷款一直没有发放。由于此事敏感，这些人士要求不具名。他们表示，最近几周，形势一直在恶化，没有明确迹象表明双方将达成协议，以获得更多资金。知情人士说，人们担心的是，像SpeedCast International Ltd.和欧洲通信卫星公司(Eutelsat Communications)这样的卫星公司，以及来自伊朗等邻国的光纤供应商，可能会削减服务，从而降低阿富汗人民与外界的联系水平。他们说，许多其他服务，包括远程软件支持、备件和保持移动信号塔运行的电力供应商，也需要用美元付款。联合国空间一代咨询委员会区域伙伴关系经理曼努埃尔·恩图姆巴说:“可能关闭SpeedCast服务将影响200多个阿富汗村庄的端到端小型蜂窝通信。”他说，在难以到达的地区，宽带、手机、电子保健、电子学习和远程医疗也将受到影响。根据DataReportal的数据，将近74%的阿富汗人口生活在农村地区。 SpeedCast did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Eutelsat said it was unable to comment on commercial arrangements. Banking Collapse Estimates are hazy on how much foreign telecoms firms have invested in Afghanistan during the U.S. occupation, potentially reaching to about $3 billion, according to two senior executives. Senior management at the major telecom firms have left Afghanistan for Dubai, Europe and South Africa, with local engineers staying behind to try and keep the networks running, said the people. However, the biggest threat to internet and mobile connectivity -- besides security -- is the potential collapse of the banking sector, they said. The U.S. has frozen about $9.5 billion in assets belonging to the nation’s central bank, and the International Monetary Fund has cut off the group from using reserve assets. That’s created a liquidity crisis, and the central bank ordered lenders to limit withdrawals to $200 a week even for corporate clients, making it almost impossible to run a business in the telecom industry. During the Taliban regime that ended following the U.S. invasion in 2001, Afghanistan had fewer than 15,000 local landlines and almost no internet, according to information from the Afghan Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. This changed significantly during the occupation, with international operators such as Johannesburg-based MTN Group Ltd., Etisalat of the United Arab Emirates and Roshan entering the market. The latter is a joint venture between Monaco Telecom SAM and a Swiss development agency.