Exclusive Interview: Amine Salih, Head of the Libyan Technology Institution, Reveals Key Insights on the Telecommunications Sector

In an exclusive interview with our source, the head of the Libyan Technology Institution, Amine Salih, clarified several important details regarding the telecommunications sector:

1- Could you tell us about the Libyan Technology Institution and what role it plays in Libya?

The Libyan Technology Institution is a community-based organization that strives to work in harmony with various governmental, non-governmental, and private entities within the Libyan state. It is fully locally funded and supported, and it is committed to neutrality and professionalism, with a team of over 70 experts and specialists, more than 20 projects, numerous partnerships and collaborations, and both local and international representation. One of the institution’s most successful projects was the proposal of the national regulation for the use of email by the Libyan state, which was approved by the Cabinet in Decision No. 563 of 2021. Additionally, the institution contributed to the regulation of governance for digital media platforms in the government, as per Decision No. 858 of 2024, and the establishment of June 1st each year as the National Information Technology Day in accordance with Decision No. 79 of 2021, among many other reviews and laws.

We are also involved in the National Artificial Intelligence Program in collaboration with the Government Contact Center, in addition to issuing technical reports and developing an acceptable use policy for Microsoft 365 services, which is provided as a consultancy service to major institutions. Furthermore, we cooperate with the Libyan Audit Bureau, as mentioned in its 2023 report, support more than 32 civil society organizations with technical services, participate in both global and local forums, and have achieved numerous other accomplishments over 5 years of work with a distinguished group of stakeholders. For more information about us, please visit our website Technology Ly or, in English, LTF NGO.

2- Tell us about your work and activities with the previous management, as we faced difficulty in finding reports issued by you?

In reality, we faced difficulties in collaborating with the previous management, and that period was marked by a lack of understanding from the previous administration regarding our supportive role, which may involve opposition, support, or publishing reports. We even experienced a complete halt in communication at the beginning of 2023 for two years, during which we did not receive satisfactory responses to many questions, requests for technical reports and services, or efforts to relay community complaints and requests for new services. Instead, in the last year, the focus was solely on supporting a community-oriented technical awareness event with no visible impact. We continuously opposed the marketing process due to the lack of tangible effects on the public, services, or a clear plan.

The role of civil society institutions is to apply pressure for the betterment and greater benefit of the public. We are not an enemy to anyone; rather, it is a cooperative national relationship. We have no commercial or profit-oriented role in this work, otherwise, there would not be a significant number of workers at the Libyan Technology Institution working at low wages or voluntarily. We even sent a letter, containing a report, to 12 regulatory and government bodies about our observations regarding the telecommunications sector in August 2023, along with a copy of this report to the Telecommunications Holding Company, but we received no response.

Ultimately, we are not seeking responses, support, or a clear relationship as much as we are seeking services and the development of infrastructure that lays the foundation for a promising technological future that the community deserves. We continuously repeat one phrase at the institution’s headquarters: “When the problems in the technology, telecommunications, and information sector in Libya are resolved, the institution’s existence will no longer be necessary.” Based on all of the above, we faced difficulties in publishing reports due to the lack of clear communication channels.

3- How do you evaluate the performance of the previous management of the Telecommunications Holding Company, and what lessons can be learned from its experience?

From our perspective, the performance over the past three years, viewed from a distance, did not include the fundamental changes seen in other countries around the world. We did not witness the launch of 5G services, the establishment of large data centers, or the attraction of global technological investments and partnerships between local and international companies. Evaluating the past period requires understanding the strategy that the institution was working with and its objectives, which the company has always promoted in its campaigns, stating that 2025 would be the year to achieve the 4SC strategy. However, to this day, we have not been able to understand this strategy or its evaluation methods. The evaluation process should be based on a broader understanding of reports regarding what has been done, worked on, and for what purpose.

We have always requested reports, inquiries, and the opening of communication channels, but the response has been negative since the beginning of this previous administration, and this may have been its approach to responding—only governmental through our correspondence with them. Furthermore, there have been no substantial new services, and the company’s work seems to revolve around reactive actions such as fixing cables, outages, and interfering in matters that are the responsibility of ministries and existing bodies, not a telecommunications company. Meanwhile, we have not seen awareness programs about services, or technical labs, or interference from companies providing technical services to citizens.

The lesson learned is that we must work in harmony with all stakeholders for the public good and the future of communications, including companies, regulatory institutions, private sector companies, universities, and civil society organizations. There should be transparency in publishing reports and effective communication with the community, as well as building bridges with regulatory institutions in the country. We must avoid micro-management. There are many lessons to be learned, and the best person to answer this question would be employees and department managers within the companies, as they are more knowledgeable and competent than I am in the details of the companies and the Telecommunications Holding Company.

4- What priorities do you think the new administration should focus on to ensure the improvement of the telecommunications and technology sector in Libya?

From our perspective and based on our more than seven years of experience observing successive administrations of telecommunications companies, we believe that assessing the previous period through the publication of reports, as is customary worldwide, is crucial. These reports should cover the state of networks, the services provided, clear development plans, and the expansion of services across Libya, as these are the primary concerns of users. Additionally, it is essential to provide services that meet consumer expectations, open doors to major partnerships with the private sector without ignoring, dividing, categorizing, or excluding it in any way, and to elevate the knowledge and educational levels of the upcoming generations who will lead the future of technology, telecommunications, and information management. Establishing direct communication channels with the public, cities, villages, governmental and non-governmental institutions is also necessary to understand the real needs in the field of telecommunications and information technology and to act accordingly, rather than following in the footsteps of previous administrations that pursued unrealistic digital transformation goals without a solid technical and digital foundation.

5- Do you think this change will have an impact on the investment environment in the telecommunications sector?

This is a question that we believe should be answered by the new administration through a press conference or by announcing its upcoming direction. However, in my personal opinion, the internet in the coming years will become a natural and free right for all citizens in the country while still being profitable for the telecommunications sector, similar to how voice calls and text messages were replaced by WhatsApp and other voice communication apps on smartphones. The same will likely happen with data within no more than five years, or internet access will be offered at a fixed price affordable to all citizens.

Therefore, the Libyan Telecommunication Holding Company and its group of companies must adapt to global changes by investing in data centers, service application development companies, data hosting firms, website design, live streaming, data storage, AI service providers, and much more. When we hear that major companies are considering shifting from the telecommunications market to electronic payment, artificial intelligence, or data hosting, it is a clear sign that we must pay close attention to these trends.

6- Do you expect these changes to increase the efficiency of the companies affiliated with the holding company, such as Al-Madar, Libyana, and Libya Telecom & Technology?

Every change, over time, definitely impacts the work environment positively once the administration has provided all it could, whether positively or negatively. However, looking at what has happened over the past three years, we see that the telecommunications companies have not made significant progress. This change could be a strong motivator for new thinking, real future projects, and genuine partnerships.

7- Do you see a need for regulatory and legal reforms to keep up with the new changes in the telecommunications sector?

Working in the telecommunications sector and based on past experience in regulatory, legal, and community fields, it is necessary for everyone to work towards establishing rules that are fair to all parties, especially customers and the private sector, and to avoid monopolistic companies. To avoid these issues, regulatory frameworks should be created to ensure the rights of all and encourage competition, the formation of new markets, and prevent any party with financial power from dominating small sectors, whether they are community-based, educational, or small projects. On the contrary, it should be based on cooperation among various stakeholders, including regulatory bodies, state-owned companies, private sector companies, community institutions, universities, and educational and research institutes, in order to create regulations according to the best global practices.

8- What role can technological institutions like the Libyan Institution for Technology play in the coming years with the new management of the Telecommunications Holding Company and its subsidiaries, and how can cooperation be enhanced?

Any community movement is a healthy and commendable one in the world, and decision-makers must recognize that the tech community is an advocate for the betterment of everyone, not an adversary or constant opposition. The role can shift from being a pressure group to a supporter, then to a collaborator, consultant, or technician. We are all here to help build a better future for the entire community. This country will be built on knowledge, work, high-level services, and regulatory frameworks that define the roles of institutions, companies, and bodies. It is not right for the community to bypass consumers by demanding reductions in commercial services, which leads to the deterioration of the infrastructure and basic development of the sector. It is not right for large companies to monopolize or raise prices, nor should large companies eliminate smaller ones. A community cannot grow with punitive regulations that fail to organize the sector, services, and prices. These are interrelated and interdependent circles, and any imbalance in one will affect everyone.

Here lies our role: to provide technical and advisory reports in a language that decision-makers in the telecommunications, technology, and information sectors can understand, as well as the views and perspectives of officials, administrators, engineers, and technicians in a language the general public can comprehend. We aim to translate the needs of the private sector to state-owned companies providing infrastructure services, allowing everyone to understand their roles. This is what we call effective technical community dialogue.

Regarding future cooperation and roles, there are many areas where we can find ourselves as an institution. These include partnerships based on clear foundations, voicing the concerns of various segments in a neutral, objective language, conducting awareness projects in villages, cities, universities, and colleges to spread technical awareness, which is our noble goal and constant cause. We can also create technical reports that can be publicly shared without containing any competitive or non-publishable information, as well as bridge the communication gap between the public and state institutions in the telecommunications sector, making effective use of services or providing future services. We have ideas, proposals, and research projects that have been under development for over a year, which will be presented to the sector and shared with research and educational institutions.