STAATSKOERANT, 24 JANUARIE 2014 No. 37261 19 the current regulatory environment, BMI-T forecasts the fixed and fixed wireless connection rate to decline by2.4%, whereas mobile connections are expected to grow In by6.2%. The continued reduction in fixed-line penetration, the saturating mobile market and the drop in data prices due to increased competition, as well as the sustained economic downturn have had an effect on growth in the past few years. Telecoms sector revenue grew from R8.2bn in 1993 to R157bn in 2012 and is expected to grow to R187bn in 2016. In this scenario, the Compounded Average Growth Rate (CAGR) is expected to be 4.6% from 2010 to 2016, with the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) fixed-line and value-added services growing at only 1.1% as opposed to the mobile cellular growth of 5.9%. Telecom......:, .service Total PSTN fixed Ii! ne and VAS .,',iternative voice. ser-vices Totai 2 4ftm) CAGR 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 '44 S6S 203 5s.8 ?10515 116 003 1227'-' 131 -:L83 138 069. ..q% 2 006 41 00 42 576 42 817 43 561 44 291 44 342 1.1% 398 3 679 3 568 3 548 S. 6.884 S 957 4 283 3.1% 141 272 149 127 156 659 171 044 179 331 186 694 4.6% 2010 ai mobile cellular serdices 2010 ue Source, SMI-T, Zola ..4iternative, voce serv,ses ;Traditional LCR, 162 368 P, Hybrid 11 - 16 LCR -be wen ana Source: BMI-T, 2013. Alternative voice services (Traditional LCR, VolP, Hybrid VolP / LCR) base scenario Despite the emergence of a sophisticated telecommunications market in South Africa in the democratic era, the central policy issue that has not been adequately addressed is that of achieving affordable access to reliable and robust communications infrastructure and services. Various research studies show that the ICT access gap is growing, particularly between rural and urban areas, as well as between those with higher and lower incomes. South Africa has effectively lost its status as continental leader in terms of the global ranking indices produced by the World Economic Forum and the International Telecommunication Union. For instance, the Network Readiness Index (NRI) of the WorldEconomic Forum, 2013, shows that South Africa currently ranks 70th in the world, out of a total of 144 countries. This study measures a country's propensity to exploit opportunities offered by ICT, and the impact of ICT on the competitiveness of nations. South Africa continues to trail behind other comparator countries such as Chile, Turkey and Poland. Despite the ICT sector's phenomenal growth in the past two decades, the cost of communication remains relatively high. According to Gilwald, Moyo & Stork (2013),when compared with other African countries, mobile and fixed retail prices are in most cases ten times higher. The table below shows South African prepaid mobile prices in relation to the 10 cheapest countries in Africa, based on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 2010 prepaid low-user mobile basket (40 calls per month prepaid). 15 This gazette is also available free online at www.gpwonline.co.za