International role for telecommunication expert

Jeanette DiergaardtWith 26 years in the ICT industry, Ronel le Grange, the head of electronic communications at the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia, is ready to spearhead a working group of the International Telecommunications Union.Her new role entails overseeing the group’s work on technical and compatibility studies. This will include finding out whether mobile services will be able to co-exist with other services. This includes terrestrial television broadcasting and radio astronomy. How will this affect Namibia and Namibians, you might ask. Le Grange’s appointment will lead to the implementation of 4G and in future 5G services. Once the working group has researched and successfully outlined the viability of the plan, possible implementation can be discussed. Once consensus has been reached, mobile services can be implemented in the spectrum where only terrestrial television broadcasting is currently provided. This can eventually lead to broadband coverage being expanded to rural areas. Le Grange will be making recommendations as to how the objectives can be reached. The spectrum that is being studied is the 470-694 MHz band. All the recommendations and studies will be reviewed at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference.Reaching consensus with the different member states with different needs might pose a challenge, she says. “It is a great honour to serve Namibia and Africa at international level. Resolutions and spectrum allocations emanating from the ITU World Radiocommunication Conference carries treaty status and serves as the basis of spectrum allocation for 22 services such as radio astronomy, maritime, aeronautical, satellite, mobile and fixed telecommunications services, and broadcasting services amongst other to strive to delivery communications services all over the world,” says Le Grange about her appointment at the international body. She has been attending all WRC meetings since 2015. Le Grange has been devoted to CRAN for nine years after she started her journey at CRAN in 2012. She has been in the telecommunications industry since 1995, first kicking off her career in ICT at MTC when the company first opened its doors. With her current title, more is added to her repertoire. The dynamic woman made her mark at the Southern African Development Community (SADC). She is not only a chairperson of a SADC working group but serves as the vice-chairperson of the Electronic Communications Committee of the Regulators Association of Southern Africa (CRASA). In addition, she represents Africa and SADC as rapporteur for the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference.

International role for telecommunication expert

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-31

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International role for telecommunication expert

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-31

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