TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATIONS — THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM OF A STATE

In late October, Turkmenistan is going to celebrate the 16th anniversary of its independence. By tradition, the exhibitions displaying the development of the fundamental sectors of national economy, industry and agriculture during the years of sovereignty will be arranged in the Turkmen capital on the eve of the festive celebrations.

Turkmentel-2007 is to be one of the most advanced technology and large-scale exhibitions this year. The Ministry of Communications and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan are actively preparing the international exhibition of telecommunication, telemetric, information technologies and TV and Radio broadcasting equipment.

The prestigious technological exhibition will bring together the world’s major communication equipment manufacturers, leading distributors and providers from the countries worldwide, foreign firms and companies successfully operating in the Turkmen telecommunication market in Ashgabat. The Turkmen communication specialists will have a broad field to exchange experience and expand international co-operation and some reasons for being proud.

HELLO, WORLD? SPEAK, PLEASE!

Nowadays, the communications industry is one of the most promising and dynamically developing sectors of the Turkmen economy. Improving telecommunication infrastructure is an important aspect of the social policy in Turkmenistan. In particular, the decree of President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov envisions establishing of seven priority directions in the development of national science. These include the development of modern communication technologies and computer-aided manufacturing.

The revolutionary changes in the national telecommunications infrastructure started in the first years of independence. The fledgling state’s task-oriented policy strategy to integrate into the world community underlay the global modernization and telecommunication infrastructure development through the use of up-to-date equipment. Out-of-date analog telephone exchanges that had served their time were replaced with modern digital equipment.

Of course, the priority was given to Ashgabat as the country’s largest city, though other inhabited areas in the regions were not set aside. A computerized branch exchange assembled and supplied with the Siemens equipment enabled to establish the direct communication links with any part of the world. The similar exchanges were assembled in the provincial centers that allowed providing subscribers in the regions with high-quality communication services within the residential areas as well as with the countries worldwide.

The integrated modernization of telecommunication network and installation of digital automatic telephone exchanges are underway. The reliable telecommunication network is established in compliance with the National Strategy of Economic, Political and Cultural Development of Turkmenistan till 2020. Every day the number of digital subscriber lines is being increased throughout the country. By exploiting automatic telephone exchanges Ashgabat leads among the CIS capitals in the overall use of digital switching facilities. Practically, there is no analog telephone exchange in use in the provincial administrative centers. At present, the Ministry of Communications specialists are implementing a large-scale project aimed at switching the communication facilities in the provinces and rural areas, even those dispersed in the mountains and desert, to digital format.

To date, over 500 automatic telephone exchanges are in use within the national communication network; the total capacity of the automatic telephone exchanges approaches to 1.5 million subscribers. The benefits of new telecommunication equipment ensure the high quality of communications and a broad range of services that considerably surpasses the capacities of the 1st generation telephone exchanges.

Today, almost each citizen of Turkmenistan has a mobile telephone. Three years have passed since the Ministry of Communication of Turkmenistan concluded a contract with the German Siemens AG Company for the delivery of GSM cellular telephone systems with the capacity of 50,000 subscribers. The project stipulated that part of the systems were to provide high-quality reliable cellular communication services to the people and guests of the capital, including the suburbs. The other part of the systems was to be assembled in the provincial centers and large towns of Turkmenistan.

To provide high-quality service to the national network subscribers the Altyn Asyr cellular communication enterprise, an organizational department of the Turkmen Telecom State Telecommunications Company affiliated with the Ministry of Communications, was established. At present, the national cellular communication network services are used by 42.000 subscribers.

The GSM cellular communication systems assembled in the Turkmen capital allow providing a broad range of services. These include short message service (SMS), voice message service (VMS), the Call centre (TM-Cell subscriber support service). The Altyn Asyr enterprise is a very popular cellular communication service provider in Turkmenistan, therefore, the enterprise’s share in the total volume of telecommunications service increases.

Expanding the consistent reception zone within Ashgabat and adjoining towns and settlements is under way. New base exchanges will be assembled in the provinces and regions throughout the country. Recently, the population of Serdar and Bereket regions in Balkan province has become the customers of the Altyn Asyr enterprise. The Balkan Telekom regional department specialists assembled the telephone exchanges, which will ensure high-quality communication with different parts of the country. Transreceiver stations were installed in the towns and centres in Lebap and Dashoguz provinces.

The Ministry of Communications specialists and its departments implement the national program that stipulates for increasing the total capacity of cellular communication network up to 450,000 subscribers within the following two years. It means that reliable mobile communication service will be guaranteed to the urban and rural customers as well as people residing in the remote territories. And very soon a mobile telephone will become a common thing for fishermen in the Caspian Sea or shepherds in the endless expanses of the Karakum Desert, oil and gas industry workers keeping watch far from the inhabited areas as it has become for city dwellers.

WHEN ANY LANGUAGE IS UNDERSTOOD

Rapidly increasing worldwide, the demand in expanding the communication channels among the countries and continents has resulted in constructing of the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line. Turkmenistan did not set aside and took active part in implementing the project on construction of the 27,000 km section of the line expanding from the town of Urumchi (PRC) to Frankfurt upon Mein (Germany). Over 700 kilometres were laid on the territory of Turkmenistan.

Putting the modern fiber-optic communication line into operation enabled to fulfill the tasks of switching the national telecommunication systems to the digital format. The benefits of using the fibre optic line included establishing high-quality intercity and international communication links, broadening the range and improving the quality of communication services provided to population.

Ashgabat-Balkanabat-Turkmenbashi line, a branch of the TAE fiber-optic line, opened the vast opportunities for developing modern information and telecommunication technologies. The world’s leading companies from Japan, the United States, Germany, Turkey, Lebanon, China collaborated in the project. The companies delivered up-to-date construction machinery, telecommunication equipment and materials and provided engineering and consulting services.

Upon putting Ashgabat-Balkanabat-Turkmenbashi line into operation the telecommunication systems in the western and the eastern regions of Turkmenistan were interconnected and customers in the large residential areas located along the line could use high-quality digital communication channels. A number of projects aimed at developing advanced information and telecommunication technologies will be implemented in the regions in the future.

Ashgabat-Balkanabat-Turkmenbashi line project implemented by the Ministry of Communications of Turkmenistan was financed by the Islamic Development Bank. The bank provided a loan of US$ 15.1 million. After the international tender for suppliers of construction machinery, optic cable, measuring instruments and accessories was successfully conducted the contract value halved. US$ 3.7 million saved under the Ahal-Balkan fiber-optic line project were spent to conclude additional contracts with Siemens and Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd for the delivery of digital switching equipment with the capacity of 32,000 numbers, to update the communications software at the operating automatic telephone exchange in Ashgabat and Mary, to increase the number of intercity and international communication channels in the cities.

Another successfully implemented project is a 585-km Ashgabat-Dashoguz fiber optic line running through the Karakum desert. The newly-constructed ‘telephone pathway’ is to connect the northern and southern regions of the country with the shortest route. The communications link was laid simultaneously with the main transportation branch — Ashgabat-Karakum-Dashoguz railway. The digital automatic telephone exchanges with the capacity of 5,000 numbers were assembled and put into operation in almost each settlement located along the railway route. The new fibre optic line allows using up to 7,500 digital channels оn the territory. One can imagine how much the opportunities of using communication services by local people will increase, though just recently the settlements located in the area between Ashgabat and Dashoguz have used two hundred analog telephone channels.

Installation of telephones in the inhabited localities in Dashoguz province is underway. The people of the northern capital are the users of the national GSM cellular communication services, and upon putting additional telephone exchanges into operation the number of rural subscribers will increase up to 500,000.

After the Ashgabat-Dashoguz fibre optic line was put into operation the total length of the lines connecting telecommunication systems in the northern, southern, western and eastern regions made up 1,800 kilometres.

Upon entering the global information environment Turkmenistan established business and friendly contacts with various international telecommunications organisations. In August 2004, the Altyn Asyr cellular communication enterprises joined the GSM Association (GSMA), which registered the national cellular communication network TM-Cell under No. 43802.

One of the departments affiliated with the Ministry of Communications — the International Computing Center is responsible for regulating interchange of international telephone traffic with foreign telecommunication operators. The agreements with such operators as Uzbek Telecom, Rostelecom, Kazakh Telecom, Ukrtelecom, Turktelecom, the International Computing Centre of Azerbaijan, TCI in Iran, and Deut_hetelecom allow providing direct and transit international communication routes and an access to the Internet. Moreover, the international satellite channels were established under the agreements concluded by the International Computing Center of Turkmenistan with foreign operators of the MCI Worldcom Company (USA).

Recently, an imposing delegation of the Ministry of Communications high-ranking officials and the leadership of the National TV and Radio Broadcasting organizations have visited Germany on the invitation of Siemens Network GMBX. The delegation had the meetings and negotiations aiming to expand cooperation in the telecommunication industry and became acquainted with the latest telecommunication technologies.

WORLD WEB’S SILK NETWORK

The world web started to braid Turkmenistan long ago. In the modern world, it is impossible to imagine efficient work of different ministries and departments, institutions and organizations without access to the high speed information and communication channels.

The large-scale scientific and educational network used by dozens of higher educational establishments and research institutes of the country also operates in the country. This project named the Silk Web of the New Epoch is coordinated by the Supreme Council for Science and Technology under the President of Turkmenistan. At present, the project is completing one of its stages, after which departments of culture, sport, new scientific and educational establishments and medical centers will become the users of the Silk Web.

In the XXI century, the time is not waiting, and practically every day opens new opportunities in the sphere of information technologies. Therefore, connection of all spheres of social life with the global network has become one of the most important points in the election campaign of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. It is the main agenda item even today.

In April 2007, the International training seminar for technical specialists of the Virtual Silk Road project of the NATO’s Scientific Committee was devoted to this issue. During the forum attended by representatives of recognized international organizations, scientists, technical specialists and programmers of the Caucuses and Central Asia, Russia, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary and Afghanistan, the new generation IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) system was demonstrated. Introduction of this protocol opens new prospects for Internet users in all regions of Turkmenistan.

Realization of the other important reform — reform of the national education of Turkmenistan — is connected with the Internet development. Almost all educational establishments of the country, both urban and rural, are equipped with computers. Now the task is to cover all of them with the world web. Today, 10 Ashgabat schools and 10 Mary schools have free access to the international data base. Information technologies are being stage-by-stage introduced to the education system and in the nearest future the interactive education based on up-to-date multimedia methodologies will become customary for every Turkmen school student.

Opening of two Internet-cafes in Ashgabat on the second day after Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov’s swearing-in ceremony in February 2007 has become an important event in the life of Turkmen citizens. Today, the Internet centers established by the State Turkmen Telecom Company, a structural division of the Ministry of Communications of Turkmenistan, are functioning in 15 points of Ashgabat and provinces of the country. They have computers connected to the Internet and additional equipment — printers, copy machines, scanners allowing to print or burn on CDs any information. In addition to electronic services the cafe workers offer tea, coffee and beverages to the visitors.

As a major Internet services provider, the Turkmen Telecom will continue to expand the project "Turkmenistan online" by opening new centers in provinces and cities of the country. Connection of private users to the Internet will also add to the expansion. Currently, the Ministry of Education is working on installation of the high-speed and wide-band log-in in all cities and regions of the country. By the time of completion of the program, the number of the international virtual communication system users will increase up to 25 thousand subscribers.

HISTORY PICTURED ON SQUARE SANTIMETER

The history of post service is as ancient as the one of humanity. In old times, the mail in Turkmenistan was delivered from a region to region by the Amudarya River and the Caspian Sea. In case going by the river or sea was impossible, the mail was transported on camels.

In January 1993, the Turkmen Post, a state postal communication company was established. In the same year, it joined the World Postal Union. It allowed the company to send and receive mail on the vast geographical area including more than 190 countries in the shortest time.

Over the years passed from those times, the communication system has developed to such extent that the traditional mail is being frequently used with the prefix "e-". However, the old heartfelt and pleasant process when a sheet of paper full of notes is put in an envelope, a post mark is glued on it and the letter is dropped in a mailbox still exists.

No fax or electronic copy can replace an original. The post services are provided to enterprises, organizations, commercial entities and the population. The volume and quality of processing of posting, delivery of periodic publications and money is increasing year by year. Express Mail Service is one of the widely demanded express mail delivery services provided in over 100 countries.

Printing of the national post marks has become a remarkable event in the history of postal services development. In the years of independence, the Turkmen Post has issued over 200 kinds of stamps different in content reflecting the Turkmen people’s way of life, the state symbols, its achievements in strengthening the independence, the unrepeatable beauty of nature, animal life and vegetation, historical monuments, art, culture and success of the Turkmen sportsmen. Owing to the postmarks millions of people in all parts of the planet have familiarized themselves with new Turkmenistan.

TO MAKE HEART BEAT

Tomorrow’s doctor is a student of today. The future of national healthcare depends on the level of his/her training. Taking this unalterable law into account, the State Medical Institute of Turkmenistan has become among the first to get high-speed access to the Internet in the frames of the Virtual Silk Road project. Since then, medical students are having classes not only in lecture halls and laboratories but in the Internet rooms. In addition, they can always learn about the latest world achievements in health care downloading the latest issues of famous medical publications and looking through the news on the topic.

For the medicine, the world web is not only an access to vast data base, an opportunity of distance learning and distance management of technical processes. It is a way of experience exchange with medical specialists of different countries. Videoconferences with participation of Turkmen and foreign medical specialists have become a customary form of virtual communication. With introduction of the new IPv6 version, the healthcare workers will have an opportunity to create a data base of medical institutions. The telemedicine in Turkmenistan is developing on the basis of the "New Epoch’s Silk Network" National Scientific and Educational System.

In the nearest future, the Central Hospital with the Scientific-Clinical Center of Physiology and Medical School in Dashoguz will be connected to the National Scientific and Educational Network. In all, in recent years dozens of medical centers fitted out with the state-of-the-art equipment have been commissioned in the country. It is enough to list the apparatuses of such leading medical firms as Karl Stors, Dornier, Siemens.

The latest achievements of telemetry enable the Turkmen cardiologists to conduct the most complicated heart operations used to be done only abroad in the near past. The high quality equipment of diagnostic centers is capable of diagnosing various diseases at the early stage, when there are no demonstrations of imminent disease, and the computer technology installed in apparatuses makes it possible to treat rare and complex diseases.

New knowledge is necessary to not only future but practicing doctors. Special training and methodical classrooms with installed computers give an opportunity for the Turkmen specialists to study the latest achievements of world diagnostics in English, French, German and Russian languages, and raise their professional level within the place of work.

DISPATHCING STATION AT YOUR SERVICE

The history of railways of Turkmenistan is at least 150 years old. Railways are of special importance for the state possessing the vast territory being under active development nowadays. It is not by chance that from the first days of independence the railway workers of the country were set major tasks on improvement of the infrastructure of the sector, development and strengthening of its base, construction of new and modernization of the existing railways.

The Computing Center installed with the ultramodern equipment of the transcontinental IBM Company plays important role in implementation of these tasks. Its function consists in accelerated collection and transfer of information on all production processes, activities of divisions and the railway sector as a whole. The movement of carriages, cargoes, trains on all railways of the country is being controlled in the real-time regime.

The computer systems for the Computing Center were supplied from Turkey, Germany, Japan and other countries of the world. The Turkmen specialists together with employees of Itochu Corporation, Japan, led all works on installation and setting-up of the equipment. Simultaneously with fitting out the Computing Center, all enterprises and stations on railways of the country were computerized.

The permanent growth of transportation volumes is accompanied with increase of the speed, weight and intensiveness of the train traffic. Therefore, the overall automation and mechanization of transportation, introduction of new automated mechanisms, telemechanic devices and communications was so necessary. Currently, almost all switches and signals on the railway stations have centralized electric drives. Along the whole length of the railway line the train traffic interval regulation devices and automatic block systems have been fixed.

The cover zones of the railway telephone network have been considerably expanded and new digital automatic commutation systems have been introduced. All railway lines are equipped with train radio communication devices, and the telegraph network of the railway is able to arrange transmission of information to all railway junctions of the CIS and Baltic states. The stage by stage reconstruction of communication lines of the Turkmen railways has been developed and approved. In the near future, the communication will use fiber-optic lines and digital transmission systems.

Modernization of air traffic control systems is also going on. The work is being implemented by the State National Service "Turkmenhovayollary" (Turkmen Airlines). The successful cooperation with Thales ATM Company, a leading world manufacturer of on-ground air navigation equipment, allowed the Turkmen Airlines to create the Unified Automated Air Traffic Control Center in Ashgabat International Airport.

The activities of the Center provided an opportunity to increase the quality of air navigation services and the security level of flights to the world standards. In its turn, it has led to substantial increase of the number of foreign companies flying over the territory of Turkmenistan to Europe and South-East Asia.

The technical control devices were also set up in Turkmenbashy and Turkmenabat airports as well as two landing systems of the last generation and distance measuring equipment in Mary airport. Modernization of the air traffic control system in Ashgabat airport will become the next stage of Thales ATM’s cooperation with Turkmen Airlines.

The infrastructure of Turkmenbashy city in the west is being renewed as well. Thomson Company, France, has equipped the Automated Air Traffic Control Center with the up-to-date air navigation equipment and the latest computers. The French specialists have built the radar station with a radius of 400 km. All these measures enabled the Turkmen Airlines to raise the security of air traffic over the territory of Turkmenistan, ensure the reliability of servicing of airliners and increase the capacity of Turkmenbashy airport, which in the near future expects the influx of tourists wishing to have rest in one of hotels of seaside Avaza.

PROFESSION TO CONNECT

The National Program "Main directions of the economic, political and cultural development of Turkmenistan till 2020" indicates that by the completion of the program the transport and communication sector will generate at the minimum one fifth of the overall national income. And for development and maintenance of the modern communication systems highly educated and qualified professionals are needed.

The Turkmen State Institute of Transport and Communications established in 1992 is set to train such specialists. The curriculum of the Faculty of Communications includes all areas of the modern telecommunications: systems of fiber-optic and digital commuting, as well as systems of digital, optic, satellite and relay communication, radio communication, TV and Radio broadcasting. The faculty laboratories are equipped with all necessary equipment for the efficient education process. The equipment also includes computers with an access to the Internet.

Until recently, the Institute of Transport and Communications fully coped with the task of training appropriate specialists. However, the present-day rates of the country’s development demand the permanent increase of highly qualified specialists. It necessitated the enlargement of scientific and production basis for training of professionals.

In Ashgabat, on one of the most beautiful avenues of the city, the construction of the new building of the Turkmen State Institute of Transport and Communications has been started. Two thousand students, a twofold increase as compared to the present time, will be able to study in laboratories, classrooms, workshops and studios of the renovated higher educational establishment.

The latest equipment that the Ministry of Communication purchases on the regular basis demands the appropriate level of knowledge on its operation and maintenance. Therefore the Ministry specialists permanently follow the innovations in the high-tech industry not only with the help of the Internet, but through direct contacts with overseas colleagues.

Over the recent time, the Turkmen specialists visited different conferences, forums and "round tables" on telecommunications development in France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, China, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Russia. Thanks to the regular tips, the employees of the sector have an opportunity to raise their professional level and introduce contemporary methods of maintenance of telecommunication means to the daily practice.

STAR AFTER STAR

Being part of the world information space, the Ministry of Communications of Turkmenistan and its divisions have established the active cooperation with many foreign counties and joined such international organizations as the International Telecommunications Union, World Postal Union and Regional Commonwealth in Communications Sphere. A business partnership based on the intention of the Turkmen state to dynamically develop the system of telecommunications further yields not only real fruits but produces the deserved recognition of colleagues from other counties.

Taking into account the high level of telecommunication and postal services provided to the population, institutions, enterprises and organizations, as well as high quality of on-air and satellite broadcasting of the national TV and Radio channels, the performance of the Turkmen communications sector has won the worthy recognition of international organizations.

In 2002, the recognized international organization Business Initiative Directions (BID) gave the Turkmen Telecom State Telecommunications Company a prestigious Golden category for introduction of advanced technologies and high quality of communications.

In Madrid, last year, the Turkmen Telecom was awarded Platinum category in the contest held by BID among the world companies and enterprises in the sphere of manufacturing products and services. Such a high award was conferred on Turkmenistan for the international quality of services and the stable technical and economic growth.

Just recently, the performance of the industry has won a new award. In Paris, the participants of the international convention "Era of Quality" comprised of representatives of official and business circles, professors from the leading universities of the world, world-class experts in the area of quality, conferred the Diamond Star, the main prize, on the Turkmen Telecom State Telecommunications Company on the basis of survey conducted among independent experts.

It should be stressed that last year the Platinum award was competed by companies from 38 counties. This year, the number of challengers has considerably grown. Nominees from 60 countries of the world competed for the Diamond Star conferred by the international organization "Promotion and Analysis of Production" with the headquarters in Madrid.

STRONG TIES

Long ago Turkmenistan abandoned an unsound practice to buy, as it sometimes happened a dozen of years ago, outmoded equipment reasoning from the principle "large in number but cheap". However, at that time it was a forced compromise… Nowadays, being aware of the importance of assessing and transmitting information the government spares no resources to develop Turkmenistan’s telecommunications infrastructure.

To date, over US$ 100 million has been invested in national communications industry. Up-to-date digital communications equipment, high-speed digital and fiber-optic transmission systems and other professional equipment are used to modernize telecommunications network. The equipment delivered to Turkmenistan has the certificates of quality and conformity with the ISO-9001 international standard. The digital exchanges produced by the leading television and radio telecommunications equipment manufacturers such as Alcatel, Ericsson, Siemens, Huawei Technologies and commissioned throughout Turkmenistan comply with the foregoing requirements.

Turkmenistan and the Chinese Huawei Technologies are bound with the long-term and strong business ties. Maintaining the long-term co-operation and under the contract concluded between the Ministry of Communication of Turkmenistan and Huawei the Chinese partner actively collaborated in extending telecommunications networks and assembling automatic telephone exchanges.

The grant and unprecedented credit given by the government of the friendly People’s Republic of China enabled to implement a number of large-scale projects. For example, the inter-exchange circuit including the automatic telephone exchanges in the Turkmen capital was brought up to a higher level that had been conditioned by the increasing number of digital subscriber links in Ashgabat. A number of the connecting ports grew considerably. Moreover, the CDMA radiotelephone communication facilities were put into operation in Ashgabat and the adjoining Ruhabat region.

The large amount of work on modernization of communications network was performed in the western region of the country. The large-scale investment project on modernization of telecommunications networks in the Balkan province implemented by the Ministry of Communications of Turkmenistan in collaboration with Huawei Technologies enabled to put over 20 base and remote digital automatic telephone exchanges with the total capacity of over 140,000 numbers into operation. Thus, hundreds of thousands of people in the Balkan province including oil industry and agricultural workers received an expanded access to modern means of telephone communications.

The Turkmen Ministry of Communications maintains a reliable partnership with the world-renowned companies successfully operating on world telecommunications market such as Sony, JVC, Siemens-Nokia, Shell & Wilcox, Tandberg, Rhode & Schwarz, NEC, Eurasia Trans Ltd, Prima-telephone (Russia).

Modernization of the national communications network is underway, and it opens a wide field for new investment projects.

EXPANDING HORIZONS

The success of the large-scale investment projects including those on establishment of national cellular communication infrastructure, construction of main and local optical and radio relay lines, in rural areas as well and steady growth of financial and economic activities — the consequences of prompt and effective fulfilment of the tasks set forth in the National Strategy of Political, Economic and Cultural Development till 2020 for Turkmen telecommunications workers.

If to speak about the future, in accordance with this basic document the telephone network capacity is to be increased to two million numbers throughout Turkmenistan. The number of customers of cellular communication services will be considerably increased, telephone network in rural areas will be expanded, digital radio relay and fiber optic lines with total length of 4,000 kilometers will be put into operation.

Of course, the quality of telecommunications services provided by digital electron-communication facilities, high-speed internet technologies, television equipment and other modern facilities meeting the international standards will be of special concern.

Turkmenistan will expand and intensify partnership with colleagues from other countries, in particular communications specialists of the People’s Republic of China. Maintenance of mutually advantageous cooperation in the sphere of transport and communications was set forth in the joint declaration on further enhancement and development of the relations of friendship and co-operation between Turkmenistan and China signed by President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov and the national leader of the People’s Republic of China Hu Jintao during the summit talks in Beijing this July.

To complete our extensive review some words about the Turkmentel-2007 international telecommunications technology exhibition, which will be held in Ashgabat this autumn and undoubtedly offer a power incentive to Turkmen telecommunications specialists to work.

The Ministry of Communications and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan will present modern equipment and telecommunications technologies the national telecommunications industry has at its disposal nowadays and telecommunications specialists, both private and state-run, from different countries will display latest high-tech developments and telecommunication innovations. Exchanging ideas and developments Turkmen specialists will enrich their experience as well as expand horizons and find new partners on global high-tech market.