Israel’s Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi on Tuesday announced the establishment of an interministerial team to accelerate the adoption of 5G (fifth generation) technology for broadband cellular networks.
“The reform of the communications market is underway. For the first time, I am establishing an interministerial team to promote the deployment of 5G infrastructure throughout the country. The team is part of a number of moves that the office under my leadership is promoting to accelerate and implement the 5G,” Karhi said in a statement.
An initial budget of NIS 50 million ($14 million) will be allocated to promote 5G projects.
The interministerial team will be headed by Communications Ministry’s Director General Liran Avisar Ben-Horin. It will include representatives from the Communications Ministry, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Finance Ministry’s budget division. The team will also include representatives of the competition commissioner, the Bank of Israel and the Israel Innovation Authority.
Within six months, the team will submit its recommendations on accelerating 5G communications infrastructure nationwide.
“We made a decision to place Israel at the forefront of the countries leading the fifth-generation revolution,” Ben-Horin said.
“The demands of the Israeli public for data and stable cellular browsing are increasing by an order of 40% per year, and the network is becoming more and more congested. We all want delivery drones, smart traffic lights that avoid traffic jams and smart hospitals, and for that we need the good news that the fifth generation revolution brings with it,” she continued.
“The citizens of Israel are entitled to quality and stable cellular services and the time has come to bring reformative solutions that will march our cellular infrastructure to the front of the world. The team established today, which is based on a unique interministerial cooperation, will unblock the traffic jams and ensure that the fifth generation will reach everywhere in Israel.”
