January 13, 2011

As part of the grant received from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) dedicated to fund the Telecommunications Regulatory Capacity Building Project, the TRA has started the procurement process in order to apply part of the proceeds of this grant to payments under the contract for Part 1: "Streamlining internal processes and strengthening transparency of the TRA."

Following the publication of the request for Expressions of Interest notice in local newspapers, the official gazette, and both the TRA and World Bank websites, the TRA received 19 responses and concluded the short-listing process which resulted in the selection of 6 firms. The selection process was based on the experience of the firms in capacity building as well as policy and regulatory projects.

The 6 short-listed firms are:

1. Intercai Mondiale, MENA (Kingdom of Bahrain)
2. InterConnect Communications (United Kingdom)
3. Team International (Lebanon)
4. PLANET S.A. (Greece)
5. Analysys Mason (UAE) and Squire Sanders Legal Counsel and El-Khoury and Partners Legal Counsel
6. ERNST & YOUNG (Lebanon)

The TRA has dispatched today the Request For Proposals (RFP) for the "Streamlining internal processes and strengthening transparency of the TRA" project, including detailed Terms of Reference, to the 6 short-listed firms. In that regard, they are now invited to submit technical and financial proposals no later than the following date and time: February 15, 2011 at 3:00 p.m.

Further information may be obtained at the following link www.tra.gov.lb/Capacity-Building or by contacting the TRA at the address below.

Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, Marfaa 200 Building, Beirut Central District, Beirut, Lebanon. Main : + 961 1 964 300 Fax : + 961 1 964 341, cbtf@tra.gov.lb