International Community reaches two Milestones in Enabling Communications Infrastructure for Emergency Response in Natural Disasters and Crises

Brussels (ots) - The European Satellite Operators' Association
(ESOA) and UNOSAT, the United Nations Institute for Training and
Research (UNITAR) Operational Satellite Applications Programme, have
signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Brussels today. This
agreement constitutes a framework within which the two organisations
plan to work together. The objective is to identify the appropriate
satellite resources to optimise the deployment and use of satellite
solutions for international development and emergency response. In
addition they will further raise awareness within the user
communities of the unique ability of satellite technology in
humanitarian crises.

This collaboration is a milestone in bringing more efficiency and
coordination to the cooperation between the international
humanitarian and development communities and private satellite
operators.

This comes only a few days after the World Radio Conference 2007
confirmed last Friday, 16th November in Geneva the uninterrupted,
interference-free use of satellite C-band spectrum for the future.
The C-band spectrum plays a crucial role in the humanitarian
community for emergency communications and is to be standard radio
frequency for all UN humanitarian communications adopted by UN
Inter-Agency Standing Committee's Working Group on Emergency
Telecommunications (WGET).

Christodoulos Protopapas, ESOA's Chairman said: "I thank ESOA
members for their outstanding collaboration that made this result
possible. Particularly I thank UNOSAT, UN OCHA and the UN World Food
Programme, for their interventions to support this 'life-saving'
cause. In yesterday's news we heard about the number of people who
will die in the Bangladesh floods because of the inability to
communicate with and locate them - this is where satellite
communications, often using C-Band, play a life-saving role. With its
decision, the WRC just took a huge step in maintaining an important
global responsibility."

For more information and picture material please contact ESOA
Secretary General.

Originaltext: ESOA
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Contact:
Aarti Holla-Maini
Secretary General
European Satellite Operators' Association
t: +32.2.550.35.75
e: sg@esoa.net
w: www.esoa.net