US is interested to enhance its cooperation with Bangladesh for the development of the country's telecoms sector, said visiting US Ambassador David A Gross.

The US government is contemplating extending support to Bangladesh by imparting training to government officials, Gross, US Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, told The Daily Star in an interview on Monday.

"I am visiting Bangladesh to hold talks on the country's telecoms sector for future co-operation," added Gross.

Bangladesh has got tremendous potential in its telecommunications sector, particularly in wireless services, he said.

Now, four wireless operators are contributing substantially to development of the sector and the prospects of the prospective new competitions in coming years are very high, said Gross, who arrived in the capital on Sunday for a three-day visit.

He said the government should bring more competitions in the sector for the benefit of the customers. "Competition can resolve various problems," said Gross, who has experiences in working in different leading US telecoms companies.

The US will particularly help Bangladesh mitigate its nagging

interconnection problem, as many fixed phone service providers are to launch their operations, he said.

About 90 percent of Bangladesh's 3.5 million cellphone connections do not have fixed phone connectivity.

The government should insist on regulation attaching high priority to interconnection, he said. "Without interconnectivity, communication goals cannot be attained."

He underscored the need for capacity building of the new fixed line providers.

The government must help Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board take its own decision, Gross commented, "There is no reason for the government to be in business of telephone."

Commenting on frequent strikes, he said "It gives wrong impression to prospective foreign investors who look for rule of law, transparency

and stable political situation in a country before making investment decisions."

"Outside Bangladesh, this hartal gives the impression that rule of law is not always being followed."

"I feel terrible when I see shops are closed for several days... how will shopkeepers make living for their families?" he asked referring to the shutdown during his stay in Dhaka.

Asked on government initiative to eavesdrop telephonic conversation and busting e-mail in the name of security following the September 11 terror attack on the World Trade Centre, Gross, who is also actively involved with various bar associations in the US, said, "Security is always important. But it should be ensured that the government is doing it for the right reason."

Ambassador Gross, also a member of the UN Information and Communications Technologies Taskforce, said Bangladesh is likely to experience tremendous growth in information and communications technology sector once the country is connected with the global information superhighway through the submarine cable.

People are immensely benefited from the internet, which provides access to information irrespective of location, said Gross, who led the US delegation at the UN "Heads of State" World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).