Ten years of economic crisis, international isolation and stagnation reversed the country's overall economic development and had a devastating impact on its telecom and ICT sectors. The current situation of Yugoslav telecom sector can be described as way behind the highly developed industrial nations, but still comparable to that of the countries in the region. The new government has made a commitment to taking vigorous steps towards political and economic reform and industrial development. One of these steps will include upgrading the telecom sector so that it can be used as FRY's powerful leverage to catch up with the developed world and leapfrog into the Information Age. This will not be an easy task and it will include painstaking efforts in terms of legislative reform, liberalizing telecom equipment, networks and services, creating a competitive environment with equal conditions for new entrants and the incumbents alike and, finally, attracting direct investment. Starting from scratch is never easy, but at least it will help the country's policy-makers benefit from the lessons learned by other countries in the region that have already undergone transition.