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Preparatory Meeting for ITU Regional Development Forum in Asia-Pacific Region 2023

Background

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific cordially invites your organization to participate in the virtual Preparatory Meeting on 14 June 2023, for the ITU Regional Development Forum in Asia Pacific Region (RDF-ASP) 2023.

The RDF-ASP is planned to be organized in Bangkok, Thailand from 13 – 15 September 2023. This event provides an opportunity for exchange of views between ITU and decisionmakers of ITU Member States and Sector Members, as well as other stakeholders in the Asia and the Pacific region.

In preparation for this RDF-ASP, ITU intends to host the Preparatory Meeting for this event on 14 June 2023, virtually from 11:00am – 1:00pm (UTC +7). The preparatory meeting aims to inform ITU membership in the Asia-Pacific region of the proposed agenda that will be discussed at RDF-ASP 2023, including the regional strategic plan, operational plan of the new Area Office for South Asia and Innovation Centre, Partner2Connect among others. Therefore, this preparatory meeting will serve as an occasion to help ITU membership prepare for strategic engagement at RDF.

The virtual meeting will be held in English only. To participate, please register online using the link available at https://bit.ly/42QeztE no later than 9 June 2023.

Draft Agenda

	Hours	Agenda	Session Descriptions
1	11:00 -	Opening Remark	Welcome message from the Regional Director
2	11:10 - 11:20	Introduction to the RDF Programme	This session aims to present an introduction to the theme of the Regional Development Forum for Asia and the Pacific for this year. It will feature a comprehensive program that includes various sessions specifically designed to facilitate high-level dialogue between ITU, decision-makers of ITU Member States, Sector Members, UN agencies, and other key development stakeholders from the region. It will also inform participants of the meeting that the sessions prepared for RDF 2023 for ASP offer opportunities to exchange ideas and perspectives on critical topics related to regional development.
3	11:20 – 11:50	Introduction to ITU Area Office for South Asia and Innovation Centre	This session will overview the background and launch of the ITU Area Office for South Asia and Innovation Center. It will highlight the separate workplans of both the Area Office and the Innovation Center, including upcoming 2023 events. The session will finish by discussing ways ITU-D membership can become involved with the implementation of both the Area Office and Innovation Center workplans.
4	11:50 – 12:15	Introducing ITU Office for Asia and the Pacific Regional Strategy and Logframe	The session will introduce the regional office's focus Initiatives for Asia and the Pacific region and the logical framework for 2023-25. The expected results, corresponding indicators and KPI figures of each Regional Initiatives (ASP RI 1-5) would be mapped.
5	12:15 – 12:30	Implementation of ITU Resolutions (RIs) and Decisions	The session would focus on highlighting the RO-ASP regional initiatives through the substantive actions already taken and planned. These would evident the alignment of RO-ASP with the work plan adopted at WTDC, 2022, the Kigali Declaration. The regional members would be invited to participate, contribute and collaborate on these initiatives.
6	12:30 – 12:50	Partner2Connect Initiative and the benefits to members	This session will introduce what is P2C, who can make a pledge and join the P2C Digital Coalition, the type of pledges and how members can benefit from submitting a pledge. Announce all the ground-breaking pledges that have been submitted so far to the P2C platform to advance universal meaningful connectivity. Encourage more members to pledge and mobilize the resources needed to connect those who are still offline.

Important Information

Date: Tuesday,14 June 2023
Time: 11:00am – 1:00pm (UTC +7)
Registration: https://bit.ly/42QeztE
Registration deadline: 9 June 2023

Focal Points

Ms. Saemi Matsumoto (saemi.matsumoto[a]itu.int)
Ms. Rury Demsey (rury.demsey[a]itu.int); and
Mr. Calvin Chan
(calvin.chan[a]itu.int)