Your Excellency Mr Wisit Wisitsora-At, Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Digital Economy and Society of Thailand, Mr Masanori Kondo, Secretary General of the Asia Pacific Telecommunity, Mr David McLachlan-Karr, Regional Director for Asia-Pacific at the UN Development Cooperation Office, Professor Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck, Chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission of Thailand, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great pleasure and honor to welcome you to the 2025 Regional Development Forum for Asia and the Pacific, and to thank the Government of Thailand and the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission for hosting this important meeting.
This year is the 160th anniversary of the ITU, an organisation that is still evolving to meet new challenges like natural disasters and climate change, as well as new opportunities like artificial intelligence, big data and the Internet of Things. I think you know our slogan in the Development Bureau: “BDT for impact". That means a positive impact on people's lives and communities. Great things are happening.
Last year saw the Pact for the Future, the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations, affirming that our common future is digital. And this year sees the World Telecommunication Development Conference, kindly hosted by the government of Azerbaijan in Baku. The good thing is that we are quite advanced in our preparation for the WTDC, thanks to the four Working Groups of the TDAG.
I also want to draw your attention to this year's Youth Summit, which was hosted by the Government of Cuba last week. It was a resounding success. We had youth from all the six regions. Over 400 participants from 31 countries were in attendance. We also had near gender parity. A day before the WTDC-25 itself, we will have the Youth Celebration Day in Baku, an inspirational event bringing young people together from around the world, and Member States may want to consider including them in their countries' delegations, so the next generation can learn conference diplomacy.
Ladies and gentlemen, we can be proud that our work is having a demonstrable impact on people's lives both globally and in the Asia and Pacific region. From developing National Digital Strategies for several countries to National Emergency Telecommunications Plans, from cybersecurity capacity development to providing capacities and skills development for girls and young women, our work is making the region, safer and more inclusive, even as we grow nations' capacity for digital development.
And that brings me to the Status of Digital Development and Trends report, which we are launching today. The Asia and Pacific region has made some important achievements in the ICT sector. 66.1% of its people were estimated to be online in 2024, increasing from 63.4% in 2023. In 2024, at 77%, mobile phone ownership is three percentage points less than the global average. Of course, there remains some challenges, chiefly the various digital divides.
That is why it is so important that we forge ahead with the Partner2Connect Digital Coalition, ITU's global multistakeholder alliance to mobilize toward universal and meaningful connectivity. Currently the number of pledges that include the Asia and the Pacific stands at 297, amounting to a total estimated value of $27 billion from 154 entities. I am hopeful that we will make even more progress from this point on. Our continuing goal is to matchmake the Partner2Connect commitments with member states' connectivity needs. We call on Member States and partners to join forces through matchmaking to achieve that goal.
The Asia and the Pacific region has distinct advantages in its rich diversity. Like a microcosm of the world, it includes countries with widely varying degrees of telecommunications and ICT development, but it is also home to vast markets and blessed with talented and ambitious people. So let us tap into that talent and ambition as we work towards universal and meaningful connectivity throughout the region.
Yesterday's 3rd Meeting of the APT Preparatory Group for WTDC-25 yielded encouraging outcomes for this region, and I know that today's meeting will build on that success, as will tomorrow's Regional Preparatory Meeting as we prepare for WTDC-25. You are all welcome to join us in Azerbaijan in November, and, before that, the Telecommunication Development Advisory Group (TDAG) in May and the Inter-Regional Meetings in July and September.
Let us not forget that all our work leads to real and lasting change in people's lives, advancing sustainable digital transformation through inclusive and impactful digital development interventions, so it is my pleasure to be here among the many stakeholders. Thank you!
