Speech by Malcolm Johnson, ITU Deputy Secretary-General

Girls in ICT Day: Opening Speech

28 April 2016, Geneva, Switzerland

Good morning, girls, teachers, excellencies, colleagues

Happy Girls in ICT Day !

I am very pleased to welcome you all here to ITU for our 'Geneva Girls in ICT Day' celebrations. It is always very rejuvenating to be surrounded by so many bright young people, so it's very nice to have you with us. Thank you for coming.

You are joining a global community of girls and young women worldwide who are taking part in Girls in ICT Day celebrations today in more than 150 countries. Due to the time difference, events have already taken place in countries like Samoa and Australia; and now they are underway across Europe, Africa and the CIS regions and will start later today across the Americas, including at the Metropolitan School of Panama where my three granddaughters will participate!

Here in Geneva we will view what you have done over the past few weeks in the workshops held at the local schools and Geneva University. I look forward very much to seeing the exhibits later. I hope that the workshops will stimulate you to take a broader interest in ICTs as you move forward with your studies and your careers.

This is really important – not just because subjects like engineering and technology are very interesting, but also because they lead to careers where you can make a real difference: to people's lives; and make the world a better place.

ICTs now play a central role in all our lives – work and social. Just about all jobs now require some digital skills, and there is a large and growing skills shortage: in the ICT sector itself – there are hundreds of thousands of vacancies unfilled.

ICTs improve the lives of people everywhere, through better healthcare, better education, better environmental protection, better communications and better governance.

So if you want to to help improve the lives of others, and the planet – something I know really interests girls - a careers in ICTs is the way to do it.

I would like to thank H.E. Ambassador Pamela Hamamoto of the United States for her support and being with us this year, and I am very pleased that H.E. Ambassador Aya THIAM DIALLO, of Mali, has also very kindly joined us this morning.

I would invite you all to use our #girlsinICT hashtag on Twitter to share your experiences with the global community, and to follow our Twitter feed to see what other girls and young women are doing today.

I wish you all a very enjoyable Girls in ICTs Day.

Thank you.