Generation Connect Global Youth Summit 2022
Opening Ceremony
Remarks
Doreen Bogdan-Martin
Director, ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau
2 June 2022
The Right Honorable Dr Edouard Ngirente, Prime Minister of Rwanda,
The Honorable Paula Ingabire, Minister of ICT & Innovation, and Chair designate of the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference,
The Honorable Rosemary Mbabazi, Minister of Youth & Culture,
Ms Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth,
Ms Jayathma Wickramanayake, the UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth
Distinguished members of the Generation Connect Advisory Board,
Valued Generation Connect sponsors, including Gold Sponsors, the Communications and Information Technology Commission of Saudi Arabia, the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority of the United Arab Emirates, and Microsoft; Silver Sponsor, The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Côte d'Ivoire; and Generation Connect supporter, Amazon,
Colleagues and friends,
And most importantly of all, our inspiring young Generation Connect Delegates,
Welcome.
The opening of this landmark global summit – the first of its kind for ITU – is the culmination of a dream I have been working hard to make reality since I become Director of ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau almost four years ago.
Looking across the room at all of you, coming from different countries and cultures, fills me with excitement and hope.
Excitement, because I know that as young people, you 'get it'.
You understand technology, and what it can do, better than any of us.
I know this, because I have four kids of my own, of about your age, and they constantly astound me with their intuitive grasp of the power of digital platforms, and their creativity in harnessing that power for new applications.
And hope, because I guess you've noticed that today's world could really use some new ideas.
We're living through a time of deepening global crisis. Inequality gaps are growing. Our 17 Sustainable Development Goals have veered off-track. Parts of the world are still fighting on the front lines of the COVID pandemic. Atmospheric greenhouse gas levels have just hit an all-time high. And regional conflicts resulted in a record number of displaced people last year.
Let me be clear. We didn't bring you together to fix the planet, or solve the problems created by previous generations.
But as the first true generation of digital natives, your youthful perspective, combined with your digital skills, offer us a real chance to navigate a new and better path, to break down old barriers, and to finally create that equitable, 'World We Want'.
That's why, over the next three days, our job, as the older generation, is to learn to listen.
We'll be doing quite enough talking ourselves, over the two weeks of the World Telecommunication Development Conference that follows this Youth Summit.
But this is your event, your moment in the spotlight, and your chance to show us what you can do in leading the cross-cultural collaboration that will be so vital to forging a different kind of world.
You've all already shown us how committed you are.
That's why you're here, in Kigali, having travelled to Rwanda from over 100 countries, or joining us online from home, or from the more than 70 official Youth Summit Hubs, universities, research centres, tech incubators, schools and other entities that are organizing activities around this Summit, all over the world.
Our role is to help you, in any way we can, to create a shared vision, and to translate that vision into concrete Call-to-Action that we can take forward to the WTDC, so that your voices are heard, loudly and clearly, in the debates that will culminate in the Kigali Action Plan, and shape the digital development agenda for the coming four years, and beyond.
So I encourage you all to think creatively, collaborate, listen to each other, and share your experiences and ideas on how we could be using technology to accelerate progress in critical areas like health, education, environmental sustainability, conflict resolution, gender equality, accessibility, and youth opportunities.
Right now, the only limit is your imaginations.
So be bold.
A brighter future for all can start right here.
We are listening.
