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A plea to revisit the role of ITU
Delegates from Malaysia |
Malaysia’s Minister of Information, Communications and Culture, Dato' Seri Utama Rais Yatim, called on countries at the conference to revisit their role as members of ITU. “Today, it is not enough for us to be the ITU and address infrastructure development, universal access, resource management, standards and the development of ICT. We must also consider the goodness of society. We need not be a regulator in the extreme, but the concern for humankind must always be there, particularly so because it is ITU which promotes the use and adoption of technology, ICT and the Internet.”
Mr Yatim then urged the conference to consider “ITU’s role in the matter of online fraud, pornography and the exploitation of women and children. These are but only three cyberthreats. There are more and these issues, whether we like it or not, will bring adversity... As parents, we know what the implications of these threats are on our children.
A new challenge, which the conference should also address is “how to manage the wave of social issues arising from new media”, the Minister underlined. “The challenges of social networking applications are setting new boundaries for the rights of an individual and the need for privacy laws. It is time for the ITU to be the catalyst to harness measures and reasonably curb the misuse and abuse of the Internet against any aggrieved party.” He then underlined that: “Sovereign nations and governments should make no apologies for doing this nor should we apologize for taking steps to preserve our culture, values and traditions.” To conclude, he stated that : “When this conference ends, we are hopeful that the outcome will facilitate the work of the Union in helping members manage both the positive and negative sides of the Internet.”
Supporting ITU activities
Thailand’s Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Chuti Krairiksh, pledged his country’s full support for ITU activities in all its three Sectors. “Our dedication to contribute to the fulfilment of the mandate of the Union are demonstrated by our involvement in several ITU initiatives and our cooperation in organizing important events such as ITU TELECOM ASIA 2008 and the Global Symposium for Regulators and Global Industry Leaders Forum 2008. In the area of human capacity building, we offered to host the business management node under the framework of ITU Asia-Pacific Centres of Excellence.” Thailand holds the view that “to improve the performance of ITU in line with its core competencies, there is a need for us to treat a number of issues that impede a smooth functioning of the Union.” He cited the following as the ongoing challenges:
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Revision of the Union’s strategic plan.
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Adequate financial and human resource allocation for ITU Regional Offices.
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Resource optimization and coordination between the three Sectors.
Developing in leaps and bounds
China’s Member of the leadership of the Ministry of
Industry and Information Technology, Liu Lihua, described how
the ICT industry in China had developed in leaps and bounds to become the fundamental and strategic industry of the national
economy.
Mr Lihua said that steps are under way to build a new generation of network infrastructure in order to facilitate the process of building an information society. In particular, the ministry will accelerate the development of 3G networks. Fibre-optic broadband networks will also be built and ICT infrastructure in rural areas will be improved. He underlined that the “Internet of Things” would be developed to meet the demands of users. There would also be more focus on research and development “and industrialization of the key technologies, such as next-generation wireless broadband communications, next-generation Internet and cloud computing. We believe that breakthroughs in the core technologies will lead the industry to a new leap forward.”
The importance of public-private partnerships
Delegates from Rwanda |
Rwanda’s Minister in the President's Office in charge of
Information and Communications Technology, Dr Ignace Gatare, explained how the government’s ICT policy encourages synergies
between the public and private sectors. This, Dr Gatare said,
had resulted in significant consolidation of the country’s ICT
infrastructure initiatives, such as the national Fibre Optic
Backbone, the Kigali Metropolitan and Wireless Broadband
Networks and the National Data Center.
Dr Gatare added that Rwanda’s ICT agenda and policies put a
strong emphasis on “integration of ICT infrastructure and
regional interconnection as a way to facilitate trade through
reduction of transaction costs, increasing business
competiveness while promoting global exchange of knowledge and
cultures”. Rwanda is witnessing how mobile-phone-based ICT programmes are improving service delivery in the heath,
agriculture and microfinance sectors, in line with the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Highlighting these developments, Dr Gatare commented: “This justifies why we value our excellent partnership with ITU
through initiatives such as the Connect Africa Summit held in
2007 in Rwanda and the recent Broadband Commission for Digital
Development, co-chaired by H.E. the President of Rwanda.”
The Trans-Eurasian Information Super Highway
Azerbaijan’s Head of Law and HR Department, Ministry of
Communications and Information Technologies, Bakhtiyar Mammadov,
recalled the speech of President Ilham Aliyev at the
first phase of the World Summit on the Information Society
(WSIS) in 2003 in which he had declared his intention to convert
“black gold into human gold” - in reference to the transformation of the country’s
ICT sector. ICT has since become one of the priority sectors of
Azerbaijan’s economy. “Revenues from the ICT sector have
increased on average by 30-35 per cent per year over the
last seven years,” Mr Mammadov said.
He cited the “Trans-Eurasian Information Super Highway” as one
of the initiatives devoted to renewing infrastructure to build
a “knowledge-based economy” in the region. On 21
December 2009, the United Nations General Assembly at its 66th
session backed this initiative by adopting a resolution entitled
“Building connectivity through the Trans-Eurasian Information
Super Highway”. Planned to be completed in 2012 and to cover
more than 20 countries in the region, the fibre-optic super
highway project is being implemented as part of WSIS Action Line
C2 (“information and communication infrastructure”) and
Millennium Development Goal 8 (“develop a global partnership for
development”).
The concept of “Gross National Happiness”
Minister of Information and Communications, Bhutan |
Bhutan’s Minister for Information and Communications, Lyonpo
Nandalal Rai, describing his country as “a small tranquil
Kingdom in the midst of the majestic Himalayas with a population
of less than a million”, said that its socio-economic
development is guided by the principles and philosophy of “Gross
National Happiness” (GNH). “Aware that materialism and
consumerism was leading to excessive greed and deterioration of
the basic human values, the 4th King of Bhutan His Majesty Jigme Singye
Wangchuk in 1974 declared GNH as a true indicator of a
nation’s well-being rather than the conventional gross domestic
product (GDP),” Mr Nandalal Rai explained. He added that
GNH is founded on four pillars: equitable and sustainable
socio-economic development; preservation of the environment;
promotion and preservation of culture; and good governance. The government has recognized and identified ICT as the key player
in strengthening these four pillars “to keep the Bhutanese
generations connected and bonded by shared national
consciousness to preserve our unique national identity in
this Global Village,” the Minister said.
Noting ITU’s huge mandate and the many events it
organizes for the benefit of its Member States, he stated that not all countries can participate, owing to various constraints. “There is a need to rationalize these events to take on board
the financial concerns of the Member States. It is imperative
that we focus our attention more on the visible
deliverables which would make immediate impact on the lives on
our less fortunate citizens,” Mr Nandalal Rai urged.
Ready to give a helping hand…
Italy’s Ambassador Roberto Spinelli from the Ministry of Economic
Development, highlighted convergence and the
optimization of radio-spectrum use as some of the key issues where Italy is gaining valuable experience. He said that
Italy is ready to share with its partners within ITU and
bilaterally in the formulation and implementation of national
digitization plans.
On the issue of cybersecurity, he praised the efforts of ITU’s Secretary-General in the last four years to promote a safe cyberspace. “Italian institutions and companies have responded to his call for support, offering innovative and technologically advanced solutions. The government considers of critical importance the issue of security and calls for a shared approach in the definition and implementation of adequate strategies,” Mr Spinelli added.
He said that Italy had strongly supported the establishment by
ITU of a Data Base of Emergency Frequency and stood “ready to
assist Member States in the formulation and management of their national emergency plans.”
On the issue of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), established
through the WSIS process, “Italy favours a fully representative
approach to Internet governance, internationally inclusive and
also ensuring that the countries facing challenges in terms of
resources and language skills are enabled to take part.” He underlined that “the global character of the Internet requires
that all governments are in a position to fulfil the
responsibility in relation to Internet governance and growth.”
Access to broadband should not be a privilege, but a right for
every citizen
Cyprus’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Mexico, Vasilios Philippou,
stressed that “broadband accessibility should not be a
privilege, but a right for every citizen”, adding that concrete
steps should be taken to overcome the digital divide by meeting
the target of 100 per cent coverage. “We must reduce the prices
for Internet access to be affordable to everyone and create a
secure flow of information and operation of networks because
people will be reluctant to transact over the Internet if they
are not confident that what they do is secure,” Ambassador Philippou stressed.
“ITU needs to lead the way in building a cyber-society
that people can trust. Network and information security and data
and privacy protection need to be addressed. The Republic of
Cyprus could not remain inactive in this digital revolution,”
he added. The country is updating its Digital Strategy to
achieve the goals set out in the European digital agenda that
was announced in May 2010. Its vision is to make ICT a catalyst
for accelerating the economy and creating high-paying jobs and new opportunities.
Encouraging greater participation of academia and the private sector in ITU's work
Czech Republic's Director of the Section of Harmonization and
Communications Services at the Ministry of Industry and Trade,
Jan Duben, stated that an important and
irreplaceable role of ITU is reducing the gap
between developing and developed countries in
their access to information and communication
technologies.
He called for a wider participation of
academia and the private sector in the work of
ITU and for a strengthening of the role of the
Union in the implementation of the outcomes of
the World Summit on the Information Society.
“Meeting the requirements and needs of all
members of ITU must be based on efficient use of
common funds and must be closely linked with the
search for internal reserves in the activities
of the entire organizational structure of ITU,
as well as looking for opportunities for greater
collaboration with the private sector,” he
stated.
Rolling out fibre... and creating a safer cyberspace
United Arab Emirates's Minister of State, Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), Reem Al
Hashemi, described the ICT policy framework that has been put in
place by the government to promote fair access to the domestic
infrastructure, enhance the quality of services offered, protect consumer interests and encourage innovation. The
government has also started a number of projects to enhance ICT
infrastructure and expand access. “The UAE is currently at the
forefront of fibre-optic deployment in the region,” Ms Hashemi said. The roll-out of the fibre-to-the-home (FTTH)
network is expected to introduce “a new era of household
communication and entertainment”.
She then cited cybersecurity and Child online Protection as
important topics for the conference. She added that in line
with the commitment made at the World Summit on the Information
Society, TRA has established the “United Arab Emirates Computer
Emergency Response Team (aeCERT)”. This centre facilitates the
detection, prevention and response of cybersecurity incidents on
the Internet. Awareness campaigns have also been launched across
the country on Child Online Protection, Ms Hashemi told
participants.
Rolling out broadband
Australian delegation |
Australia’s Secretary in the Department
of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Peter Harris, observed
that one of the key challenges representatives of governments
face is how to ensure that all their citizens are able to
participate in the digital economy. “Australia is tackling this
challenge head-on with the roll-out of a National Broadband
Network (NBN) that will result in high-speed connectivity for
every Australian home, workplace and school. The NBN will
connect 93 per cent of Australians with fibre-to-the-premises
technology. The remaining 7 per cent will receive high-speed
broadband using a combination of next-generation wireless and
satellite,” Mr Harris said. He went on to explain that “the network is designed to deliver better services, better prices
and new applications for every Australian, no matter where they
live”.
Mr Harris also described how “Australia shares the commitment of the ITU Development Sector to realizing the social and economic benefits promised by access to communications for all people on an equitable basis. And, importantly, in those critical times of disaster when telecommunications can help save lives.”
Changes in the division of labour between governments and
private companies… and their impact on intergovernmental
organizations
Germany’s Deputy Director-General in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, Bärbel Vogel-Middeldorf, underlined
that “solving complex technical issues, balancing political
interests and international solidarity have always been the core
objectives of ITU”. Ms Vogel-Middeldorf recalled that during
the first years of ITU and until a little over 10 years
ago, telecommunications was exclusively a government matter in
nearly all countries. “Today, however, telecommunication
networks and services are mainly offered by private companies.
These changes in the division of labour between governments and
companies have had an impact on intergovernmental organizations
such as ITU.”
She went on to stress that in this changed environment, “... the
new role of governments and thus of the ITU is no longer to
focus on operational issues but to create framework conditions”, adding that there is a large number of private and governmental
organizations which work on specific telecommunication issues. “Therefore, it is not enough for governments to be engaged in
intergovernmental organizations like the ITU. In order to
appropriately represent their interests, they must also work
with private sector-led organizations,” Ms Vogel-Middeldorf
noted.
Next-generation networks... and ITU’s Connect a School Connect
a Community Initiative
Delegates from the Philippines |
Philippines’s Chairman of the Commission on Information and
Communications Technology, Ivan John Uy, cited impressive
figures on ICT progress in his country. Around 80 per
cent of the country’s 80 provinces have fibre-based
infrastructure and operators are aggressively building out
their fixed wireless broadband solutions. He observed that
the expansion of next-generation networks (NGN) and broadband
infrastructure will encourage ICT usage and promote active
participation of Filipino citizens in the international
community. In this regard, he said: “We are glad to
participate in the ITU Study on NGN Planning and Migration
Strategies Case Studies to show what the Philippines is doing in
terms of NGN.” Meanwhile, mobile telecommunications continue to
grow as operators migrate their networks to 3G in order to offer
high-speed mobile Internet.
In line with the ITU’s Connect a School Connect a Community
Initiative, the Philippine Commission on Information and
Communications Technology has been implementing the
Community eCenter (CeC) Programme to increase access to ICT for
people in rural areas. The Commission is also working closely with the Department of Education, universities and colleges, as well as non-government and private-sector organizations to establish computer labs with Internet access in each of the
country’s 6000 public high schools, spread across the
country’s 7100 islands.
Africa’s new submarine cables to bridge “The Missing Link”
Tanzania’s Minister for Communications, Science and Technology,
Professor Peter Msolla, described how the government’s ICT policy, legal framework, converged licensing framework and
strategies to guide the sector had paid dividends, citing the
following examples:
- The initial
forecast in 1997 was to have a teledensity of 6 per cent by the
year 2020, but today teledensity stands at 43 per cent.
- The number of
mobile telephone operators has increased from two in 1997 to
seven currently operating and four are at different stages of
deploying networks.
- Subscription
for mobile users has increased from 284 100 in 2000 to over 18
million today.
- Internet
services have increased from 0.06 per cent in 1994 to 12 per
cent today.
Referring to the Maitland Report (“The Missing Link”), which revealed the telecommunication gaps between the rich and poor,
and between urban and rural areas, Professor Msolla underlined
that it is still “crucial for ITU to continue addressing the
serious gap between developed countries and the poor developing
countries of the South”. He then described how countries
of East and Southern Africa are being connected , thanks to new
submarine cables. “ This is one of Africa’s efforts to try to
bridge the digital divide and secure reliable communications at
affordable cost,” the Minister said. In Tanzania itself,
“efforts are now under way to develop fibre cables within the
entire country and link up with its eight neighbouring
countries”.
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This box provides links to statements made in
languages other than English or received after 5
October.
Statements delivered in French:
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Mali’s
Minister for Communication and
New Technologies, Ms
Diarra Mariam Flantié Diallo;
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Guinea’s
Minister of Posts,
Telecommunications and New
Information Technologies, Talibe
Diallo;
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France:
Secrétaire général chargé de la
préparation des Conférences de
l'UIT, Ministère des Affaires
Etrangères et Europénnes,
Richard Boidin;
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Cameroon’s
Minister of Posts and
Telecommunications, Jean-Pierre
Biyiti Bi Essam; and
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Senegal’s
Minister and Government
Spokesperson in the Ministry of
Communication and
Telecommunications, Moustapha
Guirassy.
Statements made in Arabic:
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Tunisia’s
Minister for Communication
Technologies, Mohamed Naceur
Ammar;
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Egypt’s
Deputy to the Minister for
International Cooperation,
Ministry of Communications and
Information Technology, Dr Ahmed
El Sherbini;
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Morocco’s
Vice-Minister, Ministry of
Industry, Commerce and New
Technologies; Taieb Debbagh
Statements made in English:
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Director-General (Telecoms and
Post), Infocomm Development
Authority of
Singapore
(IDA), Keng Thai Leong;
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South Africa’s
Minister of Communications;
Siphiwe Nyanda
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Tonga’s
Minister of Information and
Communications, Ms Eseta
Fuafolau Fusitu'a;
Note: Statements were also
made by the following countries, but not yet
received:
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Algeria’s
Minister of Post and Information
and Communication Technologies,
Moussa Benhamadi;
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Ecuador’s Minister for
Telecommunications and the
Information Society, Jaime
Guerrero Ruiz
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Serbia’s Minister of
Telecommunications and
Information Society, Ms Jasna
Matic
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Israel’s Minister of
Communications Moshe Kahalon
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Timor-Leste’s Minister
of Infrastructure Pedro Lay da
Silva
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Addressing the Plenary on Tuesday morning, ITU Secretary-General, proposed that the amount of the contributory unit should be fixed at CHF 318 000, maintaining a status quo. “I would like to ensure that we leave this Plenipotentiary Conference with a balanced financial Plan. The key to a robust financial Plan is a realistic revenue forecast,” Dr Touré stressed. I believe that we can here and now take the decision to set the definitive upper limit, in order to facilitate our ability to forecast revenue for the period 2012 – 2015,” Dr Touré added.