Mr Ernesto Rodríguez Hernández, First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Communications of Cuba, esteemed guests, young digital leaders, future changemakers, innovators and visionaries from around the world, it is my great pleasure to be here for this Global Youth Summit. What a joy to be surrounded by joyful faces of young digital leaders! Thank you for coming.
This is the 17th youth event organized by ITU, continuing an amazing journey that began with the first-ever youth summit, held in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2001, a pivotal moment that sparked the global digital youth movement we continue to build today here in Varadero, Cuba.
I would like to thank the Republic of Cuba for so generously hosting this year’s edition, and in particular Mr Ernesto Rodríguez Hernández, the First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Communications for his hard work and the work of his team to make it happen.
Cuba is a valued partner in our efforts to promote digital inclusion, and a role model in mainstreaming digital accessibility to ensure that everyone participates equitably in the digital ecosystem. Cuba has already twice collaborated with ITU to host our flagship regional platform, Accessible Americas – ICT for All, so we know we are in very capable hands! Let us acknowledge the Government of Cuba for hosting us. May I get a shout from our young digital leaders?
Let me also take a moment to thank our Silver Sponsor – Intersputnik, who made it possible for many young people to be here with us today.
As you all know, young people are a major focus of ITU’s work. We are proud of you. Continue to be hungry, to be curious, and to be bold as your future rests on the foundation of Digital.
Our Facts and Figures estimates for 2024 show that in low income countries in particular, 43% of 15-24 year olds use the Internet vs 23% for the rest of the population. So as an organization committed to promoting universal and meaningful connectivity for all, and to reach our overarching goal of an inclusive digital society, by bridging a variety of digital divides, it makes sense that we put special efforts into supporting the digital change makers of the future – YOU!
Key to that work is our Generation Connect initiative, a volunteer-driven community aiming to engage global youth as leaders of today’s digital change, and whose Youth Envoys participated in the Regional Consultations to prepare for this Summit and to share with us their vision and aspirations for all young people’s digital future. There are Youth Envoys here today from every region. Please stand up and let this Summit recognize you!
Indeed, I am especially proud that the current cohort of Youth Envoys is not only representative of young people from across the globe, but has a nearly perfect gender balance, and also has representation from Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States.
I am also very excited about so many of our ongoing projects to support youth education and socio-economic development, including the Generation Connect Young Leadership Programme, our partnership with Huawei, which is supporting 30 young fellows per year, currently from 28 countries across all ITU regions, as they work on very practical digital development projects in their own communities, making a real difference to people’s lives.
Our first cohort completed their training with flying colours. And last week at the Mobile World Congress, I launched the second cohort and invited other young people to apply. We look forward to receiving your applications on time.
And let’s not forget other youth-focused work, which includes Boosting Decent Jobs and Enhancing Skills for Youth in Africa’s Digital Economy, the Girls in ICT Initiative, the HER Digital Skills for Life Project, the AI Skills Accelerator for Girls, and the Transformative Tech and use of AI for building a digitally shared and prosperous society. I pause to thank our partners who continue to support our work.
Many young people have benefitted from these initiatives, and I hope that together with our partners we will continue to develop new initiatives to benefit even more young people, now and in the future.
I would also like to thank the informal coordination group established by ITU’s Telecommunications Development Advisory Group, or TDAG, which has been working hard behind the scenes, not only to support the preparation of this summit, but also to maintain a youth-centred approach in crafting the agenda of this Summit to cover key ICT topics of interest to young people from the six ITU regions.
Ladies and gentlemen, we certainly have an inspiring programme ahead of us. There will be opportunities to discuss Digital Inclusion, ICT Education, Sustainability Online Safety, Emerging Technologies and innovation, to name but a few of the important issues you identified. Please bring your own experiences to bear on these issues.
Let me remind you that, in addition to keynote addresses and interactive sessions, there will be opportunities for networking, so you can meet industry leaders and policymakers, as well as other young people, over the next few days. Take advantage of our inter-generational dialogues. I have no doubt that you are going to have a lot of fun!
But it is fun with purpose. This Summit is a platform for action, and for advancing a more inclusive, sustainable and secure digital future for all. Your ideas will help our sector so do not restrain yourselves – dream and dream BIG!
After this Summit, our focus at ITU is very much on the World Telecommunications Development Conference, or WTDC-25, in Baku, Azerbaijan in November. And you are all invited to join us for the Youth Celebration we have planned just before WTDC. It will include many exciting activities.
On that note, I encourage you all to actively engage in the discussions ahead of us, and to make the most of your participation in such a wonderful event. Thank you!
