The International Telecommunications Union- ITU has confirmed that it has gone on to secure commitments worth $9 billion through mobile operators in order to expand worldwide connectivity.
Doreen Bogdan-Martin, the ITU Secretary-General, went ahead and announced this on the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress- MWC on February 26. As per the statement from the union, such commitments go on to build on the mobile sector’s strong support when it comes to ITU’s efforts so as to connect the world.
Along with the new commitments, the UN Digital Agency also went on to announce that it happens to have more than 1,000 industries, academia, as well as organizational members apart from its already 193 member states. This landmark goes on to mark the largest and most diverse membership in the agency’s history.
The new sector commitments went on to bring the overall current value of planned investment within infrastructure, services, as well as support to ITU’s Partner2Connect Digital Coalition since the platform opened in March 2022, to more than USD 46 billion.
Pushing for meaningful connectivityÂ
While at that time noting that funding commitments would go on to make meaningful connectivity possible all across the globe, the ITU Secretary-General went on to say that:
– Universal, meaningful connectivity happens to be within the grasp all thanks to such new commitments, millions of people will go on to benefit from accessible as well as affordable connectivity throughout the world.
Also commenting on this development, John Giusti, who is the Chief Regulatory Officer at GSMA, remarked that:
– He applauds the ITU Secretary-General’s stress on the significance of infrastructure investment to help the digital economy. Mobile operators go on to continuously invest in rollout as well as upgrading their networks, thereby delivering advantages to citizens across all corners of the globe.
He added that he would congratulate e&, China Telecom, Ooredoo, as well as VEON when it comes to their investment pledges and is encouraged that MWC happens to be the event of choice for commitments and collaboration such as these between the public as well as private sectors.
It is well to be noted that the commitments announced at Mobile World Congress go on to include:
– e&: USD 6 billion between 2024 as well as 2026 for accessible and affordable network connectivity as well as digital services throughout the countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
– China Telecom: Over USD 1.4 billion so as to roll out fiber-to-the-home- FTTH, which would go on to offer high-quality information along with communication services to more than 80 million people in remote administrative villages throughout China.
– Ooredoo: USD 1.1 billion in terms of connectivity in the developing markets, which stretch from North Africa to the Indian Ocean.
– VEON: USD 600 million when it comes to building the infrastructure of Ukraine, offering connectivity as well as digital services that are essential to the reconstruction of the country.
What one must know
As per the data from the ITU, 2.6 billion people happen to remain offline worldwide. As telecommunications infrastructure goes on to be prevalent in connectivity as well as the digital shift, it is indeed worth taking into account closing that global digital divide and, at the same time, overcoming development impediments in arenas from education as well as health, and even government services and trade.
Notably, the ITU has called for USD 100 billion in terms of overall investments by 2026 so as to provide the expertise as well as resources that are needed to extend universal as well as meaningful connectivity along with sustainable digital transformation throughout every corner of the globe.
ITU unveils a record-breaking industry as well as an academic membership.
The fact is that ITU’s expanded membership base is going to be built on the UN Digital Agency’s distinct contribution to the UN system. Worldwide membership has gone on to evolve all through the organization’s 159-year history in order to reflect changing technologies as well as expanding digital ecosystem throughout everyday lives.
Bogdan-Martin added that they are indeed excited to welcome the new members, who go ahead and join ITU’s long history when it comes to innovation that is built on public-private partnerships that have shaped technology’s place within society. This multi-stakeholder model, when it comes to collaboration, will go on to be a strong force within the UN system in order to bridge the digital divide as well as build an inclusive, safe, along with sustainable digital future for one and all.
Apparently, the ITU’s industry members partner with governments, academia, as well as civil society in order to develop new international standards along with guidelines that shape the digital economy of the future. ITU members execute projects as well as initiatives together, thereby extending access to digital services throughout the world.
It is worth noting that two-thirds of the ITU’s members happen to be from the industry sector, while the rest are divided between academia as well as regional sectors or even international organizations.
