Mr President,

Your excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

It is my honour to welcome you to ITU TELECOM AFRICA 2001.

Today is important for us in the field of telecommunications, as it is the first day of a very important week for industry and governments alike. It is a week in which we must continue to shape a bright future for telecommunications in Africa. And it is a week in which we must continue to evaluate and build on the tremendous progress made since we staged the AFRICA TELECOM 98 event here in Johannesburg, three and a half years ago.

When AFRICA TELECOM last took place, there were barely two million mobile subscribers on the whole African continent. By the end of next month there will be nearly thirty million – nearly one and a half times the number of fixed-line subscribers.

So the ITU TELECOM event we are inaugurating today, ITU TELECOM AFRICA 2001, sets out not only to map the future, but to celebrate the present success.

It is a mobile network; no longer bound to homes or offices. Africa’s new voice can be heard in the streets, in shops, on the beach, in cars and in trains: in short, Africa’s new voice can be heard in every place there are Africans.

The companies that are providing Africa’s new voice network are, for the most part, also new. Africa’s new mobile entrepreneurs are young, and generally privately-owned, companies. They may have foreign partners but they rarely have foreign owners.

Africa’s new mobile companies are exploding old myths; in particular the myth that market forces somehow do not operate in Africa. Also, Africa’s new mobile users are challenging the myth that Africans cannot afford telecommunication services.

The changes taking place in African telecommunications are giving rise to a re-evaluation of many established ideas. In particular, we need to rethink traditional concepts, such as universal service, and to set new goals for the future.
In 1984, nearly twenty years ago, the ITU published a report called "The Missing Link". The report suggested that "by the early part of the next century virtually the whole of mankind should be brought within easy reach of a telephone". Which means, effectively, within walking distance.

New technologies and services – such as mobile telephony, satellite communications, and the shift from analogue to digital – are rapidly leading us towards achieving this goal, as well as driving costs down dramatically. This means lower costs for building infrastructure. Lower running costs for operators. And lower prices for subscribers.

It is therefore time to set ourselves a new goal.

That goal is: by the end of the decade, virtually the whole of mankind should be brought within easy reach of modern means of telecommunications, including the Internet.

Once we have established telephone connections, this goal will not be as difficult to achieve as the first one. Giving everyone access to the wealth of information available online will be beneficial to us all, and is not merely a matter of moral justice. The move from an agricultural economy to an industrial economy generated enormous wealth, and raised our standard of living throughout the world. The same quantum leap will be experienced in the transition to a global information economy. Everyone must be given access to the tools of this economy if they are to enjoy its benefits.

One way we are trying to achieve this goal is shown at the ITU Pavilion as our own special initiative. When you come to the Pavilion, in Hall 5, you will notice that it is radically different from anything we have done before at an ITU TELECOM event – either at the global or the regional level. At its heart we have built a fully functional community telecentre, in order to focus on applications and technologies for rural areas. And we have surrounded this with exhibitors specializing in this area.

The Pavilion will act as a sort of one-stop shop, where you can see all of the pieces of the jigsaw making up a complete picture. You can then go on to individual exhibitors’ stands to see how each piece of the jigsaw works in more detail.
In this way I hope we can achieve my ambition to see the ITU’s Regional TELECOM events become a demonstration not just of the most advanced technologies in telecommunications today, but also of technologies and applications appropriate for rural areas.

Another very important facet of the AFRICA 2001 event is the Forum. This starts tomorrow morning and features close to 250 speakers, moderators and panellists from more than 30 countries. At the Forum we will have the opportunity to shape the future – and it is important that we shape it with care. Because while telecommunications can transform and improve the lives of all people, its lack will surely do the opposite.

Telecommunications is not simply a commercial enterprise. It is not just a commodity that can be bought and sold like any other merchandise. It is a public service. In today’s world of shaky stock markets and global inter-dependence this can sometimes be forgotten.

Telecommunications services underpin not just the global economy but also local economies around the world. They underpin the lives of us all. From the largest corporation to the smallest farm, many miles from its nearest neighbour, access to communications facilities provides a life-line.

In fact affordable access to communications services is essential to social and economic existence in the 21st century. It is essential to our cultural and even our individual existence. Those who log on to the Internet have access to a whole world of information and knowledge. Those who cannot log on are left behind.

Governments and regulators have a duty to make sure that telecommunications services are available to everyone. But we all – whether in government or industry – have a responsibility to make sure that access to telecommunications services is priced reasonably, making not just the technology, but also the services, available and affordable to all sectors of society.

This is why we at the ITU are taking the lead role in preparing for the World Summit on the Information Society, which will be held in Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005.

The aim of this World Summit is to develop a common vision and understanding of the Information Society – and to draw up a strategic plan of action for concerted development towards realizing this vision. The Summit will also provide a unique opportunity to bring together the world community and to develop a better understanding of this revolution and its impact.

The first phase of the World Summit will take place in Geneva, hosted by the Government of Switzerland, in December 2003. It will debate all themes related to the Information Society and will be the best possible occasion for us to discuss the issues at the highest possible level and to adopt a Declaration of Principles and related Action Plan.

The second phase, hosted by the Government of Tunisia, will then take place in Tunis, in 2005. I am delighted that Tunisia will hosting this phase, as it will be the first Summit meeting of this kind to take place on the African continent. And – as we are all aware – ICT provides a tremendous opportunity for developing economies to leapfrog industrialized ones.

Development themes will therefore be in the spotlight at the Tunisian phase in 2005, and the Summit will be remembered as being a key turning point in ICT development around the globe.

I therefore encourage you all to help us in our goal to make this World Summit a truly useful tool for change and to help bring all of the world’s people within reach of modern communications.

Affordable Universal Access – not just to basic telephony, but to the Internet – is a realisable dream. Let us continue, together, therefore, towards realising that dream of digital opportunity here in South Africa, this week. Let us commit ourselves to making it happen.

Thank you.