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Secretary-General's foreword
 The International Telecommunication Union is a forward-looking, dynamic organization that has been in the business of helping the world communicate for
145 years. A resilient organization, ITU remains young at heart and takes the lead at the cutting edge of global communications.
The basis of our social and economic life — and our lifestyles — are increasingly dependant on new, state-of-the-art information and communication technologies. And ITU is at the forefront of this next digital revolution. Our standards in telecommunication and radiocommunication already underpin the entire global communications framework, and will serve as the platform for a whole range of as yet undreamt-of services. Meanwhile, our development sector ensures that no one is left out of the digital revolution.
ITU works in partnership with our membership, which includes
192 Member States as well as over 700 Sector Members and Associates who hail from the private and public sector and include international and regional telecommunication organizations. As it expands its efforts to develop an enabling environment through policy and regulatory modernization and harmonization, the Union’s priorities are to strengthen cybersecurity and emergency communications, support the migration to next-generation networks, and build capacity especially in least developed countries.
The watchword is ‘convergence’. It’s changing the nature of what we once called telecommunications services, it’s reshaping the way we consume and access those services — and it’s transforming the networks by which they are delivered. In the wired — or wireless — world of the future, we will have more mobile applications and we will see an exponential growth of the Internet, which is today still in its infancy. More will also be achieved in Speech Recognition Technologies, breaking all language and literacy barriers — making the world a true Knowledge Society.
ITU carries the torch to connect all the world’s inhabitants to information and communication technologies, especially those who remain unconnected from the enormous benefits unleashed by the ongoing digital revolution. As the specialized UN agency for ICT, it is our endeavour to fast-track the 2015 targets of the Millennium Development Goals and empower people everywhere with the means to seek information and knowledge.
We are dedicated to ensuring access to communications anytime anywhere and at an affordable price.
Dr Hamadoun I. Touré
Secretary-General
International Telecommunication Union
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