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| Photo credit: ITU/S. Dubouchet |
| A view of the historic Charminar monument in Hyderabad, India |
The Hyderabad Action Plan, adopted by the fifth
World Telecommunication Development Conference
(WTDC-10), outlines a road map to foster the development
of information and communication technology
(ICT) networks and services worldwide over the
next four years.
It consists of the following programmes, to
be implemented by the ITU Telecommunication
Development Bureau (BDT):
Programme 1: Information and communication infrastructure and technology develop Programme 2: Cybersecurity, ICT applications and IP-based network-related issues Programme 3: Enabling environment Programme 4: Capacity building and digital inclusion Programme 5: Least developed countries, countries in special need, emergency telecommunications and climate change adaptation.
In addition to these programmes, the conference
adopted 18 study group Questions (see Box 1),
and 28 regional initiatives (see Box 2), along with
guidelines for their implementation. It also adopted
the Hyderabad Declaration, which recognizes the
roll-out of next-generation networks (NGN) and increased
access to broadband services, wireless technologies
and the Internet as catalysts to achieve wider
development goals.
The Declaration says that broadband access and
usage, supported by strong national backbones, can
improve e-government services, such as health care
and education, and step up the drive to alleviate poverty
and create jobs, especially among poor and marginalized
populations. It underlines that broad access
to ICT is essential for the world’s collective economic,
social and cultural development, and the building of
a global information society.
Participants pledged to promote affordable access
to telecommunications and ICT aimed at fostering
sustainable development worldwide, with attention
being given to least developed countries and
countries in special need.
WTDC-10 met from 24 May to 4 June 2010 in
Hyderabad, the capital of the state of Andhra Pradesh
in India. The event attracted 924 participants:
758 government delegates from 138 countries and
6 representatives from Palestine; 88 representatives
from 28 public and private sector companies; 16 representatives
of telecommunication-related entities
from 7 countries; and 56 representatives from 25 regional
and international organizations. In addition,
241 media representatives covered the event.
High-level opening
India’s Minister of Communications and Information
Technology, Thiru A. Raja, opened the conference and emphasized
that ICT can facilitate faster development of social and
economic sectors in any country. Such development, he said,
should lead to equal opportunities for all humankind, and
“there should be perceptible improvement for the most vulnerable
parts of society in rural and remote areas”. The minister
described India’s impressive growth in the field of software development
and in the applications of space technology, aimed
at national development in areas such as communication,
broadcasting, distance education, Earth exploration services,
and space sciences. He expressed the hope that “increased general
awareness among the masses created by the knowledge
society would bring enhanced global peace, justice and respect
for each other, which are the cornerstones for the elimination
of disparity and poverty from the globe”.
Dr Hamadoun I. Touré, Secretary-General of ITU, observed
that since the previous WTDC, held in Doha, Qatar, in 2006, the
ICT landscape has changed in unexpected ways. The number
of fixed-line subscribers has fallen. “Of course, this has been
massively more than compensated for by mobile growth over
the same period,” Dr Touré noted, adding that almost all of this
growth has been in the developing world. The same is true of
the growth in Internet users, where 600 million of the 777 million
new users over the past four years have come from the
developing world. “We have also seen social media skyrocket.
When we met in Doha, no one had ever sent a tweet, and
Facebook was a small, closed site for students. Today, 50 million
tweets are sent every day and Facebook has over 400 million
users,” Dr Touré added. These dramatic figures demonstrate the
extraordinary opportunities that lie ahead. By extending access
to broadband, countries will quickly accelerate their progress
towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals.
Sami Al Basheer Al Morshid, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau, said that much
progress has been made in implementing the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society and
in bridging the digital divide. “The most striking development has been the growth in mobile” he noted. “Mobile
subscriptions stood at nearly 2.2 billion four years ago and will reach 5 billion this year. Mobile broadband
has risen from 71 million to over 670 million. Fixed broadband
has more than doubled, from 212 to 527 million,” Mr Al Basheer
stated. He added that the role of industry in taking risks, especially
in emerging markets, must be recognized, as well as the
constant efforts to put in place an enabling environment in most
countries around the world.
“Looking forward, we need to invent better targeted and
more positive regulation, focusing on incentives rather than obligations,”
Mr Al Basheer said. He called for increased international
cooperation and continuous dialogue and exchange between
policy-makers and regulators and industry. “To foster this dialogue,
I have placed special emphasis on the Global Symposium
for Regulators and I established the Global Industry Leaders
Forum in conjunction with it. This has become one of the most
valued global platforms for dialogue between policy-makers,
regulators and industry.”
According to P.J. Thomas, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications
of the Government of India, who was elected to
chair the conference, the world has finally acknowledged that
technological progress and innovations are long-term drivers of
economic growth, especially in developing countries. New services
generated by ICT in the forms of e-commerce, e-finance, and
e-governance are contributing towards greater economic efficiency while raising the living standard of citizens.
Several government and industry leaders, including chief
executive officers, ministers and regulators from around the
world, endorsed the push for the accelerated roll-out of broadband.
Hessa Al Jaber, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council
of Information and Communication Technology (ictQATAR) and
Chairman of WTDC-06, said that as Qatar continues to roll out
broadband — which currently reaches 63 per cent of households
— it is studying the best approach for high-speed NGN coverage.
“We recognize a one-size fits all solution might not be practical, so we are developing a pragmatic strategy”,
she added. Such a strategy is likely to result in a mix of fixed and wireless technologies, and ensure national
coverage.
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| Photo credit: ITU/S. Dubouchet |
| From left to right at the WTDC-10 opening ceremony: Valery Timofeev, Director of ITU’s Radiocommunication
Bureau; Houlin Zhao, ITU Deputy Secretary-General; Thiru A. Raja, India’s Minister of Communications
and Information Technology; Dr Hamadoun I. Touré, ITU Secretary-General; P.J. Thomas, Secretary of the
Department of Telecommunications of the Government of India and Chairman of WTDC-10; Sami Al Basheer
Al Morshid, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau; and Malcolm Johnson, Director of ITU’s
Telecommunication Standardization Bureau |
Hyderabad Declaration
The Hyderabad Declaration highlights the main
conclusions and priorities approved by the conference,
and reinforces the political support towards
ITU’s development mission and strategic objectives.
Transition to digital broadcasting
Many countries are preparing the transition from
analogue to digital broadcasting with different timescales
according to their national priorities as well
as, where applicable, the deadlines set by the ITU
Regional Radiocommunication Conference (RRC-06)
and its Plan and Agreement. In view of the increasing
demand for limited radio-frequency resources,
this transition and efficient spectrum management
are critical issues for policy-makers, regulators,
broadcasters and other stakeholders. The Hyderabad
Declaration underlines that high priority should be
given to assisting these entities in introducing digital
broadcasting and providing assistance to developing
countries on spectrum management.
Strengthening cybersecurity
With the growing volume of e-commerce and
online financial transactions, e-government services,
the popularity of social networks and the emergence
of the “Internet of things”, building confidence and
maintaining trust in the use of ICT will continue to
be a major policy concern for governments and other
stakeholders. These challenges, the Hyderabad
Declaration says, should be addressed by promoting
international coordination and cooperation in cybesecurity
through ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Agenda. It
also encourages the development of related public
policies and legal and regulatory measures, including
building capacity to strengthen the cybersecurity of
developing countries, particularly for the protection
of children and youth in cyberspace.
Internet resources
Open and equitable access to critical Internet resources
and matters pertaining to Internet-related
public policy, including Internet governance, are key
issues for ITU’s 191 Member States as the migration
to IP-based networks increases. Along with facilitating
a dialogue on international public policy related
to the Internet, ITU will assist developing countries
migrate from IPv4 to IPv6 next-generation networks
so that all countries can benefit from the broadband
infrastructure needed to support advanced e-applications
for health, education, government and
commerce.
Green ICT and climate change
While contributing to monitoring climate change
and mitigating and adapting to its adverse effects,
environment-friendly ICT and renewable energy
sources help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.
Developing and implementing policies for proper disposal
of e-waste are also of great importance. The
consequences of climate change and rising sea-levels
are of particular concern to least developed countries
and small island developing States. There will continue
to be a need to help countries, in particular developing
ones, respond to climate change challenges.
Emergency telecommunications
Emergency telecommunications play a critical role in warning of disasters, and in their immediate
aftermath by ensuring the timely flow of information
needed by government agencies and other
humanitarian actors involved in rescue operations
and providing medical assistance to the injured. ITU
has played a critical role in restoring telecommunications
in disaster-hit areas around the world and
was one of the early responders in the aftermath of
the devastating earthquake in Haiti earlier this year.
The Hyderabad Declaration stresses the need for ITU
Member States to support policies and strategies
that facilitate the use of telecommunications/ICT,
and in particular radiocommunications, for disaster
management.
Enabling environment
The Hyderabad Declaration also stated the need
for policy-makers and regulators to continue to promote
widespread affordable access to telecommunications/
ICT through fair, transparent, stable, predictable
and non-discriminatory enabling legal and
regulatory environments that promote competition,
foster continued technological and service innovation
and encourage investment incentives.
ICT indicators and statistics
The conference endorsed the continuation of the
work of ITU–D in the collection and dissemination of
telecommunication/ICT indicators and statistics that
measure and provide comparative analysis of the use
and adoption of telecommunications/ICT.
Strategic Plan outlined for development
WTDC-10 agreed on its input to the ITU–D
Strategic Plan for the 2012–2015 period, which will
feed into the overall ITU Strategic Plan to be adopted
by the forthcoming Plenipotentiary Conference to be
held in Guadalajara, Mexico, from 4 to 22 October
2010. The ITU–D strategic plan makes linkages to the
Hyderabad Action Plan and Declaration, and reiterates
the challenges and opportunities over the coming
period — whether in bridging the digital divide,
assisting countries to effectively manage the radio
spectrum, promoting access to broadband, convergence
and the enabling environment, collecting and
disseminating quality indicators and statistics that
measure and provide comparative analysis of the use
and adoption of ICT to support developing economies,
continued innovation in mobile technologies or
in capacity building.
As Mr Al Basheer said, “the decisions we have
reached in Hyderabad have provided a compelling
vision and plan of action for the next four years, in
addition to laying the groundwork for ICT development
across the world for many years to come.”
The conference called upon ITU Member States,
Sector Members and other stakeholders to contribute
towards the successful implementation of the
Hyderabad Action Plan, describing it as an “important
and relevant tool for helping to bridge the digital
divide”.
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| Photo credit: ITU/V. Martin |
| Dr Touré met India’s Prime
Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on
29 May 2010 in his office in New
Delhi. Both men talked about
the fruitful collaboration which
has existed between ITU and
India since it joined the Union in
January 1869. They also discussed
key issues on the agenda of
the World Telecommunication
Development Conference, which
was successfully hosted by the
Government of India in Hyderabad
from 24 May to 4 June 2010 |
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