Press release on the closing of ITU TELECOM AFRICA 2004

Cairo, 8 May 2004 — The sixth regional ITU TELECOM AFRICA 2004 Exhibition and Forum closed today at the CICC (Cairo Convention and Exhibition Centre), Egypt. The event which was opened on Monday, 3 May by H.E. Mr Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, attracted an extensive range of participants, from the leading players of the global and regional telecommunication industry to the top-level representatives of the region’s governments and regulatory bodies. AFRICA 2004 was hailed as a great success by many of Africa’s leaders who came to help promote telecoms development on the African continent. It was notable for the commitment and participation of African participants both in the exhibition and in the Forum and for the tremendous spirit of optimism expressed. The theme of the event was "Access Africa", a theme under which participants explored the tremendous potential which Africa’s telecommunications market has to offer, examined key trends which have defined the region’s telecoms industry to date and forged constructive alliances to help to shape the industry for the future.

A Region of Change

"The event has ably reflected the dramatic changes which have taken place in the region’s telecommunications sector in the last decade." said Mr Yoshio Utsumi, Secretary-General of ITU, the organizer of the event, "It has helped to cement awareness of the kinds of technology which should be utilized, and the approaches which should be taken to help Africa’s future telecommunications sector growth." In his opening ceremony speech, Mr. Utsumi focused on some of the changes which have taken place on the region’s ICT landscape — the liberalization of markets and the subsequent opportunities for increased competition, as well as new technologies that are set to play a vital role in Africa’s ICT growth.

His Excellency Dr Ahmed Nazif, Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, also highlighted the growth that has occurred within the region’s ICT markets, and outlined initiatives which were to be implemented to continue to boost the uptake of ICT in his country, such as the availability of low-cost PCs with favourable payment terms, the Broadband Initiative inaugurated by President Mubarak during AFRICA 2004 or the Smart Village, a state of the art park to introduce technology and attract investments for both multinational businesses and local small and medium enterprises. Despite a rapid growth in some areas, however, many challenges still remain for the region and how these challenges are addressed will be of crucial importance if the rollout of ICT is to continue in the region. He also underlined the importance of education in a knowledge society and said that education had become one of Egypt’s top national projects. Minister Nazif recalled Egypt’s commitment to ICT development in Africa whether bilaterally, multilaterally or in the context of regional frameworks such as the African Union and NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development).

H.E Mr Atef Ebeid, Prime Minister of Egypt, spoke of the need for the development of regional solutions to help to improve access to ICTs — the key to the region’s growth. Prime Minister Ebeid outlined how Egypt has itself embarked upon a vigorous programme of economic reform over the last 20 years.

"The development of Egypt’s ICT industry, through private-public partnerships, has played a pivotal role in this reform programme", he said. "The need still remains, in Egypt, as well as elsewhere on the continent, for greater understanding of and access to ICT, improved cooperation with the rest of the world, and effectively enforced intellectual property rights, with regard to the Information Society" he added. Prime Minister Ebeid echoed the thoughts of many by stressing what a key opportunity AFRICA 2004 — as the first major ITU event following WSIS (World Summit on the Information Society) — would provide for follow up dialogue in preparation for the second phase, which is due to take place in Tunis from 16 to 18 November 2005.

Wireless Future for African Telecommunications

Africa’s telecommunications future will be a wireless one, and this is why one a key theme of the event has focused on how to continue to expand the region’s ICT coverage through wireless technology. This was the point outlined at the beginning of the event, when ITU unveiled its latest "African Telecommunications Indicators" report, a report which highlighted just how significant mobile technology had been in boosting the reach of telecommunications into new areas. Take-up of mobile services has been helped by a combination of factors, from the emergence of African strategic investors to the deployment of solutions which have been adapted to the needs of the market leading market growth. ITU forecasts a possible mobile penetration rate of a possible 20% for Africa in 2010, depending on key factors in particular affordability of services.

Forum Examines Avenues for ICT Growth

Nevertheless, despite rapid growth in key area’s the region’s overall levels of access to ICT remain woefully low — with fewer than 6% of Africans having access to telecommunications. Widening access to ICTs was therefore a key theme at the AFRICA 2004 Forum. More than 1 100 delegates from across the region, as well as from leading global players came together to explore and debate areas crucial to promoting growth. Sessions such as "Building the Infrastructure" have examined critical issues surrounding the deployment of new access technologies, whilst other Forum sessions have examined the financing of future ICT growth as well as how to build a business model which works for the Africa region. AFRICA 2004 has provided invaluable opportunities for follow up debate on the first phase of WSIS, and the Forum closing session "Digital Solidarity (WSIS)" provided the opportunity to refine a number of points on the Digital Solidarity Agenda, to ensure that these address the specific needs and characteristics of Africa. The opportunity to hold further discussion on the key areas of the summit, prior to the next phase, has been invaluable.

ICT Leaders of the Future Convene for Youth Forum

This year at AFRICA 2004, the region’s decision makers and future ICT leaders also came together in Cairo, for the Youth Forum. The Youth Forum enabled 77 young people from 40 countries to come together and look at key issues which will influence the region’s ICT growth, from financing to policies and regulation. Youth Forum participants were able to create a pan-african network of friends and new mentors at the event, as well as learning more about ICT and which technologies could be appropriately deployed in their home countries in order to improve their own lives and the lives of those in their countries and across the region. The Final Declaration of the Youth Forum stresses that there has been progress in expanding ICT access in Africa, but there still remains a lot to be done. The Youth asked governments to create a multistakeholder commission in each country, comprising government, private sector and civil society, which would make recommendations and encourage the deployment of ICT for the benefit of all citizens of their countries.

Prime Opportunity to Extend Business and Demonstrate New Technologies

The event featured an extensive range of participants, from the big global names such as Samsung — who unveiled its first mega pixel GSM camera phones at the event — to Cisco Systems, who demonstrated their latest converged voice, video and data network.

Technologies suited to the needs of the African region, such as VSAT — which can cost-effectively provide backbone connectivity between communities even where traditional landline networks is lacking — and WLAN technologies such as Wi-Fi and Wi-Max which can distribute the backbone connection to the members of the community — were prominent on the exhibition floor. Several exhibitors chose to focus their participation on business networking rather than traditional displays. AFRICA 2004 provided an environment that was conducive for high-level customer and partner meetings and presentations. This confirms the concept of the Telecom Village launched at WORLD 2003 where qualified leads hold a greater importance than large numbers of visitors.

But the presence at the event of numerous African ICT players who are playing an increasing role in shaping the development of Africa’s ICT industry has perhaps been a more significant highlight. African SMEs utilized the event to demonstrate the kind of uniquely African technologies which have helped stimulate market growth, with a number of countries taking the opportunity to demonstrate their nascent ICT industries.

Forthcoming ITU TELECOM Events

The next ITU event to take place will be ITU TELECOM ASIA 2004. The event will take place in Busan, Republic of Korea from 7 to 11 September 2004, and will bring together the top names in government and industry to explore the extensive range of opportunities for growth in this fast growing and most innovative market. Following this event will be ITU TELECOM AMERICAS 2005, the 5th regional event to be held in and for the Americas, a region offering dynamic opportunities for growth and investment.

Exhibitors	261 exhibitors from 44 countries, including 10 Pavilions. 136 exhibitors were from Africa.
Exhibition space, net	7'987m²
Registered Trade Visitors	7'803 from 92 countries.
VIPs	807 including 43 Ministers, Regulators and Directors-General and 62 CEOs of companies
Total Forum participants, including speakers (not including VIPs and Press) and 77 participants in the Youth Forum	1'111 from 40 countries.
Accredited media including 158 journalists on-site	268 from 139 media and 33 countries.
Total participants at the Event¹	9 990