World Telecommunication Day commemorates the inception of the oldest international organization in history. This 17 May 2006, on its 141st anniversary, ITU finds itself on the threshold of a new era.

During the past seven years, ITU has guided the landmark World Summit on the Information Society to its historic conclusion. World leaders gathered in Geneva in 2003 and in Tunis in 2005 to provide political backing for a road map aimed at developing and utilizing information and communication technologies in the service of humanity.

In the process, ITU’s standing in the world as the lead agency in telecommunications and ICT has been clearly established. ITU has expanded its base, having pioneered the involvement of all stakeholders in the process. Governments, technological experts, social scientists, business and civil society leaders, international organizations and grassroots workers — have all been deeply engaged in laying the foundations of a more just, equitable and people-centred Information Society.

ITU has also grown in stature, having taken far-reaching steps in using its recognized expertise to reach out to the remotest regions of the globe, to the most vulnerable people, and help accelerate the pace of development. ITU has already forged partnerships with some of the greatest visionaries in government, business, civil society and international organizations aimed at connecting the unconnected through its Connect the World initiative, launched in June 2005.

This year, ITU has advocated the development of ICT to assist the disabled and to prepare for emergencies and disasters. And to ensure that the growth of ICT remains sustainable, the theme for World Telecommunication Day 2006 is Promoting Global Cybersecurity.

In an increasingly networked society, safeguarding cyberspace as well as ICT systems and infrastructure has taken on real urgency. It is essential to instil confidence in online trade, commerce, banking, telemedicine, e-government and a host of other applications. It is also critical for the future social and economic development of the world.

Achieving cybersecurity depends on the security practices of each and every networked country, business, and citizen. To guard against the sophisticated skills of cybercriminals, we need to develop a global culture of cybersecurity. This will require not only good policing and legislation but also acute threat awareness and development of tough ICT-based countermeasures.

From the days of the telegraph, ITU has mastered space age communications and continues to develop its expertise in cyberspace. It now takes on the additional mantle of leading the global movement to build the Information Society. World leaders meeting at the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis in November 2005 recognized this evolution of ITU and proposed that 17 May — World Telecommunication Day — should henceforth be celebrated as World Information Society Day.

ITU accepts this honour — and the challenge — to open another chapter in its chequered history and embark on a new journey. As we commemorate this important landmark, let us all together celebrate this first World Information Society Day!