The ITU Global ICT Forum on Human Capacity Development (HCD) took place from 22-25 October 2012, in the scenic city of Cape Town, South Africa. The theme of the Forum was “Digital Inclusion: Transition from Analogue to Digital Broadcasting”. The event attracted approximately 282 delegates from 56 countries.

 

The Forum was a high-level event which brought together various experts, including high-level officials, policymakers, regulators, non-governmental organisations, academia and private sector. These experts came from a broad range of areas such as telecommunications, human capacity development, education, business, management, and informatics. They exchanged useful experiences and discussed the capacity building challenges of transitioning to digital broadcasting and how to address these challenges. Delegates also discussed country case studies on the transition issue, in particular regarding human capacity development.

 

The event was hosted by the Department of Communications of the Republic of South Africa, under its eSkills Institute, and Telkom South Africa. The eSkills Institute used the Forum to host its 2nd, national e-Skills Summit, which drew many delegates from the e-Skills partner institutions within South Africa. At the end of the Forum they were able to come up with their own Agenda for Action. The experience of South Africa with its eSkills Agenda was very instructive for other countries who felt it was something they could also emulate.

 

During the Forum, the Director of BDT, Mr Brahima Sanou, launched the ITU Academy, and emphasised the importance of capacity building for any nation-building and for development in general.