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ITU Statistics Update - October 2026

WHAT’S NEW IN ICT STATISTICS

Inspiring the future of digital statistics: How should statistics evolve in a fast-changing digital world? The 2026 edition of the World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS-26) brought the global ICT statistics community together on 7 and 8 September to exchange ideas on some of the key measurement challenges ahead - from artificial intelligence and new data sources to digital inclusion and the environmental sustainability of digital transformation. Catch up on WTIS-26 here.
Turning ideas into indicators: ITU’s expert groups on ICT indicators, EGTI and EGH, took the discussions from ideas to measurement at their annual meetings. Experts worked on emerging areas including AI use and infrastructure, satellite connectivity, the environmental footprint of the ICT sector and device affordability. They also continued work on the ICT Development Index and the revision of ITU’s statistical manuals. Discover the work of EGTI and EGH.
100 teams, 35 countries, 3 winning solutions: The year-long ITU UMC Data Hackathon concluded at WTIS-26 with the presentation of three winning solutions. Around 100 teams from 35 countries took up the challenge of finding new ways to identify connectivity gaps and the people and communities being left behind. The winning teams looked at very different problems: the gap between reported and actual mobile connectivity quality in India; connectivity challenges in refugee camps in the State of Palestine; and the drivers of digital exclusion at the subnational level in Cambodia. Learn more about the Hackathon and the winning solutions here.
Making the case for ICT data to policymakers: At ITU’s World Telecommunication Policy Forum 2026 in Nassau, we took a simple message directly to policymakers: they have a key role to play both as users of ICT statistics and in ensuring that the data they need are adequately resourced. The same message was at the heart of the fourth edition of the ITU Summer School in Bangkok on evidence-based policy making, which focused on policymakers. Participants explored the UMC framework and how better data can help identify connectivity gaps and support better-informed digital policy.
Taking UMC measurement to new audiences: In Oman, the country’s main operators joined the discussion in force, sending large delegations to work alongside government and statistical authorities on ICT measurement and data quality. We also introduced the 30 Generation Connect Young Leaders to the UMC framework and the role measurement can play in their projects. At ITU-D Study Group 1’s Rapporteur Group Meeting, we are presenting the UMC measurement framework, alongside new research on how SIDS and LDCs use ICT statistics to inform digital policies.

TOPIC SPOTLIGHT - From mobile phone data to statistics: building practical skills

ITU is helping countries move from learning about the potential of mobile phone data to developing the practical skills needed to use them.

In less than a year, nearly 200 participants have received hands-on training using the ITU Jupyter Notebook toolkit, working step by step through the full analytical process. This ranges from preparing and cleaning raw mobile network data and checking data quality to producing information society indicators and assessing and adjusting for potential biases. The practical, code-based approach allows participants to work directly with methods and tools they can adapt to their own national contexts.

Hundreds more have taken part in workshops and webinars on mobile phone data analytics, covering how indicators can be produced as well as the methodological choices, data-quality issues and potential sources of bias involved. Together, these activities are helping countries move from methodological guidance to practical implementation — and turn complex mobile network data into robust and meaningful statistics.

DID YOU KNOW?

More ways to explore ITU data

The ITU DataHub has new ways to find, explore and use ICT statistics. Users can now pin indicators to createpersonalised selections and country profiles, see data availability for key indicators, explore connectivity affordability through a new ICT price dashboard, and dig deeper into household indicators now showing double disaggregation and ICT skills. More features are coming over the next few months, including a new ‘World at a glance’ view, more indicators from ITU and external sources, and a new dashboard for the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development.

And coming next: DataHub AI. Demonstrated at WTIS, the prototype assistant lets users interact with ITU statistics through natural-language questions - from finding data and methodological guidance to generating customised visualisations. It is still under development and not yet publicly available. Stay tuned!

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Have questions or insights? We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts with the ICT Data and Analytics Division, BDT on social media using the hashtag #ICTStats, or get in touch via e-mail for suggestions and questions.

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As the UN specialized agency for ICTs, ITU is the official source for global ICT statistics. Find out more about how we produce and disseminate data, our main events and products. More>

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A list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) is available to help you find information about ITU data.

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