The 12th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS) took place in Tbilisi, Georgia, on 24 – 26 of November 2014.
The symposium, which serves as the main international forum to discuss international ICT statistics, brought together ICT ministers, heads of national telecom/ICT regulatory authorities and national statistical offices, heads of international organizations, chief executive officers of private sector companies, and statistical experts from around the world.
For the first time, the Measuring the Information Society Report was launched at WTIS. The ICT Development Index (IDI) country rankings were also announced at an award ceremony on 24 November. Denmark ranked number one, followed by Korea. The report was simultaneously launched in Addis, Bangkok, Brasilia and Cairo.
The report estimates that by end 2014 there will be seven billion mobile subscriptions, roughly corresponding to the total global population. But it warns of an estimated 450 million people worldwide who live in places which are still out of reach of mobile cellular service.
"The availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data and a robust international measurement framework is of paramount importance in order to track the progress we are making in improving global ICT access", said Mr Brahima Sanou, Director of the ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau.
He said behind every ICT statistic are human stories of courage and determination. "I see the very young boys and girls, I see women and men, I see people with disabilities, and I see the elderly who all rely on ICT to change their lives. ICT impacts each one of us, let us be the change agents driven by a shared vision - a vision to make the fruits of the Information Society accessible to all."
In view of the increasing importance of big data for development and the future of ICT measurement, Mr Sanou announced that a special event on big data will be held in 2015.
"Big data offers huge opportunities for new ICT indicators for everyone in 2015", said Mr Sanou. "We have to work hard on helping countries build their capacities in dealing with the opportunities and challenges brought by the data revolution."
Japan has offered to host the 13th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium in 2015.
For more information about the event, visit the WTIS 2014 newsroom.
