Doreen Bogdan-Martin
Secretary-General, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Remarks at the
ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2026 (PP-29)
Opening Ceremony
[As prepared for delivery]
Your Excellency Mohammed bin Ali Al Mannai, Minister of Communications and Information Technology of the State of Qatar,
Engineer Ahmad bin Abdulla AlMuslemani, President of the Communications Regulatory Authority of the State of Qatar and Chair-Designate of ITU PP-26,
Ministers, Ambassadors,
Heads of Delegations,
Fellow Elected Officials,
Distinguished delegates, colleagues, and friends,
Assalamu alaikum.
Good morning!
I have the great honour of welcoming you to the 2026 Plenipotentiary Conference ꟷmy first as Secretary-General of our Union.
Before we begin, allow me to pay tribute on behalf of the ITU family to His Highness the late Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, who passed away earlier this year.
His vision helped shape the modern Qatar that welcomes us today: a forward-thinking country committed to digital development and respected around the world for its dedication to diplomacy and dialogue.
We honour his memory as we open the Plenipotentiary today.
And we thank the State and people of Qatar for welcoming the ITU family to Doha with such warmth and generosity.
Ladies and gentlemen,
We meet at an extraordinary moment of digital progress.
Entire economies now run on digital technologies.
Countless public services depend on them.
Our children are growing up alongside them.
Humanity is more connected now than ever before.
But countries are entering the next phase of digital transformation ꟷ one increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence ꟷ from profoundly different starting points.
We also meet at a time of profound uncertainty, when the critical infrastructure and systems people depend on are being tested.
In moments of crisis, communication networks must remain resilient, reliable and available when people need them most.
That is why the theme of PP-26 speaks so directly to this moment: “Together for a connected digital future."
Because the systems we increasingly rely on are deeply interconnected.
And because no country, and no institution, can make those systems resilient, secure, and inclusive on its own.
These are challenges we can only navigate together, as One ITU.
Excellencies,
We open PP-26 with a great deal of momentum behind us.
120 years ago, almost to the day, the first Radio Regulations were adopted by the International Radiotelegraph Conference in Berlin.
20 years ago, just four months after the Tunis phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) was held right here in Doha.
WTDC-06 gave us the Doha Plan of Action to realize the WSIS vision of bridging the digital divide and improving the living standards of all people – with a much-needed focus on developing countries.
Fast forward to the World Telecommunication/ICT Policy Forum (WTPF) in September, the first WTPF to be held in a Small Island Developing State, where ITU members found common ground on questions ranging from space connectivity and digital resilience to innovation and entrepreneurship.
And yesterday, Ministers (hosted by Qatar) adopted the Doha Declaration, reaffirming their commitment to universal connectivity, sustainable digital transformation, and stronger international cooperation.
Each of these milestones brought something essential to the work ahead: technical agreement, policy alignment, and political commitment.
Our task now is to carry that momentum into the decisions that will guide our Union through the next four years.
This Plenipot a special one, not only because of its historic co-location with MWC Doha, but also because it takes place well into “the IQ Era" of AI, intelligent economies, and next-generation infrastructure.
Our hosts have devoted years of work and spared no effort in preparing for this conference.
Engineer AlMuslemani and his team have worked closely with ITU and Member State representatives from all six regions, listening to your priorities and helping prepare the ground for this moment.
Our host country brings its own experience of rapid digital progress to this gathering.
With 99 per cent of its population online, Qatar has achieved near-universal connectivity, supported by extensive fibre and advanced mobile networks.
Through its National Vision and Digital Agenda 2030, our host country is building on that foundation, by investing in people and creating tens of thousands of digital-skills and AI-training opportunities by 2030.
Qatar's experience shows what sustained commitment to human-centered digital transformation can achieve.
Our task now is to help every country advance from its own starting point.
Every delegation arrives with its own digital circumstances, priorities, and ambitions.
Yet all of us share the same responsibility: to ensure that ITU is ready to serve our members at every stage of their digital journey.
For the next three weeks, each of you will have a voice in setting the course of our Union ꟷ its leadership and strategic and financial plan.
The questions before us are consequential for every country gathered here in Doha.
How do we bring meaningful connectivity to the 2 billion people who remain offline?
How do we make technology more affordable, relevant, and trusted for those already connected?
And how do we help countries navigate emerging technologies, advancing faster than our institutions can adapt?
The answers will be reflected in the decisions we take together ꟷ always with the people we serve in mind.
So let us use this time together well.
Over the next three weeks, let us listen to one another with openness and respect,
Negotiate in the spirit of dialogue and compromise.
And work to build a connected digital future together.
One that benefits all people, everywhere.
I thank you and wish you all a successful PP-26.
Shukran.
