H.E. Chairman of the PP-14,
H.E. Dr. TOURE, Secretary General of the ITU,
H.E. Dr. ZHAO, Deputy-Secretary General of the ITU,
Excellency Ministers, Vice-Ministers,
Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen!
It is my great honor and privilege to be with you all this afternoon to share Cambodian Policy at this historical Event of humanity, which is held in the beautiful city of Busan. First of all, on behalf of Cambodian Delegation and the Royal Government of Cambodia, I wish to congratulate Mr. MIN for his appointment as Chairman of the PP-14. Let me also take this opportunity to express our sincere thank to the Government of the Republic of Korea and Busan Authority for hosting this unforgettable moment and for your generous hospitality.
Chair, please allow me to congratulate Dr. TOURE in French.
Dr. TOURE,
au nom du Gouvernement Royal du Cambodge, c'est avec profond bonheur que je saisis cette occasion solennelle pour exprimer ma profonde reconnaissance à vous pour votre soutien très remarquable et précieux au long de votre carrière de l'UIT au Gouvernement Royal du Cambodge. Comme dit Voltaire, « Je ne connais pas de grands hommes, à !'exception de ceux qui ont rendu de grand services à l'humanité ». Je voudrais également remercier sincèrement à toute équipe de l'UIT pour vos assistances.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen!
Let me take this opportunity to share five related aspects of our Conference.
Firstly, given that there is a need to strengthen and coordinate institutional mechanisms, and to ensure consistency in competency sharing amongst the Government Institutions, the ICT sector was transferred to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications since October 2013. New management team has therefore been in place.
Secondly, to address inadequate and incomprehensive strategy and policy in ICT sector, the Cambodian ICT Master Plan 2020 and the National Master Plan of Science and Technology 2014-2020 were officially announced in August and in October respectively. We have been taking a step forward while ASEAN is currently formulating the ASEAN ICT Masterplan Post-2015. Five priority projects have been identified in the Cambodian ICT Master Plan such as e-government framework developed since 2004, cyber-security, e- education, e-commerce and e-tourism. However, our priorities are beyond these papers. ICT development Policy is actually being developed and will be finished by early next year and the Cyber-Security Policy shortly. With this regard, we would like to express our deep appreciation to the Government of the Republic of Korea for their kind support and assistance to these two Master Plans.
Thirdly, to regulate and oversee the technical aspects of the telecommunications sector, the Telecommunications Regulator of Cambodia has been established in 2012. In this regard, let me share several indicators. The number of mobile subscription increased to around 20 million in 2013, covered around 95% of urban areas. The mobile penetration is almost 140%. The number of Internet user reached 4 million in 2013. The 4G/LTE technology has been indeed launched. Nevertheless, we still need to strengthen the competitiveness of Cambodia's mobile cellular and Internet service compared to the neighboring countries. Consequently, the new telecom draft law is being prepared and will be submitted to the Parliament by then end of this year. Moreover, the telecommunications policy is further developed.
Fourthly, the network and service coverage of optical cable were gradually expanded with more than 25.000 km by connecting Phnom Penh to all districts and all communes across the country. The submarine cable investment has been also encouraged and 2 licenses have been actively executed since 2008. Therefore, to enhance efficiency of backbone infrastructure and to enable Cambodian population to access the benefits of digital
inclusion, the Broadband Policy is being drafted. It will be in line with the priorities stipulated in the Dubai Action Plan.
Fifthly, Cambodia needs to promote human resource development to respond to the fast growing modern technologies and enhance public literacy level in ICTs. To do so, new National Institute of Telecommunications and ICTs has been newly established in early 2014. It is aimed at more efficient use and deriving maximum benefit from the ICTs by strengthening all levels of education curricula, training of government officials and encouraging the private sector to participate in enhancing public's literacy in the ICTs. The Research and Development in this sector has been pragmatically promoted including the introduction of a research network model linkage Universities, Public Institutions, and Industry.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen!
Before concluding, let me make two proposals to seek your kind participation. Firstly, we all need to support Dr. TOURE’s initiative in using ICTs to fight against the current crisis, Ebola. Secondly, the digital divide remains a big challenge that needs to be addressed by all of us.
Moreover, allow me to ensure you that since its membership to the ITU in 1952, Cambodia remains strongly committed to play remarkable role to realize the ITU's initiatives underlined in "Connect 2020" Strategy and to enormously support newly elected Secretary-General.
Finally, let me wish the PP-14 all the best success and good luck to all candidates.
Thank you for your kind attention!
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