Highlights – September 2026
Statistics: Global
From 7 to 11 September, policy makers, statisticians, and industry experts gathered at ITU Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, for ICT Data Week 2026 – a week dedicated to digital development statistics. The 21st edition of the World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS-26), held from 7 to 8 September, under the theme “Guiding digital policy through statistics” was followed by the 2026 edition of the annual meetings of the Expert Group on Telecommunication/ICT Indicators (EGTI) and the Expert Group on ICT Household Indicators (EGH).
Capacity development: Asia and the Pacific
From 2 to 4 September, the ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, in collaboration with Cambodia’s Digital Government Committee (DGC) and with support from the Australian Government, conducted a three-day capacity-building workshop on Whole-of-Government Digital Government Infrastructure and Digital ID in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The workshop brought together around 40 government officials and deepened their understanding of Whole-of-Government approaches, GovStack building blocks, Digital Public Infrastructure, Digital ID, and Service Design through international examples and practical case studies. Through interactive sessions and hands-on exercises, participants explored digital service prioritization, user journey mapping, interoperability, and Digital ID implementation considerations, while engaging with DGC on Cambodia’s digital transformation progress and future priorities.
Emergency telecommunications: Africa
BDT, in partnership with UNDRR, WMO, IFRC, co-organized the Africa Early Warnings for All (EW4All) Forum from 2-4 September at the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Forum brought together more than 400 participants from over 50 African countries, including officials representing the four EW4All pillars lead agencies, alongside regional economic communities, regional climate centres, development banks and financing partners, the private sector, academia, civil society and community-based organizations. Nine ITU-sponsored national pillar 3 leads representatives from African countries attended the event.
BDT led sessions on Technology, Innovation and AI, including: a high-level plenary session and flash talks highlighting the importance and innovative uses of technology and AI in Early Warning Systems; and two interactive breakout sessions — “From warning communication to action” and “From risk data to decision – Technology and AI for forecasting and anticipation”. The sessions were a success and served to highlight the important role BDT plays in Early Warning Systems.
Cybersecurity: Asia and the Pacific
On 1 September, the ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific contributed virtually to the Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) Workshop organized by the Philippines’ Department of Information and Communications Technology Cybersecurity Bureau. Bringing together 39 participants from different Philippine government agencies, BDT’s presentation increased awareness of the GCI framework, its five pillars and the forthcoming sixth edition, while encouraging continued dialogue and cooperation on national cybersecurity commitments.