ITU/94-15 17 May 1994 ORIGINAL: English Measures proposed by ITU's Council to propel the organization in the 21st century A series of bold proposals to enable the ITU to respond to the challenges of the next decade have been agreed upon by the ITU's Council for consideration by the forthcoming Plenipotentiary Conference to be held in Kyoto, Japan, September-October 1994. The Council is the management body of the International Telecommunication Union which meets annually in Geneva. The Plenipotentiary Conference is the top policy-making organ which meets every four years to focus on long-term policy issues. The 1994 session of the Council was held at ITU Headquarters from 2 to 17 May under the chairmanship of S. Mbaye of Senegal. Looking ahead, the Council considered relative priorities among ITU's main activities in the medium-term plan for 1995-1999 as well as the future policy framework of the organization in the changing environment in which it is called to operate. In a draft strategic plan, the Council outlined the overall strategy and priorities in light of ITU's three-pronged mission: technical, development and policy. Against a background of sector restructuring, technological convergence which gives rise to new questions for government policy-makers and regulators, the emergence of a global information economy and society, geopolitical changes and the development gap, the Council calls for a strategy based on the ITU's core technical competence in telecommunications. But it also recognizes that changes that have taken place in public policies, legislative frameworks and regulatory institutions call for adaptation of the Union's traditional strengths, in particular in light of the impact on the future international telecommunication policy agenda of the recently-concluded GATT agreement. Three areas were identified as policy and programme priorities: * strengthening the foundations of the Union through the systematic analysis of the requirements and expectations of Member administrations, non-administration participants, the world telecommunication sector at large including telecommunication user groups and development partners. A comprehensive study is to be prepared for consideration by the Plenipotentiary Conference with a view to adapting the conditions under which non-administrations can participate and contribute to the Union in light of their changing needs and ITU's changing requirements * broadening the scope of Union activities by the establishment of a forum in which ITU members could discuss their telecommunications policies and strategies without prescriptive regulatory outcomes. The Forum would be convened on an ad hoc basis to respond rapidly to emerging policy issues in an on-going manner. Various options were put forward on the form the Forum could take. Priority topics which require economic and regulatory consideration as well as technical harmonization and which could be discussed by the Forum include: new generation communications infrastructure such as the Global Information Infrastructure, personal communication services, regulatory frameworks for sector restructuring, new methods of radio spectrum management, regulatory issues with respect to the new competitive market environment surrounding international satellite organizations, open access to networks or issues relating to the transmission and reception of transborder direct satellite broadcast * increasing the Union's leverage through: strategic alliances with other international and regional organizations which have an important influence on the development of telecommunications, partnerships with organizations particularly those involved in large-scale peace, security and development projects and strengthening of public information capabilities. The draft Plan also details sectoral strategies and priorities for Radiocommunications, Standardization and Development. Among the main objectives to be achieved by the Radiocommunication Sector are: * the development and adoption of more precise criteria for frequency sharing and coordination of new and existing systems in both space and terrestrial environments * the simplification of the Radio Regulations * the development of automated spectrum management systems * the development and introduction of new technologies * the implementation of measures to promote broader participation by Members, particularly developing countries, and others in all the activities of the Radiocommunication Sector * the application of the Radio Regulations in the sensitive area of the use made of frequency bands and satellite orbits in a manner which maintains the confidence of Member administrations In the area of standardization, the main goal is the maintenance of ITU as a pre-eminent global telecommunication standardization body. Strategies to achieve this goal include: * adopting a market-oriented approach to standardization * delivering high-quality products (i.e. Recommendations) on time ("value for money") * clearly defining the role of the ITU in relation to regional standardization bodies and industry fora * developing appropriate agreements and cooperative relationships with these standardization partners * within the ITU-T's area of competence, focussing on high priority standardization areas * continuing to improve the working methods of the Standardization Sector, including improved and accelerated development and approval of Recommendations * enhancing participation and involvement by "non- Administration" entities and organizations in the standardization process As telecommunication development must be seen in the broader context of sustainable global development, the strategy of the Development Sector put forward by Council is to be based on three main areas: * Direct assistance - The Development Sector provides assistance to countries, in particular developing countries, to strengthen, expand and harmonize their telecommunications networks and services by: * assisting countries to create the necessary policy, strategic and investment environment that will allow and enable the successful development of telecommunications * assisting the telecommunications sector to develop and strengthen its institutional capacity * assisting the telecommunications sector to develop plans * assisting those who are involved in the telecommunications sector to acquire the necessary and appropriate knowledge and expertise in the latest developments in telecommunications * Partnership - In the second area, the BDT plays a catalytic and facilitating role in encouraging all the actors in telecommunications to work together in telecommunications development. More specifically, the BDT promotes and facilitates the active involvement of developed countries and the international community in the development process by: * working cooperatively with other international and national organizations in order to promote an integrated approach to sustainable development, particularly in rural areas through an Integrated Rural Development (IRD) approach * working cooperatively with regional telecommunication organizations and with the global, regional and national development and financing organizations * encouraging the private sector to participate in the activities of the Development Sector * mobilizing resources in support of telecommunications development projects * Resource Development and Mobilization including financial and human resources, technology, information and expertise for telecommunications development, through constant action by the BDT to: * identify sources of financing * develop human resources management tools and systems * develop and manage information databases of interest for the development process To support the proposed strategies and priorities, the Council also highlighted the financial factors and presented 4 global options to be considered by the Plenipotentiary Conference when examining the Council proposals. In particular, the Council underlined the fact that income trends would be strategically significant when formulating ITU policies and plans. To date, the income side of the budget has reached a certain plateau with 86% of the budget from assessed contributions from Member Administrations and 12% from the industry. REGIONAL PRESENCE Another item considered by the Council was the evaluation of the ITU presence in the field. The Council agreed that that a precise definition of the objectives and duties of such a presence must be established by the Kyoto Plenipotentiary Conference, so that the necessary structures and resources can be evaluated. Also, a redeployment, in the short and medium term, of staff of the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) between headquarters and the regional offices should be considered, in order to arrive at an optimum allocation of resources. Such a redeployment would be justified on the grounds of the drastic reduction in some Regions of UNDP- financed projects and programmes and of the new activities to be launched under the Buenos Aires Action Plan. The following factors and criteria would serve as a basis for the study of the conditions and possibilities for redeploying BDT staff: * the possibility, in some Regions, of reducing the number of area offices by amalgamating some of them. This would entail re-evaluating the tasks and desirable size of area offices in terms of their cost-effectiveness * the possibility of converting some of the regional expert posts (human resources, network management, maintenance) currently in regional or area offices to short or medium- term missions * the need to review the very principle of the "ITU representation" function, mentioned as a feature of the regional presence Such a study would naturally imply having previously established a clear definition of the responsibilities pertaining respectively to headquarters and to the regional offices, based on the objectives and duties which can be assigned to the regional presence. A detailed report to be prepared by the Secretary-General is to be submitted for consideration by the Plenipotentiary Conference. CONFERENCES The Council agreed on the agenda of the 1995 World Radiocommunication Conference and decided it would take place in Geneva from 23 October to 17 November. It also decided that the 1995 Radiocommunication Assembly would be held immediately prior to the Conference, from 16 to 20 October. BUDGET One important item on the agenda was the adoption of the provisional budget for 1995. A sum of 149 613 000 Swiss francs was allocated for the ordinary budget as compared to 139 975 000 Swiss francs for 1994. The contributory unit for 1995 has been fixed at 330 000 on the basis of 375 6/16 units (319,200 Swiss francs in 1994). OTHER DECISIONS On the political front, the Council unanimously adopted a resolution authorizing the Government of National Unity of South Africa to resume its full participation in the conferences, meetings and activities of the Union with effect to 10 May 1994. (See press release ITU/94-14 of 10 May 1994) "The willingness of ITU's constituents and other interested parties to support the Union and their satisfaction with the services they receive will be the real test of how successfully the recommended strategy has been developed and executed" said ITU Secretary-General Pekka Tarjanne. "The aim", he said, "is for ITU to be recognized as the global focal point for all matters relating to telecommunications in the global information economy and society of the 21st century", he concluded. STRUCTURE OF COUNCIL Chairman of the Council: Mr. S. MBAYE (Senegal) Vice-Chairman of the Council: Mr. D. CHAROENPHOL (Thailand) Committee 1 - Finances Chairman: Mr. P. GAGNE (Canada) Vice- Chairman: Mr. U. MOHR (Germany) Committee 2 - Staff/Pensions Chairman: Mr. S. AL-BASHEER (Saudi Arabia) Vice- Chairman: Mr. K. MIRSKI (Bulgaria) Page 4 of 4