*** TECHNICAL COOPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING COUNTRIES(TCDC) ***


	The TCDC approach was adopted in the mid seventies to encourage and promote 
self-reliance among developing countries. In 1978, the Plan of Action of Buenos 
Aires was adopted by 138 states for promoting and implementing TCDC.

	The ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, Nice, 1989 decided that the ITU 
regional experts "would have the responsibility of establishing progressively, 
on each continent, a group of qualified national experts who could participate 
in the enhancement of network programmes and launch technical cooperation 
activities among and between the developing countries themselves, i.e. TCDC 
missions". The Conference also agreed to provide financial support from ITU's 
regular budget in order to facilitate such missions and promote any technical 
cooperation between developing countries.

	For that purpose the ITU has an allocation of Sfrs. 400,000 in its regular 
budget for 1993 and Sfrs. 480,000 for 1994. A programme for 1992 - 1994 was 
prepared by the BDT and included in BDT's overall programme highlighting three 
priority areas which have been identified by various TCDC missions undertaken by 
the ITU.

	These are:

i) 	Assistance for promotion or creation of national and sub-regional 
maintenance and repair centres in order to support and improve the 
operation and maintenance of telecommunication networks;

ii) 	In coordination with all interested parties, conducting a 
study/project on a clear identification of the telecommunication 
materials and equipment which might be produced in some developing 
countries at an acceptable profit level;

iii) Support for multinational/regional training centres in order to give 
them a more central role to play in active coordination of training 
programmes of different national training centres, initiation of 
pragmatic research activities, preparation of programme exchange between 
centres in the region, etc.