Additional Plenipotentiary Conference (APP-92)

Closing Address by
Pekka Tarjanne
Secretary-General
Geneva, 22 December 1992


Mr. Chairman, 
Excellencies, 
Ladies and Gentlemen, 
Dear Friends,

I would like to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and all of the 
participants in APP-92 for the work you have done in the past two 
weeks.  Together, we have brought to a successful conclusion a 
reform process that began formally over three years ago, at Nice 
and informally long before that, during the time of my 
distinguished predecessor, M. Mohammed Mili who has been with us 
all during this conference - a fact that we have appreciated very 
much - in times of change continuity is a precious thing.  After a 
long period of gestation, and a somewhat difficult birth (cesarean 
section), we now have a new ITU.  I predict the baby will be 
healthy, and have a long and successful life - at least another 
127 years.  Congratulations are in order to everyone who took part 
in the conception and delivery - to the delegates, who acted in 
the best traditions of the ITU, whether they found themselves in a 
majority or a minority - to the members of the High Level 
Committee and the Drafting Group, under the able and jazzy  
leadership of Gaby Warren - and to you, Mr. Chairman, who presided 
over our deliberations with great skill and a firm determination 
to help us conclude our business on time, and in a successful 
manner - and with your wonderful sense of humour.  On behalf of 
the Conference and its secretariat, I'd like to present to you two 
small souvenirs.

At the beginning of this Conference I said I was 100% in favour of 
the HLC recommendations.  You have responded with a 110% answer, 
you have not only reached your goal, you have exceeded all 
expectations

And now let's look ahead :

Although we are all somewhat tired after our efforts of the past 
two weeks, and anxious to rejoin our families and countries, we 
must remember that this conference was only the first step in the 
ITU reform process, the beginning of the beginning.  We have 
restructured the ITU so that our three fundamental sectors of 
activity - development, radiocommunications and standardization -  
have been given a framework in which they can operate more 
efficiently.  The challenge before us is to use these new 
structures to tackle the fundamental problems of international 
telecommunications - not only to better achieve our goals of 
developing telecommunication networks and services in a 
harmonized, and efficiently regulated and managed manner - but to 
ensure that telecommunications contributes to human development, 
by promoting economic growth as well as the improvement of our 
environment - not only our social, cultural, and political 
environment - but our natural environment as well.

The next challenge is in particular to ensure that the ITU will 
continue to be not only a but the leading forum for all players on 
the global telecommunications scene.

I am delighted that in addition to adopting recommendations to 
improve the structure and functioning of the Union, the conference 
was also able to agree to a series of transitional measures which 
ensure that these provisions will come into effect without delay. 
I am particularly delighted that you have decided to confide  the 
implementation of your decisions to the Council and the elected 
officials and appointed staff, and have decided, for the time 
being anyway, not to set up any more committees - although another 
HLC may be required at some time in the future.  For the present, 
it is time for the ITU headquarters and regional and area offices 
to get on with the job, with the specific support of the strategic 
advisory groups and the Strategic Planning Unit.

In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, I can say that I am very happy with 
the results of this conference, and look forward to the future 
with optimism and with increased motivation.  When we look at how 
much we have been able to accomplish in just two weeks, compared 
to what has been done in much longer periods of time in the past, 
I think there is every reason to be satisfied and confident in the 
ITU's capacity to respond to change.  With our team of elected 
officials now complete, we will do our best to implement your 
decisions, and prepare for new ones.  I've invited all the elected 
officials to a meeting tomorrow morning to start this job.  
Together with our dedicated staff - who are by the way in need of 
much better appreciation from the Common System - we will do our 
very best to serve the Members of the Union and mankind.

Mr. Chairman, Dear Friends, Thank you,  Shukran, Shie Shie,  
Gracias, Merci, Spasiba Bolshoi, und auf dem Kanal 7, Danke Schön.

I look forward to seeing you in Kyoto, if not before.

Bon  Voyage, Bonnes Fêtes et Bonne Année.


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