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ICTs are key drivers for a sustainable future
UN agencies, governments and industry at Rio+20
stress catalytic role of ICTs in meeting development goals
Geneva, 18 June 2012 – In the run up to the Rio+20 United
Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, ITU and the United Nations Group
on the Information Society focused attention on “ICTs: The foundation of our
sustainable future”. Discussions centred on the catalytic impact ICTs have on
all three pillars of sustainable development – economic growth, social inclusion
and environmental sustainability.
The event in Rio de Janeiro outlined the critical role of ICTs as
cross-cutting drivers of sustainable development, identifying specific ICT
applications and services that can assist in the transition towards a green
economy. Attention focused on policies, regulations and international standards
that could facilitate the uptake of ICT applications. Participants stressed the
need to strengthen the right to information and universal access to ICTs as a
means of achieving the sustainable development goals of the future and to
include this in the outcome document of the Rio+20 Conference.
Participants included a diverse group of experts from UN agencies, such as
FAO, ITU, UNEP, UNESCO, UN WOMEN and WMO as well as industry representatives
such as Telefónica. Mr Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General UNCTAD and
Chairman of the United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS) led the
discussion with Mr Fabio Leite, Deputy Director of ITU’s Radiocommunication
Bureau, representing ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun Touré.
For more information, see
www.itu.int/themes/climate/events/rioplus20/17J_ITUevent.html
or contact:
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Sanjay Acharya
Chief, Media Relations
and Public Information
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Gary Fowlie (in Rio de Janeiro)
Head, ITU liaison Office to the United Nations
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