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ITU Awards President of Rwanda Mr Paul Kagame, President
of Republic of Korea Ms Park Geun-hye, and Mr Carlos Slim
World Telecommunication and Information Society Award 2014
focuses on broadband connectivity for sustainable development
Geneva, 2 May 2014 – ITU Secretary-General
Hamadoun I. Touré announced the winners of the 2014 World Telecommunication and
Information Society Award. Mr Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda;
Ms Park Geun-hye, President of the Republic of Korea; and Mr Carlos Slim,
Chairman, Grupo Carso and President of the Carlos Slim Foundation have been
honoured in recognition of their leadership and dedication towards promoting ICT
development and broadband connectivity as a means of achieving sustainable
development.
President Kagame is recognized for his leadership in the
advancement of education and the potential of ICT as a dynamic industry as well
as an enabler for Africa’s socio-economic transformation. He currently serves as
Chairman of the UN Secretary General's Advisory Group on UN MDG Advocacy Group.
President Park is the leader of the Republic of Korea, which
has consistently topped ITU’s ICT Index for Measuring the Information Society.
The Government has unveiled a set of long-term plans that foster creative
talent, a move that establishes a new paradigm towards building a vibrant
national economy in a digital environment.
Mr Carlos Slim commands a diverse range of business portfolios
within the Carso Group, with América Móvil a leading supplier of
telecommunications services. He has been committed to the promotion of
technologies for development and his philanthropic activities have contributed
to social and cultural development ranging from the promotion of arts to support
in the areas of education, health, employment generation and community
development.
President Kagame and Mr Slim are co-Chairs of the ITU-UNESCO
Broadband Commission for Digital Development.
World Telecommunication and Information Society Day
marks 149th anniversary of ITU
The theme for WTISD-14, “Broadband for Sustainable
Development”, will focus attention on the global commitment to achieve universal
access to broadband connectivity and content and foster political will to
achieve this objective; identify key gaps in broadband research and development,
infrastructure, and packaged development of applications and services; define
policy priorities for action in the areas of allocating radio-frequency spectrum
for broadband, universal access obligations and innovative financing mechanisms;
and lead to technological solutions, particularly in the extension of broadband
access into rural areas, least developed countries and small island developing
states.
“Broadband infrastructure development is a critical element in
ensuring that ICTs are used innovatively as delivery vehicles for health,
education, governance, trade and commerce in order to achieve sustainable
socio-economic growth,” said ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré. “We need
to implement national and domestic policies to accelerate the roll-out of
broadband and to make it more affordable and accessible to all citizens; it is
an effective way to empower people everywhere with information and knowledge to
meet their aspirations and to achieve the overall goals of sustainable
development.”
ITU’s agenda for sustainable development in the post-2015 era
focuses on supporting the deployment of broadband along with a thrust on meeting
the global challenges of our times, such as combating climate change.
Broadband-based ICT networks are powerful cross-cutting enablers to achieve the
three pillars of sustainable development – economic growth, social inclusion and
environmental balance.
The World Telecommunication and Information Society Award 2014
will be presented at a ceremony in Geneva on 16 May to mark the 149th
anniversary of the establishment of ITU on 17 May, 1865. The ceremony will begin
with a video message from United Nations Secretary-General Mr Ban Ki-moon,
followed by the presentation of awards and a high-level round-table discussion
on Broadband for Sustainable Development.
For more information, please see
www.itu.int/en/wtisd/2014/Pages/default.aspx or contact:
Sanjay Acharya
Chief, Media Relations and Public Information, ITU
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