Archived Newsroom • Communiqué |
|
Tunisia to host pivotal international standardization conference
ITU and Tunisia sign Host Country Agreement for 2016 World
Telecommunication Standardization Assembly
Geneva, 30 May 2016 – ITU and the government of Tunisia have
signed the Host Country Agreement formalizing arrangements for the
2016
World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA-16), an ITU
governing conference held every four years to define the strategic direction and
structure of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T). The
agreement was signed by ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao and Tunisia’s Minister
for Communication Technologies and Digital Economy Mr Noomane Fehri at a
ceremony which coincided with the 2016 session of
ITU
Council.
WTSA-16 will be held from 25 October to 3 November in Yasmine Hammamet,
Tunisia. It will be preceded by the Global Standards Symposium on 24 October.
The Assembly is an opportunity for ITU-T members to ensure that ITU
standardization remains well positioned to support the continuing building of
the advanced information society in the run-up to 2020.
WTSA-16 will define ITU’s standardization strategy to support the development
of ICT infrastructure, which is critical to the success of innovation in areas
such as non-radio aspects of IMT-2020 (5G), the Internet of Things (IoT), and
Smart Sustainable Cities. One of the key aspects will be a review of ITU’s
mechanisms for collaboration with other standards bodies, SMEs and open-source
communities, and the many vertical sectors applying ICTs as enabling
technologies.
“WTSA-16 taking place later this year in Tunisia will set the path of
networks for telecommunications, ICTs and services of the future,” said ITU
Secretary-General Houlin Zhao. “The years approaching 2020 are expected to host
significant structural transformations to the global economy, and the ICT
industry will be central to many of these transformations.”
“International standardization is a tool that provides vital assistance to
ICT development,” said Chaesub Lee, Director of the ITU Telecommunication
Standardization Bureau. “WTSA-16 will ensure that ITU-T provides its membership
with a standardization toolkit optimized to assist government and industry in
achieving their objectives for 2020 and beyond.”
“Tunisia prides itself on its culture of thought leadership and we are
hosting the upcoming WTSA-16 in recognition of the fundamental importance of
international cooperation to the development of the information society,” said
Mr Noomane Fehri. “Tunisia has ambitious plans to position itself as a leader in
ICT innovation focusing on e-education and e-governance as well as using
technology to create equal opportunities for all. WTSA is an important
conference in creating an equitable basis to advance ICT infrastructure
worldwide.”
For more information, please contact:
Sanjay Acharya
Chief, Media Relations and Public Information, ITU
|
Frederic Werner
Senior Communications Officer
Telecommunication Standardization Bureau
|
About ITU...