Policy Statement of Bulgaria
H.E. Mr. George Alexandrov

It is an exceptional honour and pleasure for me to address the Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union, the supreme policy-making body and the most prestigious forum in the field of telecommunications.

Every 4 years the Conference sets the Union's general policies and adopts the strategic and financial plan of the Union for the development of such important fields as the Internet, the Universal Service, E-commerce and convergence. The present Plenipotentiary Conference, first in the new century, plays an indicative part because it has to set up the milestones for the telecommunications development in the 21st century.

In the beginning of the new millennium, we are observing an unprecedented process, stimulating the transition from Industrial to Information Society. In this society information will be the most precious merchandise, while the means and tools for its transfer will be an everyday demand. Every day in this process the three sectors: telecommunications, information technologies and media, using modern technologies, shorten the distance between themselves, penetrate into each other, and wipe out the limits among them.

The developing countries marked a significant progress in the information infrastructure during the 90-ies. However, there still exists a remarkable difference between the developed and the developing countries. While the gap in fixed and mobile communications has narrowed, 'the digital divide' in the construction of highway networks grows wider both between the different countries and between the urban and rural areas within some of the countries.

Therefore, the International Telecommunication Union, facing the challenges of the information era, is chosen to ensure balanced development and harmonious interaction among all players in the process of establishing a global information infrastructure.

The Bulgarian institutions in charge of the Information Society development abide by the principle that the establishment of a high-speed information infrastructure is the foundation of the knowledge-based economy. Therefore, it plays an important role in the economic development and improves the life of citizens. The Program of the Bulgarian Government in this field is built on the following basic notions:

The information infrastructure:

• Is essential to growth;
• Is necessary to develop a country's productive capacity in all sectors of economy; and
• Links the country to the global economy and ensures its competitiveness;
• Is the base for creation of new jobs and opportunities.

The Information infrastructure:

• Is a vehicle for the efficient delivery of public administration, social and other public services; and
  Is important for transparency and good governance.

The success of the Government policy in the field of telecommunications and information technologies is a fact:

• The ICT sector growth for the past year is 35 %.
• In the first four months of 2002 alone the Internet users increased with approximately 4% and, according to the market research agencies, at the end of April this number reached 14%.
• According to a marketing research from the beginning of 2002, Bulgaria ranks eighth in the world in the number of IT certificates issued per capita.
• The presence of the Bulgarian administration in the web-space has undergone a positive development. Over 90 % of the governmental institutions have web-sites with interactive access.
• The Bulgarian Internet applications also develop rapidly. At present over 90% of the Internet content is in Bulgarian, including everyday news and information, search options, etc.

I allowed myself to mention the above data in order to highlight the fact that the achieved progress is due to the professionalism and experience of the Bulgarian experts. In the conditions of economical reforms and facing the challenges of new technologies, they managed to liberate the telecommunication sector and to create regulatory framework, which creates conditions to:

• Support effective competition;
• Effectively manage the numbering space;
• Ensure manage frequency usage;
• Ensure the provision Universal service;
• Support user protection;

The gained experience could be particularly useful to the countries, which are on the initial stage of the Information Society development. That is why we do our best to participate in the work and implementation of ITU policy and strategy. Bulgarian experts, in close co-operation with ITU experts, have developed the PLANITU network planning system, which is now being used in a number of countries. As representatives of the ITU, Bulgarian experts provide technical and expert assistance in system integration and in telecommunications problem solving all over the world.

In fact, our experience from working and collaborating with the ITU dates back to 1885 when Bulgaria became an active member of the Telegraph Union, the predecessor of the International Telecommunication Union. Since 1998 the Republic of Bulgaria has been a member of the ITU Council for Region 'C'. We consider this an extreme recognition and responsibility.

Dear Colleagues,

I believe that this Plenipotentiary Conference in Marrakech will trace the way to the global telecommunications development in the next four years. I am sure that the most proper persons and countries will be chosen and entrusted the management for the successful achievement of the noble goals of the ITU to the benefit of all countries and nations around the world.

At the end, I would like to address our hosts who extended their exceptional hospitality and perfect organisation of this Conference. I would like to present our consideration and gratitude to His Majesty, the King of Morocco Mohammed VI, to the Government of Morocco and the people of Morocco and to those directly involved in the organisation of this remarkable event.

Thank you for your attention