Continent to Show Commitment to Digital Divide At ITU Congress

Africa is set to showcase at its various national pavillions to be erected at the oncoming International Telecommunications Union World Congress and Exhibition biled for Geneva, Switzerland, in October development successes, best practices and establish partnerships and attract inward investment opportunities.

African countries will join other national pavilions to address the overarching theme of bridging the digital divide at ITU global event which begins on October 5 and ends October 9, 2009.

Country pavillions that are set to be represented include those of Burundi, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and the Africa Lusophone countries. They pavillions will unite a broad range of organizations from the non-profit, private and R&D sectors with the common goal of reasserting their commitment to ICT and digital development.

ITU Secretary-General Dr Hamadoun TourE, a Malian who was in Abuja on September 10 to attend the maiden African Telecom Development Summit 2009 and spoke on how to sustain the gains of telecom development in Africa over the past ten years added that, "It has been an extraordinary decade for Africa,".

He said in his keynote address at the Summit, "Just ten years ago, virtually nobody in Africa had a mobile phone; today mobile cellular subscription teledensity has reached 32.6 per cent, and more than 30 million people in sub-Saharan Africa access the Internet. What is needed now is a major push forward in broadband access."

He said ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009 will be a major milestone in addressing the issue of broadband access, and is seen as an important industry event for the developing world, providing an opportunity to benchmark local ICT sectors in terms of policy, regulation, and infrastructure development. It also enables the showcasing of local ICT, and represents an invaluable opportunity to attract inward investment and seek opportunities to engage with ICT companies from the developed world.

Toure also used the ocassion of his visit to Nigeria to harp on the need for Nigerian governments and ICT players to explore the oncoming event to further push the frontiers of development in the country.

The event will welcome some 30 Heads of State and Heads of Government, including President Al Hadji Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh of the Republic of the Gambia, President Bingu Wa Mutharika of Malawi, President Paul Kagame of the Republic of Rwanda, and President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete of the United Republic of Tanzania.

African top government officials attending include Prime Minister Mr Pakalitha Bethuel Mosisili of the Kingdom of Lesotho, and Deputy Prime Minister Mr Emile Bongeli Yeikelo of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

"The presence of these and other world leaders at ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009 will provide a tremendous boost to ICT development, and send out the right message to industry leaders about the importance of ICT infrastructure to ongoing socio-economic development," said Dr TourE.

Other African participants who will be present at ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009 include high-level representatives from government and industry. Mr Nkubito Bakuramutsa, deputy CEO of the Rwanda Development Board for IT, has seen strong ICT development in Rwanda, which is echoed across neighbouring African nations, and is attending ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009 with a view to harnessing this trend and further fuelling development. "IT has been identified as a strategic industry for Rwanda's development," he said. "ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009 is a wide and open network that brings together all the players in the ICT sector. Attendance at this event is the best way to learn about new developments and future plans."

Away from ITU TELECOM WORLD 2009's exhibition floor, African nations will also be playing an important role in the event's Forum, with top-level speakers participating from Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda, and much of the focus expected to revolve around the need for ICT infrastructure development, enlightened regulatory frameworks, and structured cybersecurity programmes.

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