Geneva, 11 September -State-of-the-art information and communication technologies (ICT) can empower people to achieve their development aspirations through information and knowledge. During the past five years, many of the least developed countries (LDCs) have made remarkable progress in achieving the ICT connectivity targets set out in the Brussels Plan of Action for Least Developed Countries. These targets have been met by 25 of the 50 LDCs. The mobile sector in LDCs has grown considerably and access to the internet has also increased, providing a host of applications, such as e-education, e-health, e-business, e-agriculture, and e-government to tie in with the goals and objectives of the World Summit on the Information Society.
The International Telecommunication Union will launch a report in New York on 13 September 2006 on ICT/Telecommunication development in least developed countries. The report examines key developments in the ICT and telecommunications sector including trends and challenges in the world's poorest countries in the period 2001 to 2005.
The ITU report will be unveiled during a special session on 'Integrating Least Developed Countries (LDCs) into the world economy through telecommunications/ICT' to beheld during the Mid-Term Review on implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action for Least Developed Countries for the decade 2001-2010.
The special session will review progress in ICT and telecommunications development in LDCs as well as discuss the concrete work to be implemented in the next five years in the following priority areas :
Promotion of universal, ubiquitous, equitable and affordable access to ICT in underserved areas. Rehabilitation and reconstruction of telecommunication infrastructure in LDCs following disasters and war. ICT for disaster management, including the dissemination of understandable warnings to those at risk.
For highlights of ITU's success stories in Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States, click here
| When: | 13 September 2006 |
| Where: | Room 8, United Nations Secretariat, New York. |
| Who: | All stakeholders concerned with bridging the digital divide and achieving the development goals in least developed countries. |
For further information, please contact:
Mr Sanjay Acharya Chief, Media Relations and Public Information ITU Tel: +41 22 730 6135 | Mr Cosmas Zavazava Head Least Developed Countries, Small Island Developing States and Emergency Telecommunications ITU Tel: + 41 22 730 5447 E-mail Contact |
Related content
- Keymile unveils new XMC20 product family for mission-critical telecom networks
- C-Com next generation antennas deployed in Japan
- Energy utilities in Hong Kong and China choose Keymile technology
- Leading international Players gather at CommunicAsia2013 and EnterpriseIT2013 for global technology showcase
- Nokia Siemens extends TD-LTE speed record in China