The next World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-17) will take place from 9 to 20 October in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on the theme: ICT for Sustainable Development Goals - ICT4SDGs.
The event is hosted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) - a specialised agency of the United Nations (UN) for telecommunications and the information society - and takes place every 4 years; its main objective is to define the general policy and procedures of the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector (ITU-D).
In particular, WTDC is responsible for establishing work programmes for priority areas in telecommunication development, as well as providing guidance for the ITU-D's activity over the next 4 years. WTDC-17 is expected to make a declaration strengthening political support for the ITU-D's mission and objectives, a contribution to the ITU Strategic Plan (2020-2030) and an action plan with detailed regional initiatives.
At a European level, the Committee for ITU Policy of the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT), currently chaired by Portugal, submitted a set of 17 European proposals to the WTDC for resolutions covering topics such as the preliminary declaration of WTDC-17, a revision of ITU-D rules of procedure, country participation (particularly developing countries), spectrum management, Internet access for developing countries, principles of billing for international Internet connections and contributions to the implementation of the results of the World Summit on the Information Society (taking into account Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development), as well as enhancing social and economic empowerment of young people, aligning ITU activities in the area of tariffs and on issues related to economic and public policies for information and communication technology (ICT).
The 25th anniversary of the ITU-D’s establishment will be celebrated during WTDC-17.
Further information:
- World Telecommunication Development Conference 2017 http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Conferences/WTDC/WTDC17/Pages/default.aspx
