The proceedings of 4th World Telecommunication Policy Forum (WTPF-09) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) began in Lisbon on 22 April. Discussion at the event is centred on the future growth and development of information and communications technology (ICT), particularly with regard to the policies that determine the current environment of the ICT sector and guiding future global initiatives in the field of regulation and standardisation.
The main issues being debated at the WTPF-09 are:
- The implications of convergence and the emergence of new technologies;
- The transition to next generation networks (NGN), which allow free access and mobility directed at consistent and comprehensive services;
- Matters of public policy with respect to the Internet, including strategies for building confidence and security in the use of ICT;
- Regulation of international telecommunications.
The speeches made at the Forum's opening ceremony by the three speakers are now available online: the speeches of Mário Lino (Minister of Public Works, Transport and Communications), Hamadoun Touré (ITU Secretary General) and Viviane Reding (European Commissioner for Information Society and Media). The speech of the Head of the Portuguese delegation, José Amado da Silva (Chairman of ANACOM) is also available for consultation, as well as some of the speeches made during the morning and afternoon sessions.
This first day of the WTPF-09 was preceded, on 21 April, by the Strategic Dialogue on ICTs, which addressed the theme of ''Confronting the Crisis'', with sessions focusing on the effects of the crisis on ICT. A repeated call was made for a digital Marshall Plan, which had been previously announced by the ITU at the Connect Africa Summit, held in Kigali (Rwanda) in October 2007. It was also argued that the plan should be extended beyond the current crisis.
Consult:
- Speech given by Chairman of ANACOM, José Amado da Silva, on the first day of WTPF-09, 22 April 2009, Lisbon https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=923404
- Statements: World Telecommunication Policy Forum, 22-24 April http://www.itu.int/osg/csd/wtpf/wtpf2009/statements/index.html
Related information on ANACOM's website:
- 4th World Telecommunication Policy Forum - WTPF-09 https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=827738
