Archived Newsroom • Press Release |
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ITU Plenipotentiary wraps up with broad agreement on core issues
Delegates approve Financial and Strategic plans, reinforce Union’s mandate in
development,
standards-making and global management of radio frequency resources
Guadalajara, Mexico, 22 October 2010
—
ITU’s 18th ITU Plenipotentiary Conference draws to a
close today with delegates agreeing on ITU’s essential
role in several key areas. ITU’s mandate has been
strengthened in bridging the digital divide, strategies
to accelerate broadband roll-out, and implementing the
outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society,
and extending its involvement in areas such as better
use of information and communication technologies to
manage climate change and disaster response; conformance
and interoperability; and accessibility for persons with
disabilities.
A last minute compromise saw consensus on a number of
key Resolutions on Internet issues. The agreements
strengthen and underline ITU’s commitment to work with
the Internet community and extend the benefits of the
Internet to all global citizens.
The Conference also agreed on ITU’s Strategic Plan
2012-2015, and adopted the Financial Plan for the same
period. Both will help the Union implement the decisions
of the conference during the next four years until the
2014 Plenipotentiary.
ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun Touré told delegates that
the Guadalajara conference had been one of the most
challenging in the Union’s 145-year history: “I came to
this 18th Plenipotentiary Conference with news of the
extraordinary progress that had been made in ICT
development in the space of just four years,” he said.
“I am absolutely confident that when we meet again, in
four years’ time, I will be able to report even more
dramatic progress. And that this progress will be very
much due to the work that has been done here, by you, in
Guadalajara.
“ITU will continue to work with our Member States and
Sector Members − and indeed stakeholders across the
broader ICT sector − to face the changes in the ICT
environment; to cooperate with our membership; and to
protect the all-important principle of multilateralism
and cooperation among the international community in the
modern world,” he said.
The Conference met for three weeks from 4-22 October
at the Guadalajara Expo centre under the accomplished
chairmanship of Mr Fernando Borjón of Mexico. “Over the
past three weeks we have found much common ground and
strengthened consensus on many of the fundamentals,”
said Mr Borjón. “While negotiations have often been
tough, I have been inspired by countries’ and regions’
teamwork, and their willingness to fulfill the promise
of access to information and communication technologies
for all.”
Mr Borjón went on to praise delegates for their diligence and their staying
power, recognizing that many were sitting through weekend and evening sessions
from as early as the end of the first week of deliberations. “Plenipotentiary
delegates showed openness in achieving consensus on extremely complex issues
such as Internet public policy and international telecommunication regulations,
as well as granting enhanced participation to Palestine as an ITU observer,” Mr
Borjón said. “At the beginning of the conference, we faced a very long and
arduous agenda. It is testament to this organization’s strength and spirit of
internationalism that we have reached common agreement.”
The conference, which was hosted by Mexico’s Ministry of Communications and
Transport, welcomed a total of 2,022 registered participants and observers from
167 ITU Member States, 42 Sector Members and observer organizations, including
over 70 Ministers, 26 Deputy Ministers, and 35 ambassadors, making it the
biggest event of its kind ever held in the city of Guadalajara.
It was opened on Monday 4 October by the President of
Mexico Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, who was joined by Mr
Juan Francisco Molinar Horcasitas, Minister of
Communications and Transport, Mr Emilio González Márquez,
Governor of the State of Jalisco, Mr Jorge Aristóteles
Sandoval Díaz, Mayor of Guadalajara, and other
dignitaries.
Main Outcomes and Achievements
The Plenipotentiary Conference formalized the team of
elected officials of the Union at a swearing-in ceremony
on Thursday 14 November. Dr Hamadoun Touré was handed
his contract extension as Secretary-General, along with
Deputy Secretary-General Houlin Zhao and TSB Director
Malcolm Johnson. New appointees Mr François Rancy and
Brahima Sanou received their letters of appointment. All
will officially commence their terms of office on 1
January 2011.
For earlier press releases on the elections, see
http://www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/newsroom/press-releases.html
Key Resolutions
As the supreme organ of ITU, Plenipotentiary Conferences are held every four years. Key Resolutions taken at this year’s event included:
- The need for special measures to assist
Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
and Landlocked Developing Countries
(LLDCs), in keeping with the Hyderabad
Action Plan agreed by the World
Telecommunication Development Conference
in June 2010
- The broadening of the Union’s membership
base by opening Sector membership to
academic and research institutions at a
reduced annual cost of CHF 3,975
- A new role for ITU as a global centre for technical conformance and
interoperability assessment, testing,
promotion and training, designed
particularly to assist developing
countries
- The enhanced use of ICTs in tackling
climate change
- The stepping up of ITU’s activities in the
area of emergency communications and
humanitarian assistance
- New rules on admission of Sector members
from developing countries, including a
reduction of fees
- Measures to help prevent the illicit use
and abuse of telecommunication networks
through unauthorized calling and routing
practices
- New activities to gather and disseminate
information concerning exposure to
electromagnetic fields, in cooperation
with other specialist organizations
- The scope and role of the upcoming World
Conference on International
Telecommunications, planned for November
2012 to address the potential need for a
review of the International
Telecommunication Regulations
- The need to put in place concrete
strategies to stimulate deployment of
broadband networks, particularly in
developing countries
- Efforts to bridge the standardization gap
between developed and developing
countries, to help technical experts
from the developing world play a more
active role in ITU standards development
activities
- Activities to promote digital inclusion for
indigenous peoples
- The decision to make some core ITU
technical publications and all technical
standards (Recommendations) developed by
ITU’s Radiocommunication Sector
available online at no charge
- A new model for ITU Telecom World events,
which from 2011 will be held annually,
alternating between a fixed venue
awarded via competitive bid, and
alternative venues awarded via
competitive bid, attempting to respect
the principle of geographical rotation
- ITU’s ongoing role in implementing the
outcomes and action lines of WSIS
- Assistance and support to Palestine in
rebuilding its telecommunication
networks, and enhanced rights of
participation as observer in future ITU
meetings and conferences
- The need to assist developing nations with
migration to IPv6 addressing
- The decision to create a group to work on
stabilizing the Constitution and
Convention of the Union, with a view to
creating a single coherent instrument
subject to ratification by Member States
that would not change at each
Plenipotentiary Conference
- ITU’s ongoing role in organizing the work
on technical aspects of
telecommunication networks to support
the Internet
- Improved Human Resources management and
development within ITU, with a focus on
more training and skills enhancement,
and with providing ITU staff with clear
career paths
- The overall assessment of implementation of
the outcomes of the World Summit on the
Information Society
- The creation of a new Independent
Management Advisory Committee
Other discussions focused on:
- Enhanced cooperation among the membership on international public policy issues related to the internet
- ITU’s ongoing role in global cybersecurity activities and initiatives
- Strengthening ITU’s regional presence to enhance the effectiveness of ITU programmes and activities
- Preparations for the next Plenipotentiary Conference in 2014, which will be held in the Republic of Korea.
An extraordinary session of ITU Council held on Friday
22 October elected Fernando Borjón as Chairman of ITU
Council 2011, and Ahmet Cavusoglu, Turkey, as
Vice-Chairman.
ITU Governing Bodies and Boards
The number of ITU Council Members countries increased from 46 to 48 at this
Plenipotentiary Conference, reflecting ITU’s growing membership. ITU Council is
the governing body that acts on behalf of the Plenipotentiary during the
intervening years between Plenipotentiaries, meeting annually at ITU
headquarters in Geneva. Council members elected at PP-10 were:
- Region A (Americas – 9 seats): Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Paraguay, United States, Venezuela
- Region B (Western Europe – 8 seats): France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey
- Region C (Eastern Europe – 5 seats): Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Poland, Russian Federation, Romania
- Region D (Africa - 13 seats): Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
- Region E (Asia and Australasia – 13 seats): Australia, Bangladesh, China, Korea (Republic of), India, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates
PP-10 also elected the members of the new Radio Regulations Board, which
approves technical criteria used by the Radiocommunication Bureau in the
application of the Radio Regulations. They are (in alphabetical order by name):
- Region A (Americas): Mr Ricardo Luis Terán (Argentina), Ms Julie Napier Zoller (United States)
- Region B (Western Europe): Mr Alfredo Magenta (Italy), Mr Mindaugas Zilinskas (Lithuania)
- Region C (Eastern Europe): Mr Baiysh Nurmatov (Kyrgyz Republic), Mr Victor Strelets (Russian Federation)
- Region D (Africa): Mr Mustapha Bessi (Morocco), Mr Stanley Kibe (Kenya), Mr Simon Koffi (Côte d’Ivoire)
- Region E (Asia and Australasia): Mr Ali R. Ebadi (Malaysia), Mr P.K. Garg (India), Mr Yashuhiko Ito (Japan)
Outgoing Directors Mr Valery Timofeev (Radiocommunication Bureau) and Mr Sami
Al Basheer Al Morshid (Telecommunication Development Bureau) received the ITU
Medal and Certificate in recognition of their work. Outgoing members of the
Radio Regulations Board were also awarded the ITU Medal and Certificate. They
were:
- Mr Robert W. Jones (Canada)
- Mr Hassan Lebbadi (Morocco)
- Ms Martine Limodin (France)
- Mr Shahzada Alam Malik (Pakistan)
- Mr Wladyslaw Moron (Poland)
- Mr Shola Taylor (Nigeria)
- Mr Aboubakar Zourmba (Cameroon)
The Plenipotentiary Conference will close later today with the signing of the
Final Acts, which contain amendments to the Constitution and Convention of the
Union.
Selected archived sessions of the PP-10 event can be viewed via webcast at:
www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/newsroom/webcast/
Photos can be downloaded at:
www.flickr.com/photos/itupictures/collections/72157625043648930/
To view PP-10 Daily Highlights, go to:
www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/newsroom/highlights/
Video footage from the meeting and special side events is available at:
www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/newsroom/videos/
A wide range of background information and news from the event is available on the PP-10 Newsroom at:
www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/newsroom/
For a list of updates from the event, visit the PP-10 Newslog at:
www.itu.int/osg/blog/CategoryView,category,PP-10.aspx
For a full list of speakers and policy statements, see:
www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/statements/list.html
For further information, please contact:
Sarah Parkes
Senior Media Relations Officer, ITU
In Guadalajara
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+52 33 38849 573 |
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+52 1 331 2318137 |
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Sarah.Parkes@itu.int |
In Geneva (from 3 November)
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+41 22 730 6135 |
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+41 79 599 1439 |
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pressinfo@itu.int |
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Toby Johnson
Senior Communications Officer, ITU
In Guadalajara
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+52 33 38849 573 |
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+52 1 331 1049512 |
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toby.johnson@itu.int |
In Geneva (from 1 November)
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+41 22 730 5877 |
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+41 79 249 4868 |
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pressinfo@itu.int |
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In Geneva
Sanjay Acharya
Chief, Media Relations and Public Information, ITU
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+41 22 730 5046 |
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+41 79 249 4861 |
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Sanjay.acharya@itu.int |
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