Global Symposium for Regulators (GSR) 2021
Network of Women For WTDC (NOW4WTDC): 'Promoting Women's Leadership in the ICT Regulatory And Policy Space'
Opening Remarks
Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Director
ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau
24 June 2021
Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening everyone.
I am so thrilled to join you for this Network of Women for WTDC side event at GSR-21.
As you know, we started the Network of Women to boost women's representation in leadership positions in the structures that make up ITU-D, such as committee chairs, working group chairs and other management roles related to processes for WTDC and future conferences.
With the Network of Women for WTDC, we aim to empower women for larger responsibilities in their delegations, and really leverage the innovative ideas they bring to the table in our collective mission to connect the unconnected.
Our vision for the Network in fact goes beyond WTDC, to transform the current, unacceptably low level of women's leadership across the ICT industry as a whole.
It is not surprising that if we ask any group of people to quickly name a great tech leader, most will respond from a mental shortlist of 'the usual suspects', who would be mostly men. Data from March earlier this year showed us that only 13% of ICT Ministers were women, and similarly, a mere 13% of Regulators were women.
Gender balance and increasing diversity in digital development is not optional— inclusivity in all its aspects is a precursor to getting meaningful connectivity to all.
I am so pleased that we have now successfully launched this network in each of our regions. We are in the process of selecting an advisory board that will comprise of a Chair and 6 co-chairs from each region, to ensure we capture important regional nuances.
Many of you probably know from personal experience, that mentors and role models play an unparalleled role in guiding young women and instilling confidence in them for the leadership positions of tomorrow. For this reason, we have integrated a Mentorship programme to be a vital component of the Network.
We announced the call for mentors at the side event we held during the TDAG meeting last month – if you haven't signed up yet, it's not too late! The registration form is still open on the Network of Women for WTDC website.
We are now also launching the call for mentees. I encourage you to go online and sign up so that you can be matched up with a mentor.
Consistent conversation and engagement are necessary for the network to provide its intended support. For this reason, we are planning interactive dialogues that will take place over the next months. I encourage all of you to actively participate in these dialogues and lend your ideas. The team will keep you informed on the schedules.
In this session, we will hear interesting perspectives from representatives from a regulator and the private sector, on how we can all work together to promote women's leadership in the sector.
I'm sure you are looking forward to hearing from them as much as I am, so without further ado, let me wish you an inspirational session ahead.
