Highlights April 2024
22-26 April
Digital inclusion: Global
The global Girls in ICT Day celebrations took place in Manila, the Philippines, where girls and women participated in discussions and mentorship sessions and shared best practice strategies to encourage more women to pursue digital leadership roles.
A Girls in ICT workshop was held at ITU headquarters in Geneva, with active participation from students who discussed the opportunities and challenges faced by women in leadership roles.
ITU-hosted regional celebrations happened in Ethiopia, Kenya, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe; in Egypt, Iraq, and the State of Palestine; in India, Thailand and Vanuatu; in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan; in Brazil and Paraguay; and in Czechia.
New Members: Asia and Pacific
Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology (China) joins ITU-D as an Associate Member of Study Group 2. Founded in 2018, Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology (SSST) aims to provide internet services through its satellite constellation. It is a key player in the Shanghai Government's "G60" satellite constellation project, which aims to deploy numerous satellites as part of the city's strategic plan.
New Members: Asia and Pacific
Syniverse Technologies (China) joins ITU-D as a Sector Member. Syniverse is an American communications technology company with a focus on 5G roaming, communications platform as a service (CPaaS), A2P(Application-to-Person) Messaging, roaming clearing and settlement, Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), fraud prevention, mobile identity and authentication solutions, Internet of Things (IoT), Private Networks and other emerging technologies leveraged by global enterprises and telecommunication carriers.
New Members: Arab States
Experts Vision Consulting (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) joins ITU-D as a Sector Member. Experts Vision Consulting (EVC) is a leading Saudi company providing specialized consultancy in digital transformation, integrated corporate solutions, project & event management, smart cities, artificial intelligence, and crowd management.
New Members: Europe
RealTyme (Switzerland) joins ITU-D as a Sector Member. RealTyme SA is an innovative Swiss technology start-up that prioritizes people’s privacy and digital well-being. RealTyme’s secure collaboration platform enables businesses and individuals to create their own private communication networks with superior levels of personalised control and data privacy. Their minimalist approach in data storage and processing allows their clients to comply with high standards of privacy while offering a sustainable communication solution in the market.
New Members: Europe
Global Voice Group (Spain) joins ITU-D as a Sector Member. GVG was founded in 1988. GVG is a global provider of RegTech and Govtech solutions to governments and regulatory bodies. It processes billions of data sets, turning them into actionable information for government institutions, regulators, central banks, and revenue authorities.
15-19 April
Emergency Telecommunications: Arab States
A National Telecommunication Plan (NETP) Implementation & Early Warnings for All (EW4ALL) consultation workshop in Comoros adopted a multi-stakeholder approach for emergency response in Comoros. The NETP workshop served as a platform for knowledge sharing, collaboration, and strategic planning, with insights and recommendations aimed at strengthening Comoros' emergency telecommunications capabilities.
The primary objective of this workshop is to support the implementation of the ITU-developed model NETP for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, of which Comoros is a member state. Specifically, the workshop focused on identifying responsible entities and providing technical support for the successful implementation of the action items outlined in the NETP. Additionally, it aimed to support the Government of Comoros in implementing the NETP by offering a preliminary assessment on the early warning system (EWS) with particular attention to cell broadcast. The assessment will involve the development of a countrywide early warning system evaluation, including analysing policies, regulatory frameworks, and laws associated with the implementation of mobile EWS, in order to provide recommendations.
Environment: Global
ITU presented the key findings from the Global E-waste Monitor 2024 at a panel discussion at the World Circular Economy Forum 2024 in Brussels, organised by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Circular Electronics Partnership, focusing on measuring circularity in the electronics sector.
1-5 April
Capacity development: Asia and Pacific
The ITU Regional Office for Asia & the Pacific- in joint collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES), Juntendo University and WHO - conducted an Information Session on Healthy Aging in Thailand through ICT that focused on the digital health & literacy in the region alongside the importance of integrating its aging population with ICTs. This workshop further emphasized digital inclusion as an enabler for healthy aging.
Environment: Africa
The National E-waste Monitors examining the overall statistics of electronic and electrical equipment (EEE) placed on the market and e-waste generation in Botswana and in Namibia were launched. They discovered a consistent increase in e-waste generation from 1995 to 2020 in both countries. In Botswana, 2011 marked the year with the highest EEE placement on the market. Additionally, Namibia experienced a growth in recycling activities between 2018 and 2020, with e-waste recycling in 2020 showing a 26% increase compared to the previous year.