Her Excellency, Maria Luisa Hayem Brevé, Minister of Economy, Government of El Salvador,
Ms Laura Almirall, Representative UNHCR, UN Resident Coordinator (a.i),
Ms. Morela Ileana Valdez, Minister of Tourism,
Mr Manuel Aguilar, Superintendent of Telecommunications, Government of El Salvador,
Mr. Bruno Ramos, ITU Regional Director for the Americas,
Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good morning to you all, to those gathered here and those who are joining online. Welcome to the Regional Development Forum for the Americas, the first in this region after the World Telecommunication Development Conference held in 2022, in Kigali.
I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Government of El Salvador for hosting our Forum and activities this week.
This Regional Development Forum, or RDF as we refer to it in brief, is important for these three reasons:
- Using tech to impact people.
- Through tech, address planetary issues.
- Create prosperity for all.
To us, the RDF is not just another meeting, it is a meeting of parties that share a common vision based on concrete deliverables. We would have failed if we do not make an impact.
With 2.7 million still offline, it is of a great concern to ITU. We would not want anyone to be left offline.
This RDF is being held against the backdrop challenges as welll as opportunities.
The world is today struggling with the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the impact of climate change continues to increase, even as we still have multiple connectivity divides. Apart from urban-rural divide, the gender divide both in terms of connectivity and digital skills, we are grappling with divides between the developed and developing countries.
But against all this, there are great opportunities.
I would like us to recall the conclusions of the World Telecommunication Development Conference which adopted five priorities for the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector. Under the Partner2Connect Digital Development Coalition, to date we have 751 pledges valued at 30.6 billion USD. Out of these 142 are for the Americas and are valued at 9.8 billion USD.
We believe that digital technology has a lot to offer. This is reflected in ITU’s Strategic Objectives: Universal Connectivity and Meaningful Sustainable Digital Transformation. We continue in the advancement of tech and space developments. This will be a focus of ITU’s World Radio Conference (WRC-23) scheduled from 20 November – 15 December later in the year.
As ITU we have our attention on AI and other emerging technologies, given the opportunities that they bring with them. We are however conscious that tech should be working side by side with humans. We need fundamental principles to guide us.
This RDF is an opportune time to do genuine match making of the the Partner2Connect Digital Coalition pledges vis a vis the ICT development priorities of the Americas region, alongside needs of individual countries.
Our Regional Initiatives—adopted at the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference in Kigali in 2022—address specific telecommunication/ICT priority areas for the Americas region.
They are the governing structures—frames if you like—for our work in the region. The Regional Initiatives cover infrastructure development, digital inclusion, digital transformation and innovation ecosystems, enabling policy and regulatory environments. Partner2Connect can further advance our Regional Initiatives, as well.
We need to operationalize the current 751 pledges even as we also invite new ones.
I am optimistic that through this RDF, we will scale heights and achieve concrete win-win outcomes – implementable, impactful projects that we will oversee.
We already have an established track record with many projects in this region.
I’d like to mention just a few.
For example, in infrastructure development, we have supported community connectivity pilots in Barbados, spectrum management projects in Cuba and Ecuador.
We have been active in supporting enabling environments for digital transformation with country projects in the Dominican Republic and in Honduras. Regional programmes are on in the Central American countries, and we have been working on the Regional Single ICT Regulatory Framework for the Caribbean. You will hear about the cooperation between ANATEL Brazil and ITU later.
We have supported capacity building in cybersecurity in the Dominican Republic, Chile, Bermudas, Guyana, and the Bahamas.
Our Academy Training Centres are active in Brazil, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and the Bahamas. In our digital inclusion work, you will hear more about the DIGITAL KIT initiative and skills development this week.
Throughout the region, our work is a product of joining hands with partners, including other UN entities. ITU has promoted digital transformation under auspices of the new United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework Guidance – UNSCDF – for Dominican Republic. Here, in El Salvador, ITU provided expertise on Child Online Protection through the UNICEF country office.
Through Giga—the ITU-UNICEF initiative to connect all schools to the Internet—plans are underway to work with schools in Belize, Dominican Republic and in Trinidad and Tobago.
The Americas Girls Can Code initiative continues to expand in the Americas in countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico among others.
Young people and indigenous communities will also see important new digital skills programmes in this region and especially in the Gran Chaco region of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay.
We also continue to move forward with our programmes and add new initiatives such as supporting e-waste policy.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is a region that is very diverse.
We recognize that this is a diverse region with different levels of development, and in particular, the predisposition of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) which are vulnerable, and are facing particular situations of social, economic, and environmental constraints. We also have Land Locked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
In this respect, ITU's initiatives, programmes and projects are promoting the development of these countries as a priority, through the relevant Regional Initiatives.
For example, we have been involved in National Emergency Telecommunication Plan development for St. Kitts and Nevis, and disaster resilience assessments in Haiti, alongside many other projects.
Participation of these states in this RDF is of fundamental importance.
I am delighted that, for RDF Americas 2023, we have representatives from the Bahamas, Cuba, Dominican Republic, St Kitts and Nevis, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean Telecommunication Union, including the general participation of Dominica, Suriname, Belize, and the British Virgin Islands.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is time to join hands.
Going forward, I want us to have continuous engagement.
After this RDF there will be other key regional events this year, all serving as contact points for our plans and projects.
They include the ITU Policy and Economic Colloquium in Costa Rica in September. IPEC-23 will include the Regional Economic Dialogue, the ITU-T Study Group 3, and a training course on business planning for 5G networks in this region.
The 10th edition of Accessible Americas will take place in Varadero, Cuba, in November this year. Accessible Americas is our flagship regional event on ICT accessibility.
ITU is also looking forward to an upcoming regional change - the move of our Area Office from Honduras to Panama.
We thank the Government of Honduras for all its support to ITU and our new host - Panama.
Already this year we have convened key meetings—for example, the Global Symposium for Regulators—our premier conference for regulators designed to benefit all stakeholders here and globally.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am very grateful to the Government of El Salvador for making this Regional Development Forum possible.
This RDF will be instrumental in creating a formidable, unstoppable determination in this region.
We are at an inflexion point in our global commitment.
We must choose our path. It can’t be business as usual.
But, candidly, I am optimistic—because of digital and, because of you.
Digital is now centre stage.
Digital means game-changing advances.
We need universal connectivity as the fundamental digital proposition.
This region is a powerful region with big markets, strong players, massive resources and huge entrepreneurial strengths including female participation.
Digital transformation will have major impact here.
It will change lives and it will empower communities.
In partnership, we will plot a way forward together this week to do this.
Thank you!
