21 September 2014: The Broadband Commission for Digital Development discussed the power of broadband internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) in the post-2015 development agenda, during its tenth meeting, in New York, US, on 21 September 2014. Participants also noted the role of ICTs and connectivity in providing health services, including to addressing the Ebola crisis.
Irina Bokova, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Director-General, encouraged greater advocacy to raise awareness of the power of broadband in the post-2015 development agenda, highlighting the need to embed ICTs in future goals and targets. Bokova noted UNESCO’s work in mobile learning, within the Global Partnership for Girls and Women’s Education, as well as the UNESCO conference on ICTs and persons with disabilities, convening in India in November 2014.
Hamadoun I. Touré, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), said broadband is universally recognized as a “vital tool for social and economic development,” and it is unacceptable that 90% of people in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) remain unconnected. Touré said connectivity is “the most powerful tool mankind has ever had at its disposal to bridge development gaps in areas like health, education, environmental management and gender empowerment.”
An annual report by the Broadband Commission, ‘The State of Broadband 2014: Broadband for All,’ was launched during the meeting. The report provides a global snapshot of broadband network access and affordability, with country-by-country data measuring broadband access against targets on: making broadband policy universal; making broadband affordable; and connecting homes to broadband.
The Broadband Commission for Digital Development was set up in 2010 by UNESCO and ITU in response to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s call to step up UN efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Commission aims to boost the importance of broadband on the international policy agenda and it defines ways in which countries can achieve the MDGs in cooperation with the private sector. Members include CEOs and industry leaders, senior policy-makers and government representatives, international agencies, academia and organizations concerned with development.
Bokova proposed to hold the next meeting of the Broadband Commission at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, in Spring 2015. [UNESCO Press Release] [ITU Press Release] [Broadband Commission Website] [Publication: The State of Broadband 2014: Broadband for All]