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#wtis16: ICT key players convene in Botswana for the 14th WTIS conference
The three day event is organized by the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and hosted…
The three day event is organized by the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and hosted by the Government of Botswana.
In his opening remarks, Brahima Sanou, Director ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau said, ”The WTIS has become a very influential forum. Ourwork is not limited to indicators on telecommunication networks, and ICT access and use. Our work is highly relevant outside the ICT community, as ICTs is helping accelerate the attainment of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and their 169 targets.”
He further added, “While every year, every month, every week and every day, we are making progress, still over half of the world’s population is not using the Internet. “
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In his speech at the same event, H.E. Mr Onkokame Kitso Mokaila, Minister of Transport and Communications, Botswana commended the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for organizing the symposium that focuses on measuring the development and most importantly the impact of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) on our daily lives.
“The Government of Botswana, remains committed to the collective implementation of the ITU’s programme of action on ICTs and the development of ICT services. Measurement is key to determine whether you are achieving your goals or not. There is broad consensus on the impact of ICT on our society in general and the continued development on this area has significantly impacted our lives,” he said.
He further stated, “The relationship between ICTs and development took an important dimension following the adoption of the United Nations ‘Millennium Development Goals’ (MDGs), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). It became visibly clear that successful economies are leveraging ICTs in all sectors for development.”
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Mr. Onkokame Kitso added that Botswana had made huge strides in using ICT in its development agenda. This is largely due to its massive investment in infrastructure, information systems and human capacity because the country viewed that investment in ICT is not a luxury but a development imperative.
WTIS, first held in 1996, and annually since 2005, has evolved to become the main global forum for telecommunication and information society measurements.
WTIS brings together delegates from all over the world, ranging from government ministers and business leaders to regulators, national statisticians, lead academics and ICT data producers and analysts.
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The objective of the Symposium is to debate new and emerging issues on ICT data and statistics and their role in policy making, to provide strategic guidance to the international community on information society trends and future monitoring. It also develops standards and methodologies for producing high-quality data and statistical indicators.
The 13th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS) took place in Hiroshima, Japan, from 30 November to 2 December 2015.
WTIS-2015 featured discussions on pertinent topics such as big data from the ICT sector and the data revolution, progress in measuring the impact of ICT, ICT indicators and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) monitoring framework and measuring ICT innovation, alongside new developments in data visualization.
The results of the work of the Expert Group on Telecommunication/ICT Indicators (EGTI) and the Expert Group on Household Indicators (EGH) were also presented for adoption by the WTIS-2015.