Recognizing WSIS Impacts

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PP Resolution 34


PP RESOLUTION 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010)

Assistance and support to countries in special need for rebuilding their telecommunication sector

The Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union (Guadalajara, 2010),

  • recalling
    • a) the noble principles, purpose and objectives enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as in the Declaration of Principles adopted by the World Summit on the Information Society;
    • b) the efforts of the United Nations to promote sustainable development;
    • c) the purposes of the Union as enshrined in Article 1 of the ITU Constitution,
  • recalling further
    • a) Resolution 127 (Marrakesh, 2002) of the Plenipotentiary Conference;
    • b) Resolution 160 (Antalya, 2006) of the Plenipotentiary Conference;
    • c) Resolution 161 (Antalya, 2006) of the Plenipotentiary Conference;
    • d) Resolutions 25 and 26 (Rev. Doha, 2006) and 51 and 57 (Doha, 2006) of the World Telecommunication Development Conference,
  • recognizing
    • a) that reliable telecommunication systems are indispensable for promoting the socio-economic development of countries, in particular of countries in special need, which are those having suffered from natural disasters, domestic conflicts or war;
    • b) that, under the present conditions and in the foreseeable future, these countries will not be able to ensure effective operation of their telecommunication sector without help from the international community, provided bilaterally or through international organizations,
  • noting
    • that the conditions of order and security sought by United Nations resolutions have been only partially achieved and hence Resolution 34 (Rev. Minneapolis, 1998) of the Plenipotentiary Conference has only been partially implemented,
  • resolves
    • that the special action undertaken by the Secretary-General and the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau, with specialized assistance from the ITU Radiocommunication Sector and the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector, should be continued or initiated in order to provide appropriate assistance and support to countries in special need referred to in the annex to this resolution in rebuilding their telecommunication sector,
  • calls upon Member States
    • to offer all possible assistance and support to the countries in special need, either bilaterally or through the special action of the Union referred to above, and, in any case, in coordination with that action,
  • instructs the Council
    • to allocate the necessary funds to the aforesaid action, within the financial limits set by the Plenipotentiary Conference, and proceed with its implementation,
  • instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau
    • 1 to carry out an assessment of the particular needs of each of these countries;
    • 2 to ensure adequate resource mobilization, including under the internal budget and the Information and Communication Technology Development Fund, for the implementation of the proposed actions,
  • instructs the Secretary-General
    • 1 to coordinate the activities carried out by the three Sectors of the Union in accordance with resolves above, to ensure that the Union’s action in favour of the countries in special need is as effective as possible, and to report annually on the matter to the Council;
    • 2 with the approval of the Council, upon request from the countries concerned, to update the annex to this resolution as needed.
  • ANNEX TO RESOLUTION 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010)
    • Afghanistan
      • As a result of the past 24 years of war in Afghanistan, the telecommunication system has been destroyed and needs urgent attention for its basic reconstruction.
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, appropriate assistance and support shall be provided to the Government of Afghanistan in rebuilding its telecommunication system.
    • Burundi, Timor Leste, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, appropriate assistance and support shall be provided to these countries in rebuilding their telecommunication networks.
    • Democratic Republic of the Congo
      • The basic telecommunication infrastructure of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been severely damaged by the conflicts and wars from which the country has suffered for more than a decade.
      • As part of the reform of the telecommunication sector undertaken by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, involving the separation of the operating and regulatory functions, two regulatory bodies have been instituted along with a basic telecommunication network, which requires adequate financial resources in order to be built.
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, appropriate assistance and support shall be provided to the Democratic Republic of the Congo for rebuilding its basic telecommunication network.
    • Iraq
      • The telecommunication infrastructure in the Republic of Iraq has been destroyed by two and a half decades of war and part of the systems currently in use remains antiquated through long years of use.
      • Iraq has not received appropriate assistance from ITU due to the security conditions it is experiencing.
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, Iraq shall continue to be supported in order to pursue rebuilding and overhauling its telecommunication infrastructure, establishing institutions, developing human resources and establishing tariffs, by setting up training operations inside and outside Iraqi territory as necessary, seconding experts to address the shortfall in expertise in some areas, meeting requests from the Iraqi Administration for the required specialists and providing other forms of assistance, including technical assistance.
    • Lebanon
      • Lebanon’s telecommunication facilities have been severely damaged due to wars in that country.
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, Lebanon shall be provided with appropriate assistance and support in rebuilding its telecommunication network. As Lebanon has not received any financial assistance, it shall continue to be supported within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference with a view to pursuing work for Lebanon to obtain the necessary financial assistance.
    • Somalia
      • The telecommunication infrastructure in the Somali Democratic Republic has been completely destroyed by a decade and half of war and, in addition, the regulatory framework in the country needs to be re-established.
      • Somalia has not benefited adequately from the Union’s assistance over a long period due to war in the country and lack of government.
      • Within the framework of Resolution 34 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010) of this conference, and using funds allocated to the programme of assistance for the least developed countries, a special initiative shall be launched, aimed at providing assistance and support to Somalia, in rebuilding and modernizing its telecommunication infrastructure, re-establishing a well-equipped ministry of telecommunications and establishing institutions, and developing telecommunication/information and communication technology policy, legislation and regulation, including a numbering plan, spectrum management, tariff and human resource capacity building, and all other necessary forms of assistance.

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