Recognizing WSIS Impacts

PP RESOLUTION 30 (Rev. Guadalajara, 2010)

Special measures for the least developed countries, small island developing states, landlocked developing countries and countries with economies in transition

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

• considering
  • United Nations resolutions on programmes of action for the least developed countries (LDCs), small island developing states (SIDS), landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) and countries with economies in transition,
• recognizing
  • the importance of telecommunications/information and communication technologies (ICTs) for the development of the countries concerned,
• having noted
  • a) former Resolution 49 (Doha 2006) of the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC), on special measures for LDCs and SIDS;
  • b) Resolution 16 (Rev. Hyderabad, 2010) of WTDC and the Hyderabad Action Plan, which provide for extending these measures to include LDCs, SIDS, LLDCs and countries with economies in transition;
  • c) Programme 5 of the Hyderabad Action Plan for LDCs, countries in special need, emergency telecommunications and climate-change adaptation,
• concerned
  • a) that the number of LDCs remains high despite the progress that has been made in recent years and that it is necessary to address the situation;
  • b) that the challenges confronting LDCs, SIDS, LLDCs and countries with economies in transition continue to pose a threat to the development agenda of these countries;
  • c) that LDCs, SIDS and LLDCs are vulnerable to devastation caused by natural disasters and lack the resources needed to respond effectively to such disasters,
• aware
  • that improvement of the telecommunication networks in these countries will give an impetus towards social and economic recovery and overall development, and provide the opportunity to create knowledge societies,
• instructs the Secretary-General and the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau
  • 1 to continue to review the state of telecommunication/ICT services in LDCs, SIDS, LLDCs and countries with economies in transition, so identified by the United Nations and needing special measures for the development of telecommunications/ICTs, and to identify areas of critical weakness requiring priority action;
  • 2 to propose to the ITU Council concrete measures intended to bring about genuine improvements and provide effective assistance to these countries, from the Special Voluntary Programme for Technical Cooperation, the Union’s own resources and other sources of finance;
  • 3 to work towards providing the necessary administrative and operational structure for identifying the needs of these countries and for proper administration of the resources appropriated for LDCs, SIDS, LLDCs and countries with economies in transition, which account for nearly half of the number of developing countries in the Union;
  • 4 to propose new and innovative measures that may generate additional funds to be used for telecommunication/ICT development in these countries, in order to get benefits from the opportunities that financial mechanisms offer for addressing ICT for development issues, as stated in the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society;
  • 5 to report annually on this matter to the Council,
• instructs the Council
  • 1 to consider the above-mentioned reports and take appropriate action so that the Union may continue to display its keen interest and cooperate actively in the development of telecommunication/ICT services in these countries;
  • 2 to make appropriations for this purpose from the Special Voluntary Programme for Technical Cooperation, the Union’s own resources and any other sources of finance, and promote partnerships among all stakeholders in this regard;
  • 3 to keep the situation under constant review and to report on this matter to the next plenipotentiary conference,
• encourages least developed countries, small island developing states, landlocked developing countries and countries with economies in transition
  • to continue giving high priority to telecommunication/ICT activities and projects that promote overall socio-economic development, by adopting technical cooperation activities funded from bilateral or multilateral sources, as this will be of benefit to the wider population.