Recognizing WSIS Impacts

WTSA RESOLUTION 17 (Geneva, 1996; Montreal, 2000; Florianópolis, 2004; Johannesburg, 2008)

Telecommunication standardization in relation to the interests of developing countries

The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (Johannesburg, 2008),

• considering
  • the broad range of studies performed by the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) in developing technical, operational and tariff Recommendations,
• noting
  • a) the multifarious difficulties encountered by the developing countries in ensuring their effective and efficient participation in the work of ITU-T;
  • b) the decision by the ITU Council to provide free access to ITU-T Recommendations and the success of this initiative to benefit developing countries,
• recognizing
  • a) that the harmonious and balanced development of the worldwide telecommunication network is of mutual advantage to the developed and the developing countries, and the need to identify a mechanism for developing countries to participate in and contribute to the work of the ITU-T study groups, as well as the need to reduce the cost of equipment taking into account the needs and requirements of developing countries;
  • b) that there is still a large gap between developed and developing countries in the area of telecommunication standardization;
  • c) that regional preparatory meetings for the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA) have helped in identifying and coordinating regional views on issues considered to be of particular relevance to each region, and in developing common regional proposals for submission to WTSA;
  • d) that recent reports from the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) on the pilot project that made ITU-T Recommendations available free of charge online indicate its early success in assisting participation from developing countries in the standardization process,
• recalling
  • that one of the purposes of the Union is to promote international cooperation through the harmoniously integrated development of the worldwide telecommunication network for the benefit of humankind as a whole,
• taking account of
  • a) Nos. 190 and 196 of the ITU Convention, Resolution 25 (Rev. Antalya, 2006), § 5 of Annex 1 to Resolution 71 (Rev. Antalya, 2006), Resolution 123 (Rev. Antalya, 2006), Resolution 22 (Rev. Antalya, 2006), Resolution 136 (Antalya, 2006) and Resolution 137 (Antalya, 2006) of the Plenipotentiary Conference;
  • b) Resolutions 44 and 45 of this assembly,
• resolves
  • 1 to request the Director of TSB to cooperate with the ITU regional offices, including the possibility of holding ITU-T meetings in the regions;
  • 2 to request the Director of TSB to strengthen cooperation and coordination with the relevant regional organizations, in particular those of developing countries;
  • 3 subject to approval by the Council, to provide administrations of developing countries with free electronic copies of available documents, such as:
    • a) ITU handbooks, directives, etc., related to the understanding and implementation of ITU-T Recommendations, particularly with respect to planning, operation and maintenance of telecommunication networks;
    • b) the ITU collection of basic texts, to improve and enhance participation of developing countries in the standardization process,
• instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau
  • to provide, subject to a decision of the Council, the Telecommunication Development Bureau with all the necessary support with a view to:
  • • encouraging and increasing the participation of developing countries in telecommunication standardization activities;
  • • assisting and advising in the organization and holding of information meetings concerning the work of the ITU-T study groups;
  • • assisting developing countries with their studies in respect of their priority questions, such as, but not limited to, VoIP, mobile technology, multimedia, emergency and disaster relief, security of networks, next-generation networks (NGN), the transition from IPv4 to IPv6, triple and quadruple play and cybersecurity;
  • • encouraging and supporting the establishment and operation of flagship groups addressing the above questions;
  • • working with Sector Members, manufacturers, academia and research and development organizations in particular, on exchanging information on new technologies and requirements of developing countries, and on providing technical assistance to encourage the establishment of standardization programmes in academia and researchand development organizations in the field of information and communication technology;
  • • assisting developing countries in formulating draft Questions and in making proposals;
  • • developing standardization activities in the regional offices;
  • • launching a campaign to promote standardization activities in order to attract new Sector Members and Associates from developing countries;
  • • assisting developing countries in examining interconnection, numbering, naming, addressing and refiling, in accordance with ITU-T Recommendations;
  • • providing additional support to help bridge the standardization gap between the developed and the developing countries;
  • • continuing and consolidating the efforts on NGN deployment studies and standards-development activities, particularly those designed for rural areas and for bridging the digital divide and the development divide, including, for example, the upgrading of skills necessary for migration to NGN,
• further instructs the study groups
  • 1 to take appropriate steps to have studies carried out on questions connected with standardization which are identified by world telecommunication development conferences;
  • 2 to take account of the specific characteristics of the telecommunication environment of the developing countries in the process of establishing standards in the fields of planning, services, systems, operation, tariffs and maintenance, and to provide solutions/options relevantto developing countries wherever possible;
  • 3 to develop methods for increasing the awareness of ITU-T Recommendations, taking account of ways and means to increase usage of ITU-T Recommendations in developing countries;
  • 4 to continue liaising with study groups of the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector, where appropriate, when developing new or revised ITU-T Recommendations, on the specific needs and requirements of developing countries, in order to broaden the appeal and applicability of the Recommendations in those countries.