This PDF is provided by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Library & Archives Service from an officially produced electronic file.

Ce PDF a été élaboré par le Service de la bibliothèque et des archives de l'Union internationale des télécommunications (UIT) à partir d'une publication officielle sous forme électronique.

Este documento PDF lo facilita el Servicio de Biblioteca y Archivos de la Unión Internacional de Telecomunicaciones (UIT) a partir de un archivo electrónico producido oficialmente.

ﺟﺮﻯ ﺇﻟﻜﺘﺮﻭﻧﻲ ﻣﻠﻒ ﻣﻦ ﻣﺄﺧﻮﺫﺓ ﻭﻫﻲ ﻭﺍﻟﻤﺤﻔﻮﻇﺎﺕ، ﺍﻟﻤﻜﺘﺒﺔ ﻗﺴﻢ ، (ITU) ﻟﻼﺗﺼﺎﻻﺕ ﺍﻟﺪﻭﻟﻲ ﺍﻻﺗﺤﺎﺩ ﻣﻦ ﻣﻘﺪﻣﺔ PDF ﺑﻨﺴﻖ ﺍﻟﻨﺴﺨﺔ ﻫﺬﻩ .ﺭﺳﻤﻴﺎ ً◌ ﺇﻋﺪﺍﺩﻩ

本PDF版本由国际电信联盟（ITU）图书馆和档案服务室提供。来源为正式出版的电子文件。

Настоящий файл в формате PDF предоставлен библиотечно-архивной службой Международного союза электросвязи (МСЭ) на основе официально созданного электронного файла.

© International Telecommunication Union INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION UNION No. 4 May 2011

www.itu.int/itunews Enabling Your E-Licensing Strategy

Tomorrow‘s Communication Designed Today System Solutions and Expertise for Radio Spectrum Management and Network Planning & Engineering.

www.LStelcom.com World Telecommunication and Information Society Day Better life in rural communities with information and communication technologies Dr Hamadoun I. Touré

ITU Secretary-General Martin ITU/V. Editorial

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are ITU is committed to connecting the world and en- reshaping the way the world communicates, creating suring that the benefi ts of ICT reach the remotest cor- opportunities for a better life through long-term devel- ners as well as the most vulnerable communities. We opment, not least among the most disadvantaged sec- have successfully developed standards for ICT, managed tions of our society. Today, ICT are the powerhouses of vital spectrum and orbital resources, mobilized the nec- the global economy, offering real solutions to the chal- essary technical, human and fi nancial resources, and lenge of generating sustainable economic growth and strengthened emergency response in the aftermath of prosperity. ICT also act as catalysts in accelerating pro- devastating natural disasters. gress towards meeting the United Nations Millennium Now, with more than 5.3 billion mobile subscriptions Development Goals. worldwide, is the moment to deliver content through This year, as we celebrate ITU’s 146th anniversary, enhanced broadband access, establishing information we focus on the world’s rural communities in our quest and communication highways that will feed both rural to connect the remotest regions to the benefi ts of ICT. communities and urban centres with the means to meet In the rural context, ICT and related e-applications en- their development goals. ITU’s leadership role in the hance opportunities to generate income and combat Broadband Commission for Digital Development seeks poverty, hunger, ill-health and illiteracy, and are key to to accelerate the roll-out of this state-of-the-art tech- improving governance and rural services. nology, with the aim of establishing a universally acces- Half the world’s population (close to 3.5 billion sible knowledge-based information society. people) resides in rural districts or remote communi- Let us celebrate World Telecommunication and ties. They are the deprived cousins of the world’s urban Information Society Day this year by focusing on ru- citizens. Among them are as many as 1.4 billion of the ral communities, knowing that by connecting people world’s extremely poor people, who are also among the around the world and harnessing the full potential of least connected to the benefi ts of ICT. We cannot allow ICT, we can all enjoy a more productive, peaceful and this situation to continue. better life.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 1 Laureates of the 2011 ITU Award Connecting communities WSIS Forum 2011

Cover photo: Getty Images/A. Cavalli

World Telecommunication and ISSN 1020–4148 Information Society Day www.itu.int/itunews 10 issues per year Copyright: © ITU 2011 Better life in rural communities with information and communication technologies Editor-in-Chief: Patricia Lusweti Art Editor: Christine Vanoli Circulation Assistant: R. Soraya Abino-Quintana Editorial 1 Dr Hamadoun I. Touré, ITU Secretary-General Printed in Geneva by the ITU Printing and Dispatch Division. Material from this publication may be reproduced in full or in part, provided that it is accompanied 4 Message from United Nations Secretary-General by the acknowledgement: ITU News. Ban Ki-moon

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not engage ITU. The designations ITU World Telecommunication and employed and presentation of material Information Society Award in this publication, including maps, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of 5 ITU honours Tarja Halonen, Sam Pitroda and Kristin Peterson ITU concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or concerning the delimitations of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of Meet the laureates specifi c companies or of certain products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by ITU in preference 6 Tarja Halonen to others of a similar nature that are not President of the Republic of Finland mentioned. 7 Sam Pitroda Editorial offi ce/Advertising information: Adviser to the Prime Minister Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations Tel.: +41 22 730 5234/6303 Fax: +41 22 730 5935 8 Kristin Peterson E-mail: [email protected] Co-Founder and Chief Executive Offi cer of Inveneo

Mailing address: International Telecommunication Union Digital Finland Place des Nations 10 CH–1211 Geneva 20 (Switzerland)

Subscriptions: Tel.: +41 22 730 6303 Fax: +41 22 730 5935 E-mail: [email protected]

2 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Contents Laureates of the 2011 ITU Award Connecting communities WSIS Forum 2011

Connecting communities

India’s profi les of progress 17 Common Service Centres Taking mobile banking to the people

Inveneo 23 Empowering rural and underserved communities The Haiti Rural Broadband initiative

WSIS Stocktaking 32 ICT success stories highlight innovation and sustainability A public–private partnership for sustainable development in Africa The École des Sables

38 WSIS Forum 2011

40 Agenda

ICT in the United Arab Emirates 43 Delivering on WSIS goals

48 ITU at a glance WSIS Forum 2011 Leaders converge on Geneva to re-energize the development agenda Mobile miracle continues to transform lives in the world’s least developed countries

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 3 World Telecommunication and Information Society Day Message UN Photo/Mark Garten

Message from United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

Information and communication technologies have schools to information and knowledge on the Internet, transformed the global landscape. They power the bring telemedicine to far-fl ung rural health centres, world economy and have become the great enablers provide accurate weather information to farmers and of modern society, helping people communicate across fi shermen, and supply up-to-date market information to distances and cultural divides, facilitating trade and producers. commerce, and providing access to critical resources The International Telecommunication Union and its such as health care and education. partners continue striving to connect the world. I wel- Recent events around the world, in particular in come these efforts, especially the drive to bring broad- North Africa and the Middle East, have also highlighted band to every community. Broadband telecommuni- the catalytic role that mobile phones and social media cations will make it possible to deliver content to the can play in galvanizing public opinion against repres- remotest rural districts. sion. And in the aftermath of natural disasters that have As we bridge the digital divide, we narrow the struck with greater frequency and force, we have seen chasm that separates those with and without access how these technologies are a vital part of the aid re- to information and knowledge, thereby broadening sponse, establishing lines of communication that can opportunities for a better life. Greater access means save lives, reunite families and help emergency relief earlier achievement of the United Nations Millennium reach people in need. Development Goals. It means less poverty and hunger, The theme of this year’s World Telecommunication and more environmental sustainability. And it translates and Information Society Day, Better life in rural commu- into greater equality and empowerment for women and nities with information and communication technolo- the underprivileged. gies, highlights the need to harness the full potential On this World Telecommunication and Information of these technologies for the benefi t of the world’s Society Day, let us resolve to connect rural communities rural population. Of the developing world’s 1.4 billion and the entire world to the digital revolution as a means extremely poor people, 70 per cent live in rural areas. of achieving our development goals and fostering peace Their lives can be transformed as we connect village and prosperity for all.

4 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 ITU World Telecommunication and Information Society Award Meet the laureates

ITU honours Tarja Halonen, Sam Pitroda and Kristin Peterson

ITU marked its 146th anniversary and World providing a better life for humanity, particularly in rural Telecommunication and Information Society Day on communities. “As we focus on extending the reach of 17 May 2011 by honouring three contributors to the ICT to the remotest rural communities, it is my pleasure digital revolution. to honour those who have dedicated themselves to har- Announcing the Awards, ITU Secretary-General nessing the full potential of ICT so that we can all enjoy Hamadoun I. Touré lauded the dedication of the three a more productive, peaceful and better life,” Dr Touré eminent laureates in promoting ICT as a means of said.

President Tarja Halonen of Finland Telecommunication innovator Kristin Peterson is CEO of Inveneo, is co-chairman of the High- Sam Pitroda is Adviser to the a non-profi t social enterprise level United Nations Panel on Prime Minister of India on Public that takes computers, Internet Global Sustainability, supporting Information Infrastructure and access and telephony to rural and sustainable sourcing, access to Innovations, and Chairman of the underserved communities in the education, and improving maternal National Innovation Council of developing world. Inveneo offers health in low-income countries. India. He is largely responsible cost-effi cient and sustainable President Halonen has helped for India’s telecommunications solutions that include ultra-low- to make Finland a centre for revolution and has campaigned for power computing and long-distance ICT innovation and productivity, bridging the global digital divide. Mr wireless connectivity, partnering especially in the mobile phone Pitroda has linked technology with with local entrepreneurs for in- sector. better delivery of services for the country deployment. underprivileged.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 5 ITU World Telecommunication and Information Society Award

Shutterstock Meet the laureates ce fi President’s of President’s

Tarja Halonen President of the Republic of Finland

Tarja Halonen is the 11th President Deputy-Chair of the Legal Affairs of Europe’s Committee of Wise of Finland and the country’s fi rst Committee (1991–1995) and Chair Persons (1998–1999). female Head of State. She acceded of the Grand Committee (1995). She has served as co-Chair to offi ce on 1 March 2000, and was In parallel, Ms Halonen served fi ve of the World Commission on the re-elected in 2006. terms on the Helsinki City Council Social Dimension of Globalization Ms Halonen was born in Helsinki (1977–1996). (2002–2004) following her appoint- on 24 December 1943. She gradu- Tarja Halonen served as Minister ment by the International Labour ated from the University of Helsinki of Social Affairs and Health (1987– Organization (ILO). She has chaired in 1968 with a Master of Laws de- 1990), Minister of Justice (1990– the Council of Women World gree. From 1970 and throughout 1991), Minister of Foreign Affairs Leaders since March 2009. And in her political career (which began in (1995–2000) and Minister respon- August 2010, she was appointed 1974) she worked as a lawyer for sible for Nordic cooperation (1989– co-Chair of the UN Secretary- the Central Organization of Finnish 1991). During her time as Foreign General’s High-Level Panel on Trade Unions. Minister, Finland held for the fi rst Global Sustainability. Tarja Halonen joined the Social time the Presidency of the European Tarja Halonen has built her po- Democratic party in 1971, and in Union from July to December 1999. litical career on promoting human 1974 was appointed Parliamentary Tarja Halonen has also played an rights, social justice and equality. Secretary to the Prime Minister. active role at the Council of Europe, Under her presidency, Finland be- She was elected to Parliament fi rst as Deputy-Chair of the Finnish came the fi rst country in the world in 1979, and subsequently re- Delegation to the Parliamentary to make broadband access a legal elected four times. In Parliament Assembly (1991–1995) and later right. she served as Chair of the Social in the Ministerial Committee. She Affairs Committee (1984–1987), was also a member of the Council

6 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 ITU World Telecommunication and Information Society Award

Meet the laureates Shutterstock ce of Adviser to PM/India fi Of

Sam Pitroda Adviser to the Prime Minister Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations

Sam Pitroda is an internationally also the founder and fi rst Chairman several initiatives focused on open respected development thinker, of India´s Telecom Commission. In government, democratizing infor- policy-maker, telecom inventor and these roles, he helped revolution- mation and inclusive growth. He entrepreneur who has spent over ize India’s development policies and also chairs the country’s National four decades in ICT and related hu- philosophies with a focus on access Innovation Council, the Smart Grid man and national developments to technology as the key to social Task Force set up under the aegis initiatives. change. of the Ministry of Power and the Credited with having laid the Mr Pitroda was Chairman Expert Committee on the use of ICT foundation of India´s telecommu- of India´s National Knowledge in Railways. He has also been ap- nications revolution in the 1980s, Commission (2005–2009), an advi- pointed a founding Commissioner Mr Pitroda has been a leading cam- sory body to the Prime Minister of of the Broadband Commission paigner to help bridge the global India, set up to provide a blueprint for Digital Development, estab- digital divide. for reform of the knowledge-relat- lished by ITU and UNESCO with During his tenure as Adviser to ed institutions and infrastructure in the backing of the United Nations Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in the the country. Secretary-General. 1980s Mr Pitroda headed six tech- In his current role as Adviser He holds close to 100 world- nology missions related to telecom- to the Prime Minister of India on wide patents and has published and munications, water, literacy, immu- Public Information Infrastructure lectured widely in the United States, nization, dairy and oil seeds. He was and Innovations, he is undertaking Europe, Latin America and Asia.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 7 ITU World Telecommunication and Information Society Award

Shutterstock Meet the laureates Inveneo

Kristin Peterson Co-Founder and Chief Executive Offi cer of Inveneo

Kristin Peterson is the Co-Founder 25 countries throughout sub-Saha- product management and mar- and Chief Executive Offi cer of ran Africa and South Asia, touching ket development. She has a BS in Inveneo, a non-profi t social enter- the lives of more than 1.5 million Civil Engineering from New Mexico prise focusing on information and people. State University and an MBA in communication technologies (ICT) Before Inveneo, Ms Peterson International Marketing from in rural areas throughout the de- founded Velocity Consulting, an or- Pepperdine University. veloping world. With more than ganization providing go-to-market Kristin Peterson was named a 18 years of experience in develop- guidance to a range of network- CNN Principal Voice in Innovation ing business and new markets, pri- ing, wireless and voice over the and Technology for 2007 and is a marily in the technology and com- Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology member of the HUB Social Enterprise munications industries, Ms Peterson start-ups. Her other previous roles Leadership Forum. Through Inveneo has been responsible for strategy, include Vice-President of Marketing she has been a featured speaker on partnership and support develop- at an enterprise IP services technol- ABC News, at the Clinton Global ment since Inveneo’s inception in ogy start-up, and Executive Director Initiative and Global Philanthropy 2004. She has led Inveneo’s efforts responsible for business develop- Forum annual meetings, and for to provide ICT to deliver education, ment at GoRemote through initial various United Nations and bilateral health care, economic development public offering (IPO). She has also agencies, advocating for access to and relief projects in Haiti and in worked for AT&T in international technology in developing countries.

8 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 ITU News  4 |2011  May2011 9

AFP/ARCHIVES Helsinki, Finland Shutterstock

Digital Finland

Finns dream of their country’s lakes and for- The digital agenda for 2011–2020 ests, but the view from the rest of the world is “Finland has worked hard to develop an equitable of a high-performing digital economy. This year and inclusive information society. We were the fi rst alone has seen this digital excellence heaped country in the world to ensure — by legislation — that with awards and praise. all our citizens have the opportunity to use digital ser- vices — irrespective of their place of residence, whether How does Finland do it? Perhaps one answer is that in the city or the countryside, or the level of their in- in Finland innovative thinking is inextricably linked with come,” said President Tarja Halonen of Finland. “Already social responsibility, whether in bringing broadband to now, a good and reasonably priced Internet connection every citizen or in fi nding effective ways to protect the is everyone’s right in Finland,” she added. environment. And governmental support is far-sighted, Digitization and the development of the information setting regulatory incentives and funding basic research. society play a key role in sustaining Finnish well-being This article highlights some of the examples of Finland’s and increasing productivity. Effi cient use of information digital prowess. and communication technologies (ICT) in different sec- tors of society leads to increased productivity.

10 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Finland Features

“Finland has worked hard to develop an equitable and Content and services play a major role in the devel- inclusive information society. opment of digital Finland. The report recognizes that We were the fi rst country in the services need to be user-friendly and secure, and de- world to ensure — by legislation signed to meet the needs of everyday life. Aspects such — that all our citizens have as multilingual versions of services and their accessibility the opportunity to use digital need to be considered early on at the planning stage. services — irrespective of their The needs of people and society provide the starting place of residence, whether point for service development. in the city or the countryside, Finland’s Minister of Communications, Suvi Lindén or the level of their income. says that “in addition to high-speed connections, the Already now, a good and availability of user-friendly services and information is reasonably priced Internet important — it lays down the foundation for genu- connection is everyone’s right ine information society development.” Ms Lindén is a in Finland.” Commissioner of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development, established in May 2010 by ITU and Tarja Halonen, President of the Republic UNESCO. of Finland

A government report entitled “Productive and in- Awards and praise novative Finland — digital agenda for the years 2011– The Economist Intelligence Unit’s annual rankings 2020”, submitted to Parliament in November 2010, put Finland among the world’s leading countries for defi nes future objectives for the development of the using ICT for economic and social benefi t. Finland is information society, along with the measures necessary ranked fourth in the 2011 assessment, up from tenth to achieve them. in 2009. Key objectives include the opening up of access to Finland is singled out for enshrining Internet access public data and its effi cient use, promoting user-orient- as a basic human right and for its high level use of radio- ed service development, securing the position of ageing frequency identifi cation (RFID). Finnish companies are people as active citizens, and promoting sustainable de- among the world’s earliest adopters of RFID technology, velopment by adopting new technologies. with an 8 per cent use rate compared to an average of Having been the fi rst country in the world to de- 3 per cent in the 27 countries of the European Union. fi ne a 1-Mbit Internet connection as a universal service, Finland also scored highly for its business and legal en- the next objective is to make 100-Mbit broadband con- vironment, consumer and business adoption, and social nections available to virtually all permanent residences, and cultural environment. business premises and public administration offi ces by the end of 2015.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 11 Features Finland

Angry Birds wins the coveted Technology innovation Best Mobile App award Nokia Siemens Networks has won an award for The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona announced its next-generation optical access (NGOA) technology, on 15 February 2011 that the hugely popular mobile which uses a single optical fi bre to bring broadband to game Angry Birds, developed by the Finnish company up to 1000 homes at speeds of one gigabit per second Rovio, has won two major prizes. Angry Birds won the per household. This rate is valid for both uploading and coveted Best Mobile App award. According to the jury, downloading at distances of up to 100 km from the cen- “This is an application that is simple, intuitive, incredibly tral exchange. Nokia Siemens Networks, headquartered addictive, and perfect for ‘snacking’ consumption. It has in Espoo, has demonstrated the approach in its research underlined the importance of the applications market, labs and is already developing a prototype. The technol- and helped raise the credibility of small independent ogy innovation award was presented at the 2011 Fiber developers outside the mainstream.” Angry Birds also to the Home (FTTH) Conference by the FTTH Council won the App of the Year on the Apple Platform. “This Europe — an industry organization that is determined is the 50 million plus-selling app that catapulted the to speed up the availability of fi bre-based, ultra high- benchmark for mobile gaming higher than ever — it is speed access networks to consumers and businesses. innovative too in terms of in-application monetization,” commented the judges. Following a string of successful game launches in 2010, Finland is now one of the leading game-develop- er countries in the world. Finnish companies sold more than a million games in 2010, according to KooPee Salo — Birthplace of Nokia Hiltunen, Director of Neogames, the Finnish national centre of game business research and education. Salo is the birthplace of Nokia Mobile Phones and The digital distribution of games will create further home to Nokia Plc. The Nokia Salo site is a hotbed opportunities for game developers. In the future, games of research and development, preproduction and and simulations may become part of school learning manufacturing, and is one of the world’s most environments and corporate training methods. The modern centres for wireless terminal devices. Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation Known today for high-level technology expertise, (Tekes) supports research and development projects in Salo has attracted companies specializing in wireless the Finnish gaming industry, encouraging growth and communication. Nokia’s success in “connecting internationalization of the sector. people” has stimulated investment by international companies and drawn a huge number of high skilled ICT-professionals to the area. The extensive research and development activities in Salo have created a strongly innovative environment.

12 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Finland Features AFP/NOTIMEX

“Nokia Siemens Networks’ NGOA will allow opera- and Innovation (Tekes) and the Finnish Federation for tors to provide virtually unlimited bandwidth in their Communications and Teleinformatics (FiCom) to pro- connectivity networks,” said Alexander Niepel, Head mote innovative ideas that not only improve quality of of NGOA business development at Nokia Siemens life and of the environment, but also create new busi- Networks. “It is not about fi bre-to-the-home applica- ness activities. The recycling server produces data on tions alone. NGOA has the ability to transform busi- the volume and type of waste produced in a residential ness and enterprise connectivity,” he added. NGOA is building. By providing guidance for recycling, the recy- designed to coexist with passive optical networks (PON) cling server reduces the cost of refuse services and helps systems, allowing for a seamless upgrade from current prevent the creation of waste. The volume of different optical connectivity systems. Nokia Siemens Networks types of waste — such as biowaste, paper, cardboard, is also working closely with the Full Service Access glass and metal — can be monitored in the same way Network (FSAN), the body looking into future optical as water or energy consumption is measured. The server connectivity standards. tracks waste accumulation and collection in real time. Refuse collection companies can use the service for planning and invoicing based on weight. A basic model Recycling server wins Green ICT competition of the recycling server will be developed and tested in A recycling server developed by Aalto University’s several pilot areas. research group for environmental technology has won While general information is available to everyone Finland’s Green ICT competition. This competition is or- on the Internet, property-specifi c data can be seen only ganized by the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology by residents and housing companies.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 13 Features Finland

Joint initiatives to keep our planet well as by capturing the heat generated by datacentres green and to promote 3D Internet and feeding it into district heating networks. In November 2011, the project will publish guide- Energy-effi cient datacentres lines for monitoring the energy use of datacentres, and A joint project between Finland’s ICT sector and recommend indicators for use in measuring energy ef- Motiva, a government agency promoting effi cient and fi ciency. The project will also examine the possibilities sustainable use of energy and materials, aims to reduce offered by Finland’s climate to create energy-effi cient the total consumption of electricity by datacentres de- cooling. spite the increasing number of servers. Motiva estimates that datacentres account for about 0.5 to 1.5 per cent of total electricity consumption in Finland. Research on environmental monitoring Launched in autumn 2010, the project is examining A research programme on environmental moni- the current state of energy effi ciency in Finnish data- toring and services has been launched by the Finnish centres and the possibilities for improving their perfor- Strategic Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation mance. Finland has already improved datacentre infra- for Energy and Environment (CLEEN Oy). The pro- structure and management in various ways, including gramme will create new tools, standards and meth- by minimizing the amount of electricity used by servers ods for environmental measurement, monitoring and and locating datacentres near cooling waterways, as decision-making. It will promote new applications and

TeliaSonera Finland is now the major telecommunications their own mobile networks, but many offer retail mobile operator in the country offering DSL services. The services as mobile virtual network operators. Other operator has also been offering ADSL services through its major players that own their own fi xed networks include brand Auria. In addition to fi xed broadband, TeliaSonera AinaCom and TDC, both of which offer mobile services. offers mobile broadband and telephony services. The largest mobile operators with their own networks are DNA, Elisa and TeliaSonera. The other two largest telecom operators with their own networks are Elisa and DNA, offering fi xed and mobile A particular feature of the broadband market was the services. In addition to these, around 25 regional telecom increase in the number of mobile broadband subscribers operators formed the Finnet group, with each of these coupled with a decline in the number of fi xed broadband companies owning a fi xed network in their respective subscribers. Finland is a digital pioneer, so this may be a region. The Finnet group of companies do not have trend to watch.

14 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Finland Features Nokia

services based on environmental data to improve the experiences. “The University of Oulu’s focus on future energy and material effi ciency of infrastructures and in- telecommunication solutions as well as electronics and dustrial processes. photonics made it the perfect location for the Intel and The programme has fi ve-year funding of EUR 50 mil- Nokia Joint Innovation Center,” said Justin Rattner, Intel lion provided jointly by the Finnish Funding Agency for Chief Technology Offi cer and Director of Intel Labs. Technology and Innovation (Tekes) and the 45 Finnish Intel and Nokia believe that 3D Internet has the companies and research institutes that are involved. potential to become the next major breakthrough in mobile user experience. The Oulu region hosts a strong 3D Internet development community, and technologies Collaboration between the such as the open-source virtual reality platform realX- private sector and academia tend have been created as a result of research in Oulu. Intel and Nokia have established their fi rst collab- “3D technology could change the way we use our mo- orative research laboratory, the Intel and Nokia Joint bile devices and make our experiences with them much Innovation Center, at the University of Oulu Center for more immersive. Our new joint laboratory with Intel Internet Excellence. Research activities started in August draws on the Oulu research community’s 3D interface 2010, with a project on using graphical 3D technology expertise, and over time will lay down some important to create immersive mobile interfaces. foundations for future mobile experiences,” said Rich The laboratory will focus on leveraging the rapidly Green, Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Offi cer increasing processing and graphics power of mobile of Nokia. devices to create new and compelling Internet user

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 15 Getty Images/A. Cavalli Connecting communities 16 ITU News  4 |2011  May2011 AFP

India’s profi les of progress

India has emerged as one of the fastest growing econo- “Today, we are recognized mies in the world in the past ten years. Progress is attrib- globally as world leaders in IT utable to reforms in the fi nancial sector, the progressive and we have created our own and pro-development policies of successive govern- multinational companies, and ments, collaborative efforts by corporate and civil soci- our IT entrepreneurs have placed ety organizations and, above all, the role of information the country on the world map and communication technologies (ICT) and new media in a big way. This has given technologies in enabling growth at the bottom of the us signifi cant confi dence, and pyramid. allowed us to dream bigger and Sam Pitroda, Adviser to the Prime Minister of India better. From 2 million phones, on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations re- today we are a nation of calls the 1980s when it was still “unheard of in the de- 700 million phones, and adding velopment paradigm of the time to bring state-of-the- more, month after month. art technology to a third world country”. The reforms We will soon be a nation of introduced in the 1980s have put India fi rmly on the 1 billion connected people! This path towards becoming a knowledge and information nation of a connected billion society. “Today, we are recognized globally as world people challenges us to think leaders in IT and we have created our own multinational differently and innovatively.” companies, and our IT entrepreneurs have placed the Sam Pitroda, Adviser to the Prime Minister Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 17 Charles Sturge/GSMA Features 18 Mr Pitroda. challenges ustothinkdifferently andinnovatively,” says nected people!Thisnationofaconnectedbillionpeople after month.We willsoonbeanationof1billioncon- nation of700millionphones,andaddingmore, month ger andbetter. From 2millionphones,todayweare a ITU News Common ServiceCentres us signi country ontheworldmapinabigway. Thishasgiven making itpossibletodownloadapplicationformsand rural areas. Theywillofferweb-enabledpublicservices, ery pointsforpublic,privateandsocialsectorservicesin across thecountry. Thecentres willbefront-end deliv- ing establishedthatwilllinkmore than600000villages work ofover100000CommonServiceCentres isbe- India As partoftheNational e-GovernancePlan,anet- fi cant con cant  4 |2011  fi dence, andallowedustodream big- May2011 a centre, theservices thatIamnowmakingavailable for womenentrepreneurs inMandi.As theoperator of wife, Iactivelyparticipatedinthetraining organized difference tothesociety inwhichshelives.“As ahouse- tation ofthecentres throughout thestate. nated agencyresponsible formanagingtheimplemen- (responsible for500–1000 centres) andastate-desig- village-level entrepreneur), theservicecentre agency structure consistingoftheoperator ofthecentre (the opment ofrural India. Theschemeenvisagesathree-tier active role, aspartners ofthegovernment,indevel- sector andnongovernmentalorganizations toplayan create anenvironment thatisconducive fortheprivate introducing e-governanceonamassivescale.Theywill other utilitybills. certi At villagelevel,ManjushaKumari yearnedtomakea The CommonServiceCentres are a strategic stepin fi cates, andpayelectricity, telephone,waterand India Features Nokia

include: mobile recharges, insurance services, providing Taking mobile banking to the people government forms, pan card applications and all other Access to basic fi nancial services is an unrealized offl ine services”, she explains. dream for millions of people around the world, particu- The Common Service Centres scheme was approved larly those living in rural and remote areas. by the Government of India in 2006 and is being imple- In India, according to data from the National Sample mented as a public-private partnership. The scheme is Survey, 51 per cent of 89 million farmer households expected to deliver content, services, information and have no access to credit, even from non-institutional knowledge, allowing like-minded public and private en- sources. Only 27 per cent of farm households manage terprises to integrate their goals (both for profi t and for to raise money from formal sources. social objectives) into a sustainable business model for Earlier initiatives taken by the government and the achieving rapid socio-economic change in rural India. reserve bank aimed at providing basic fi nancial services “I always dreamt of starting my own venture. When for everyone have had limited impact. A directive from the Common Service Centres project was launched in the reserve bank (the regulator and supervisor of the Manipur, I knew that here is an opportunity that would fi nancial system) to open “no-frills accounts” and to use not only let me start my own work, but also allow me “business correspondents” to reach unbanked citizens to serve my village”, says Sinam Jagdish, now a centre has not improved the situation signifi cantly. A bank operator. branch in India serves about 16 000 people, and banks By 30 April 2011, a total of 94 786 centres had been fi nd it diffi cult to operate a large number of tiny ac- rolled out in 31 states. It is expected that the roll-out of counts and micro-transactions profi tably. But things are 100 000 centres will be completed by June 2011. changing, thanks to mobile technology.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 19 Features India

Basic fi nancial services framework as the basis for delivering fi nancial services through mobile phones using mobile technology. The vision of empowering the poor, wherever they may be, has been central to the government’s devel- opment agenda. One sure way of empowering people Framework for mobile banking in rural communities is through fi nancial inclusiveness With the number of mobile subscribers in rural ar- — enabling them to own and operate bank accounts. eas far outstripping the number of holders of bank ac- This is also critical to the government’s ability to trans- counts, a large section of the rural population now has fer cash benefi ts to the poor under the various welfare access to mobile telephony but not to fi nancial services. schemes. The provision of basic fi nancial services through the in- The recent dramatic increase in mobile hand- dividual’s mobile phone will reach out to the un- set use by poor people, both urban and banked sections of the country. It will also rural, holds great promise for bring- enhance the government’s ability to ing branchless banking to com- reach the poor with cash benefi ts munities that have no access Account to under various government wel- account transfer Balance enquiry to basic fi nancial services. It fare schemes. offers a way of building vi- The framework envisages able and scalable models to the creation of “mobile-linked deliver micro-payments and Cash withdrawal Cash deposit no-frills accounts” by the micro-credit. banks, which can be operated To take the vision a step Transfer from using mobile phones. The basic regular bank closer to reality, the government account and transactions permissible though set up an inter-ministerial group in government these accounts will include cash schemes November 2009 to work out the rel- deposit, cash withdrawal, balance evant norms and modalities that would enquiry, transfer of money from one mo- make mobile banking an integral part of bank- bile-linked account to another, and transfer of ing services. money to a mobile-linked account from a regular bank After extensive discussions among members of the account. The framework will also facilitate the trans- group and other stakeholders, including representatives fer of funds under various government schemes, such of banks, telecom providers, security agencies and the as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, to a public, and meetings of the group and its sub-group, mobile account. the inter-ministerial group fi nalized its report in March In order to operate the framework immediately, 2010. A government committee met in April 2010 while ensuring interoperability and interfacing with the to consider the recommendations made by the inter- country’s ID numbers system, the following two modes ministerial group, and approved the recommended of service access have been proposed:

20 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 India Features A. Maurya/GSMA & Decisive Media

 PIN system using mobile banking point of sale “know your customer” requirements. There will also be  biometric (fi ngerprint) system using the unique interoperable repositories at the national level, to host ID numbers issued by the Unique Identifi cation and manage mobile-linked no-frills accounts, thereby Authority of India. substantially reducing transaction costs. This will make The framework will be able to accommodate other the handling of large volume micro-transactions viable. means of access as and when the technology evolves. A signifi cant safety feature is that funds remain within the banking system throughout, and the inter- mediary does not have custody of the funds even mo- Basic transactions mentarily. With this in mind, it is recommended that People with their own mobile phones will be able for-profi t corporate entities be allowed to function as to deposit cash into and withdraw cash from their business correspondents. It is also recommended that “mobile-linked no-frills” bank accounts through a “busi- the reserve bank relax its stipulation that the business ness correspondent” with a mobile phone in the village. correspondent or sub-agent should be within a 30-km Also, any two mobile users with no-frills accounts will distance of a branch of the sponsoring bank. be able to transfer money directly to each other, specify- An administrative structure is recommended for ing only their mobile numbers, without going through setting standards, supervising operations and ensur- a business correspondent. When fully implemented, the ing transparency and fair play in mobile-linked no-frills model will enable a single business correspondent in the operations. village to be shared by all the banks to support basic deposit and withdrawal transactions. To ensure interoperability among service providers — banks and mobile service providers — and to reduce costs, there will be a simplifi ed common template for

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 21 Features India

The future fi nancial inclusion for the target groups of social sector Roll-out of the mobile banking service to extend programmes. basic fi nancial services to the unbanked population is Besides delivery of basic fi nancial services to the expected to be completed by December 2011. poor and disadvantaged, both urban and rural, the mo- The service, based on mobile phones and biomet- bile delivery of fi nancial services will cut delay, and re- ric authentication, will form the core micro-payment duce the costs and hardships incurred by benefi ciaries in platform for the transfer of benefi ts under various getting the cash benefi ts to which they are entitled un- government schemes, micro-payment services and der the various welfare and poverty alleviation schemes.

Mobile-linked no-frills bank accounts for rural inhabitants in India

A mobile-linked no-frills account is basically a regular no- account and not in the user’s mobile phone. frills bank account that can be operated using a mobile  The mobile phone will simply be the medium for phone. The salient features are: accessing the money. Customers opening a mobile-linked no-frills account will  Loss of the mobile phone or SIM card will not result in have to comply with the “know your customer” norms the loss of money. prescribed by banks.  The normal rates of interest paid by savings banks will  Every mobile-linked no-frills account will be held by a be payable on the mobile-linked no-frills account. bank. All basic transactions (deposits, credits, withdrawals,  The customer will designate a primary mobile-linked balance enquiries, transfers) will be independent of the no-frills account to carry out the various transactions. intermediate service providers. Banks may engage the services of a third party (such as  Transactions will be executed in real time. an existing institution managing no-frills accounts for the  The maximum value of each kind of transaction banks) to manage mobile-linked no-frills accounts, but (deposit, withdrawal or transfer) will be Rupees banks will remain the ultimate owners of the mobile- 5000 per day and Rupees 25 000 per month. linked no-frills accounts.  The minimum balance requirement for these mobile-  Money will be stored in the mobile-linked no-frills linked no-frills accounts will be zero.

22 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Daniel Ogwang’, manager of Nyangweta Community Knowledge Center, Nyangweta, Kenya Orgad Lootski/Cisco Orgad

® Empowering rural and underserved communities

Inveneo is a non profi t social enterprise with a mission ICT entrepreneurs. It engages in long-term partnerships to connect and empower rural and underserved com- with entrepreneurs, providing them with training and munities in the developing world through information connecting them with other partners so that they can and communication technologies (ICT). The company share knowledge and ideas. This not only helps ensure specializes in delivering sustainable ICT in challenging project sustainability, but also creates jobs and builds environments. It typically works in places where there is business opportunities to serve rural and underserved little power or Internet service, and where local staff has areas. This programme — the Inveneo Certifi ed ICT limited ICT skills. These places are often dusty, hot and Partner (ICIP) Program — has been implemented in humid. Taking all these factors into account, the fi rm 25 countries throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and South identifi es appropriate hardware, power sources and Asia. Together, Inveneo and its local partners have deliv- connectivity options. Then it designs affordable, reliable ered projects touching and changing the lives of more ICT systems to best meet the needs of the organizations than 1.5 million people. it serves, enabling them to better deliver health care, In partnership with local Internet service providers economic development and relief services to some of and Haitian entrepreneurs, Inveneo plans to bring eco- the poorest communities in the world. nomic and educational opportunities to Haiti in 2011 Local design, deployment and support are as im- through a rural broadband connectivity programme portant for sustainability as using the right technolo- that it is deploying now (see article on pages 25–30). gies. Inveneo works to develop these skills with local

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 23 FJ Cava, Inveneo Trainee, ITU/Inveneo training, Makerere University, Uganda University, Makerere training, ITU/Inveneo Trainee, Features 24 ITU News Recent examplesofInveneo’s work Bureau todeliverapilotprogramme thattrains forces withITU’s Telecommunication Development and Kenya fordeliveryofrural ICT: gramme tomore than300schoolsin2011. government isnowcommittedtoscalingupthepro- CLS havepilotedcomputereducationinschools.The a governmentprocurement contract, Inveneoand added supplierofappropriate rural solutions.Through entrepreneur CLSfrom acomputerretailer toavalue- ICT inUganda: Inveneo Building capacityatuniversitylevelinUganda Improving educationthrough solar-powered  4 |2011  Inveneohastransformed Ugandan May2011 Inveneojoined Sierra Leone. able toprovide suchsystemstootherorganizations in trained for growth inmicro reliable accesstoaccountrecords, pavingtheway local micro low-power andlow-costcomputingsystemsfortwo Technical Assistance Facility, designedanddeployed Consulting andtheMicro in partnershipwithEnterprisingSolutionsGlobal environments. in designinganddeployingICT inchallengingrural technology studentsinICT entrepreneurship, and Micro fi ve localICT serviceproviders, whowillnowbe fi nance supportinSierra Leone: fi nance organizations. Thesystemsprovide fi nance services.Inveneo has also fi nance Investmentand Inveneo, Inveneo Features

Andris Bjornson, Inveneo CTO, surveys line-of-sight for Port-au- Prince wireless broadband network immediately after the earthquake, Haiti Andris Bjornson/Inveneo

The Haiti Rural Broadband initiative

The World Bank estimates that every 10 per cent in- access to underserved parts of Haiti. The idea is to cut crease in broadband penetration can yield an increase costs by using low-cost wireless technologies, building of as much as 1.4 per cent growth in gross domestic local capacity to deploy and support the broadband in- product (GDP). Policy-makers no longer ask whether to frastructure, and innovating with cooperative network promote broadband access, they want to know how to ownership and management. do it most effectively. Inveneo’s initiative is bringing connectivity to for- merly isolated communities through an innovative In rich and middle-income countries, governments are coalition of organizations that includes Haitian-owned pushing through regulatory reforms to promote private Internet service providers, the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, investment in broadband service and creating fi nancial Google, Microsoft, NetHope, The EKTA Foundation, the incentives, including subsidies, for private providers. USAID Global Broadband and Innovations Alliance, and But how can low-income countries close the broad- many other organizations and donors. band gap? The answer may well be a new model for The short-term objective is to bring affordable, reli- delivering broadband service that is both collaborative able and sustainable broadband access to 6 regions and and low-cost. The essential components of such a mod- 20 unserved population centres across Haiti. The longer- el already exist. What is needed is a coordinated effort term goal is to explore how the Haiti Rural Broadband to bring them together. model can be replicated in rural and low-resource areas The Inveneo-led Haiti Rural Broadband initiative is across the developing world. a multi-faceted effort to bring sustainable broadband

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 25 Features Inveneo As Jerry Joseph says: “Through the BATI program, Inveneo is giving me a chance to link Haitian communities to the rest of the world and to run my own business ‘JiGab-IT Plus’ in Leogane where there were no ICT opportunities before.”

Governments are usually the force behind broad- The Haiti Rural Broadband network will be carrier- band expansion, but where governments are incapable neutral. It will be cooperatively owned and operated, of playing this role, nongovernmental actors can still and service providers will be allowed access to the net- make signifi cant progress. work on a non-discriminatory basis. This will ensure The Haiti Rural Broadband initiative consists of an price competition and open access for customers. The ecosystem of stakeholders — donors, Internet service Haiti-based legal entity that will own and manage the providers, local IT entrepreneurs, implementing partners network infrastructure will not be an Internet service and strategic “anchor tenants” — engaged in a partner- provider, and will therefore be exempt from licensing ship to increase broadband access at low cost. requirements.

Ultra-low cost wireless technology Local entrepreneurship and ICT capacity The biggest obstacle to market-based provision One reason why carriers do not invest in serving of broadband service in underserved areas is the high remote and low-density areas is the high cost of de- cost of deploying the networks. Proprietary commercial ployment and support. To reduce these costs, Inveneo technologies designed for high-density urban markets trains local entrepreneurs to connect new users to the are expensive to install and operate, besides not being network and provide ongoing IT support. This lowers well suited to rural and low-density settings. operating costs for carriers, increases network uptime Meanwhile, the cost of off-the-shelf radio network- and promotes local income generation. The trained en- ing technologies has fallen and their performance has trepreneurs build their businesses by selling services to improved. These products are based on open standards, broadband customers and contracting with Internet ser- such as 802.11/Wi-Fi, so they are relatively easy to sup- vice providers to provide broadband services. port. The Haiti Rural Broadband initiative is possibly the fi rst attempt to deploy these technologies on a national scale. Lower bar for participation What about incumbent carriers? By fl exibly combin- Shared network infrastructure ing low deployment costs, trained local support capac- Towers and power systems account for most of the ity and seed funding for network roll-out, the Haiti Rural capital costs of wireless network deployment. Policy- Broadband initiative entices Internet service providers to makers now encourage or mandate shared infrastruc- participate. Two major ISPs are now on board. It also ture in low-density and poor areas. The Haiti Rural reduces their ability to obstruct. Broadband initiative takes the principle of shared infra- The fi rst backbone links to the Central Plateau are structure one step further, working with service provid- under way, and the incentives to join in will increase ers and strategic customers to use existing infrastruc- when the fi rst customers come online. ture to support the network and reduce costs.

26 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Inveneo Features

March 2011 BATI Class, Haiti FJ Cava, Inveneo Cava, FJ

Focus on strategic “anchor tenants” Support for the initiative Few individual Haitians in the target population can On 7 December 2010, the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund afford a personal broadband Internet connection or the announced a grant of USD 743 000 to Inveneo to ac- computing equipment to take full advantage of it. The celerate the development of the Haiti Rural Broadband Inveneo approach is therefore to identify “anchor ten- project. The grant also supports training for Haitian ICT ants”— organizations such as schools, hospitals or clin- entrepreneurs. ics — that will be the initial clients. These organizations “The power of this programme is that in addition have the resources to pay for services, and they are well to enabling rural communities with high-speed connec- positioned to make broadband directly accessible to the tions, we are also providing Internet connectivity that local population. can be resold to Haitian Internet cafés, community or- The six target regions were selected, in part, be- ganizations and other businesses, stimulating economic cause of their relatively high concentration of potential growth. Just as important, turning over networks to anchor tenants. Haitian Internet service providers and training Haitian technicians will lay the building blocks for Haitians to

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 27 Features Inveneo

“Through our work in Africa A replicable model for rural broadband and Asia, we have seen that services in low-income countries? developing local capacity to manage and own in-country Lessons learned information and communication Can the Haiti Rural Broadband model be repeated technologies is a key driver elsewhere? What factors make the model appropriate of economic growth. The in other low-resource settings? The main factors are dis- investment in our network helps cussed below (starting with the most important ones). us deliver this key economic driver to rural parts of Haiti.” Legal and regulatory environment The rural broadband service model requires a hospi- Kristin Peterson, Co-Founder and table legal and regulatory environment. Chief Executive Offi cer of Inveneo In Haiti, although there is no universal service fund to support the initiative, Inveneo has worked directly own and grow these services,” said Gary Edson, Chief with the national telecom regulator (Conatel) to ensure Executive Offi cer of the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund. that the Haiti Rural Broadband model does not run afoul Immediately following Haiti’s devastating earth- of existing or planned regulations. One advantage is quake, Inveneo wirelessly connected many members of that the use of open frequencies is permitted through- NetHope, a consortium of major international nongov- out the country. ernmental organizations. Several weeks later, by part- nering with technology organizations on the ground, Physical environment such as Haitian Internet service providers Multilink and Low-cost networking technologies are central to the Access Haiti, Inveneo had connected 18 nongovern- model. The cheapest use Wi-Fi (802.11) and open fre- mental organization offi ces in 35 locations. After a few quencies (2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz), which require line-of- months of operation, Inveneo turned this network over sight between radios. Both topography and vegetation to the Haitian Technology Group, a local fi rm trained by are therefore critical factors as they can impede point- its engineers. to-point wireless links. “Through our work in Africa and Asia, we have seen Haiti’s physical environment combines both good that developing local capacity to manage and own in- and bad scenarios for wireless networking. The Central country information and communication technologies Plateau region is well suited to point-to-point wireless, is a key driver of economic growth. The investment in with high peaks surrounding wide, open valleys and lim- our network helps us deliver this key economic driver to ited forest cover. In the southwest, however, mountains rural parts of Haiti,” commented Kristin Peterson, Co- and dense forest will make reaching large numbers of Founder and Chief Executive Offi cer of Inveneo. customers more challenging.

28 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Inveneo Features

Site legend

Planned distribution sites

Planned core sites

Potential areas of future expansion

Haiti Rural Broadband Network plans, May 2011

In general, the model is less likely to be successful Haiti has long been a focal point for international aid in mountainous and densely forested regions (such as and relief organizations. The devastating earthquake of coastal West Africa) than it is in more arid and open 2010 only increased their numbers and prompted many settings (for example, East Africa). Regardless of terrain, to extend their work outside of Port-au-Prince. Inveneo regions that are extremely remote would require a large used open-source mapping tools and on-the-ground number of relays and may not be reachable using ter- contacts to identify clusters of potential anchor tenants. restrial Wi-Fi backhauls. Such regions may require alter- These clusters served as the starting point for network native backhaul infrastructure. design.

Anchor tenant demographics Market competition and Internet bandwidth The model relies on a baseline level of demand for The model is best suited to settings where several service, typically from organizations that are already similarly sized Internet service providers operate in a providing vital services — such as education, health or competitive market. This means that no single carrier is relief — in targeted areas. able to obstruct the roll-out of services. Also, there must

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 29 Features Inveneo

be adequate Internet connectivity to support demand at and carriers. In Haiti, for example, Inveneo is exploring a cost that the market can bear. access to towers owned by the country’s hundreds of Most of Haiti’s leading Internet service providers and small radio stations. carriers expressed an interest in joining the Haiti Rural Broadband initiative. Inveneo and its partners are also Core services working on ways to increase total Internet bandwidth Shared networked services and applications can add into Haiti, possibly by adding a spur to an offshore fi bre- value for anchor tenants at lower roll-out costs. Local optic cable. network services that do not require Internet bandwidth are especially valuable in settings where such Internet Human capital bandwidth is scarce. Capable, local ICT support is central to the model. In Haiti, Internet bandwidth sells at a premium This capacity can be achieved through incremental because of limited fi bre connectivity into the country. training, but depends on the availability of profession- Inveneo and partners are exploring services and applica- als who already have at least basic ICT knowledge and tions, such as local video conferencing, that add value experience. without incurring Internet connection fees. In Haiti, Inveneo worked through training institu- tions and mass media to identify more than 60 candi- dates whose stated qualifi cations met the initial screen- Good news ing criteria. Narrowing the broadband access gap requires new Key questions that can be asked when replicating rural broadband service models that radically lower the the Haiti model include: Are there ICT professionals ca- capital and operating costs of broadband networks. pable of being trained to deploy and support network The good news is that the key components of a sus- infrastructure in the target region? Is the business op- tainable rural broadband service model already exist. portunity suffi ciently enticing to draw entrepreneurs What is needed now is to experiment to see how these into rural and remote settings? Which institutions can building blocks are best assembled, put into operation help identify and recruit trainee candidates? and scaled up. Learning from the Haiti Rural Broadband initiative, Existing infrastructure Inveneo is seeking to defi ne a framework that will make Keeping costs low means sharing infrastructure it easier to implement similar models in other low-re- and using what already exists. Key infrastructure is not source settings. The aim is to provide broadband servic- limited to that controlled by Internet service providers es to unserved rural populations throughout the world.

30 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011

WSIS Stocktaking 32   ITU News of WSISaction:innovationandsustainability. examples highlighttwofundamentalconcepts needed toovercome challenges.Thedifferent practical detailsofthemethodsandresources projects takingplaceworldwide,andpresents Europe andLatinAmericapaintsapicture of The informationcomingoutofAfrica,Asia, Innovation andsustainability ICT successstories by WSIS. the visionofaninclusiveinformationsocietyasde a benchmarkoftheprogress beingmadeinachieving for stakeholdersinothercountries,buttheyalsoactas Not onlydosuchcasestudiesserveasusefulmodels 2010 and2011,tocoincidewithWSISForum 2011. has justpublishedasetofthem,collectedbetween Summit ontheInformationSociety(WSIS)process. It

Examples ofnoteinclude: ITU hasseenmanysuccessstoriesfrom theWorld ties through customizedITsolutions. education andemploymentforpeoplewithdisabili- Qatar’s launchoftheMadaCentre toprovide better youth employment(seefullarticleonpages34 ing thechallengesofpooraccesstoeducationand kiosks toprovide connectivityincommunitiesfac- Sustainable Developmenttosetuprural internet Intersat’s partnershipwithVoices ofAfricafor  4 |2011  May2011 – fi ned 36).

Nokia Innovation and sustainability ICT success stories

WSIS Stocktaking tfgsummi

 The E-TIC project in the Sahel region of West Africa, in the rural areas of the Former Yugoslav Republic of which helps the sales of farmers and fi shermen, by Macedonia and the use of a web portal to provide an training them through a web portal designed in the interactive platform for Bangladeshi farmers known as local languages of Wolof, Fulani and Bambara. E-Krishok.  The Republic of Korea’s national strategy for green The challenges and implementation of solutions are ICT launched in 2009 to provide a framework for often very specifi c to a particular country but these suc- local carbon growth. cess stories can be transposed into different contexts.  IT training for female entrepreneurs in Mali, which These case studies show innovation and the search for provides women with basic computer skills to close sustainable solutions, which all stakeholders should the gender gap in access to ICT. seek to incorporate into their methods of resolution.  Colombia’s programme to offer access to comput- Knowledge sharing is an essential component of de- ers in schools through the use of recycled machines; velopment within the WSIS process and countries are and encouraged to submit their programmes to the online  The Ecole des Sables project which aims to develop database of WSIS Stocktaking (www.wsis.org/stocktak- educational opportunities and the teaching of of- ing). In this way, all stakeholders can make this database fi cial languages within the Touareg community in a key tool in building an inclusive information society Mali (see story on page 37). by 2015. Previous editions of ITU News have also featured coverage of the ICT revolution in Oman, Wi-Fi access

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 33 WSIS Stocktaking

ICT success stories A public–private partnership for sustainable development in Africa

In September 2009, Intersat Africa and Voices of Africa school in Nairobi. Having learned about the technology for Sustainable Development joined in partnership to from this experience, the partnership decided to try to fi nd ways to reach every rural vil- create a product at the lowest price lage in Africa with Internet connec- possible. tivity. The dream these two organi- “Before the rural Cost is an important factor to zations share is to bring change Internet kiosk ensure that potential end-users through information and com- project we had can afford the services provided munication technologies (ICT) to problems engaging through the kiosks. Another factor those who need it most. They are with the youth in is showing people how to use the implementing a model known as the community. Internet as a tool of development. “Rural Internet Kiosk”, which uses Since we began this The heart of the challenge is to solar energy and satellite connec- project, our youth bring about social change though a tion. The partnership assists with group has grown business model. Consultation with research and development of prod- and members have the people involved and providing ucts and services to provide infor- started many new appropriate education are essential mation and communication access projects, including steps. in remote rural areas. a jewellery-making In February 2010, a grant was “Those who have never visited shop that sells received from the Internet Society or lived in Africa often ask why internationally.” to install a pilot kiosk in the coastal Internet, and more broadly ICT, is area of Msambweni, Kenya. This in such high demand by people was implemented with a youth who in many cases do not have enough to eat or safe group, named Voice of Diani, made up of people exactly water to drink. The answer is opportunity,” said Crystal like the operators of rural Internet kiosks anywhere in Watley Kigoni of Intersat Africa Ltd at the ITU Global the world: young and unemployed with limited access ICT Industry Leaders’ Forum held in Dakar, Senegal, in to education. An American volunteer came to teach at November 2009. the rural Internet kiosk for six months. There were many The rural Internet kiosk has three industrial access technical diffi culties because of the harsh environment, terminals, a solar panel system, and the Get2Net satel- and the youth group did not make much money. But lite Internet system. The fi rst kiosk was installed at a

34 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Reaching out for sustainable development in Africa ICT success stories

WSIS Stocktaking Millenium Promise

they continued to run the kiosk, earning just enough to skills and in how to use ICT for development (ICT4D). keep the project going. Voices of Africa found that it took several months of Ali Bwengo and Gideon Mulandi were the fi rst op- training in basic computer skills to build up the local ca- erators when the kiosk went live. Ali says, “The Internet pacity to a level high enough to use ICT4D. By February has completely changed my life, and I teach many peo- 2011, Voices of Africa had trained 20 youths in ICT4D. ple each day how to use the technology to change their These youths are now teaching others in their commu- lives as well.” Gideon added, “Before the rural Internet nity about development and technology. The success kiosk project we had problems engaging with the of these training classes has been enormous and the youth in the community. Since we began this project, classes are booked for months ahead. our youth group has grown and members have started In March 2011, Voices of Africa launched a partner- many new projects, including a jewellery-making shop ship with Africa Nazarene University and its Advanced that sells internationally.” Centre for Communications, Enterprise and New The Diani pilot project showed Voices of Africa that Technologies project. Through this partnership, Voices there was a need to provide training on how to use the of Africa launched a new classroom in Nairobi to train latest devices, on what ICT can do for development, on 20 additional students per month in ICT4D. These stu- how to run a social enterprise, and on how to use so- dents come from all over East Africa and will be the cial media. Voices of Africa decided to build a training operators of the latest version of the kiosk — the solar- school for unemployed rural African youth. powered advanced rural communications kiosk. In September 2010, Voices of Africa opened the New corporate partners have recently come into the Webuye Youth Empowerment Training Centre in a poor partnership. Huawei has donated its new IDEOS Android rural community, where educational levels are low and platform smartphones to be used for training purposes. development needs are many. The training centre trains The small mobile devices can create a Wi-Fi network a minimum of 40 youths per month in basic computer for eight additional devices, setting up the basis of a

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 35 ICT success stories Reaching out for sustainable development in Africa

WSIS Stocktaking

wireless mesh system. The IDEOS U8150 handset was The concept is to create a rural market for the launched globally at the end of 2010 and is described Internet through the desire for sustainable social, eco- by Huawei as a simple, affordable Android smartphone. nomic and political development. All rural communities It has a touchscreen display, high-resolution screen, a want to earn more money to educate their children and 3.2 Mega pixel camera and supports functions such as to see real change. Using the advanced kiosk as a com- voice dialling, voice navigation and social networking. munity access point and provider of Wi-Fi for the com- Voices of Africa plans to partner with more device munity will create employment, knowledge sharing and manufacturers to ensure that more people have ac- long-term sustainable development. cess to the technical devices required to support devel- The step from pilot to manufacturing has been a opment. A fund is being established in Kenya to give challenge because of resource constraints. These con- micro-loans to all course graduates to acquire the best straints have now been overcome through the fi rst low-cost educational devices on the market. All of these venture-capital investment. By the end of 2011, it is devices require the connectivity and solar power provid- expected that there will be more than 120 installations ed by the advanced kiosks. Intersat Broadband Services and ten training centres across half a dozen countries. — with assistance and guidance from the Plexus Group, Through the process of implementation and feed- a consulting fi rm of highly talented telecommunication back, the goal is to increase impact over time and create industry leaders — is developing a prepaid platform for the change that rural people want to see. The approach Wi-Fi that can turn every advanced kiosk into a cyber- taken by Voices of Africa is to empower the commu- café that will provide the community with Internet ac- nity in a way that creates social change and that makes cess at the lowest possible cost. a profi t for the community. This is the key to sustain- The advanced kiosk has the advantage of more solar ability. As Crystal Kigoni says, “The rural Internet kiosk power and better technology. It has built-in Wi-Fi with a has the ability to electronically fi ll structural gaps in ru- radius of 500 metres, and advertising monitors on three ral infrastructure. Everyone in the community can be sides to play rotating advertising spots. The training pro- equally served… With access to a rural Internet kiosk, gramme is directly tied in to the software installed in the the people will be empowered to join the rest of the vir- advanced kiosk, and operators are trained to teach and tual world and bring a uniquely different culture to the reach out to the community before the equipment is global community. The world needs to hear the voices put in place. The advertising displays will be sponsored of Africa from her deepest villages.” by corporations and local businesses, and will generate income, greatly reducing the amount that users of the kiosk have to pay.

36 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 The École des Sables ICT success stories

WSIS Stocktaking Ennor-France

The École des Sables

The nomadic Touareg community is one of the oldest A decade after the creation of the École des Sables in communities in the world, but the absence of educa- Taboye, the project was expanded to two other schools tion for Touareg children restrains the development of in the regions of Timbuktu and Kidal. All three schools the region. Action must be taken for a better future, are supported by the Ministry of National Education and and education is one of the only ways to move forward. local communities, demonstrating the credibility of the Hence the Ag Assarid brothers decided to create the project. For the two new schools, classrooms have been École des Sables in 2002 to offer nomadic children ac- rebuilt and a residential school and high school have cess to high-quality education. been set up. The three schools are all located in north- While parents continue to live as nomads, École ern Mali. des Sables Saint-Exupéry in Taboye gives children an To fi nance the schools, Moussa, a writer, sells his education at a residential school which is open all year books through his blog (http://moussa-blog.azawa- around. At the beginning of the school year 2010– dunion.com), and then donates part of his profi ts and 2011, 110 pupils attended the school, of which 86 were royalties for the funding of École des Sables residential nomadic boarders. There are three classrooms and six schools. teachers — three women and three men remunerated The Internet enables cultural exchanges and the by the Malian government. The school applies a teach- sharing of ideas on teaching methods between the ing method that targets excellence and respects local Touareg community and schools in France. Such ex- cultures. The rate of success at elementary school is changes aim to develop a winning partnership between 99 per cent and at high school is 100 per cent. Access Écoles des Sables and schools from other countries to education is necessary for integration into Malian so- around the world. ciety and for Touaregs to learn the offi cial languages (French and national languages).

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 37 WSIS FORUM 2011 16–20 May, Geneva

“ WSIS Forum is a unique opportunity for ITU “ When supporting activities to bridge the Member States to interact with other relevant digital divide, there is a need to follow a life ICT stakeholders from civil society, private cycle approach for the ICT equipment to avoid sector, academia and industry. ” uncontrolled electrical and electronic waste dumping in developing countries. The WSIS Blanca M Gonzalez, Forum 2010 was an excellent place to discuss Jefa de Area de Organismos Sectoriales this issue and to initiate further work with SETSI-Ministerio de Industria, Madrid, Spain concerned partners. ”

Matthias Kern UNEP Secretariat of the Basel Convention Switzerland

www.wsis.org/forum

38 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 “ In the years the CivicTEC team has been attending the annual WSIS Forum we have seen it become increasingly engaged with civil society and the real-world needs of communities worldwide. From e-governance to linking momentum for the MDGs, the WSIS process is showing the way forward in harnessing the connective power of networked technologies for societal change by integrating global and local priorities. ”

Allison Hornery Co-founder, CIvicTEC Australia

“ WSIS is a unique platform owing to its truly “ Freedom of opinion and freedom of global nature. It is inspiring for practitioners expression are cardinal both to civil society to see examples, share experiences and learn and to the information society. CoNGO and from different initiatives around the world its members promote and defend these which unleashes the immense potential of fundamental principles throughout the ICT for improving human lives. In essence WSIS Process. ” this forum revitalizes the spirit of all the WSIS stakeholders by reaffi rming their faith in the Cyril Ritchie possibilities of ICT. ” President CoNGO Mirza Farzana Halim Katalyst-Partners in Business Innovation Bangladesh

Organised by:

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 39 WSIS Forum 2011 Agenda

WSIS Forum 2011 Agenda This information was correct as of 13 May 2011.

Opening Ceremony Thematic Workshops High-Level Dialogues Country Workshops Closing Ceremony Parliamentary Forum on Building an Information Society Action Line (AL) Interactive Facilitation Meetings UNGIS High-Level Segment Interactive Sessions UNGIS Working Level Meeting Internet Governance Forum (Open Consultations) Publications Releases and Briefi ngs Internet Governance Forum (MAG) Exhibition Inauguration Action Line World Telecommunication and Information Society Day 2011 (WTISD) Facilitators Meeting Reception UNGIS Open Consultations Abbreviations: HL: High-Level | AL: Action Line

Time Monday, 16 May 2011 09:30–10:30 Opening Ceremony (E/F/S) | Governing Body Room | (OverRow Room II: audio only) Opening Ceremony 10:30–13:00 High-Level Opening Session: Working Together Towards 2015 (E/F/S) | Governing Body Room High-Level Dialogues 11:00–12:00 UNGIS High-Level Segment (UNGIS Members only) UNGIS 12:30–13:00 Press Conference (Media only) | Room IV Press Conference 13:00–13:15 Exhibition Inauguration | Level R3 Exhibition 13:15–14:00 Lunch Break 14:00–14:30 Brief: Brief: Publication: Brief: Publication: Broadband Commission Connectivity Scorecard 2011 United Arab Emirates Girls in ICT Day India Journey from Room V Room II WSIS Committee Report Room IX Knowledge Economy to 2010–2011 Inclusive Information Room XI Society — Profi les of Progress | Room IV Publication Releases and Briefi ngs 14:45–16:15 AL C3 Access: AL C2 ICT Infrastructure Education and ICTs Implementation of WSIS e.Oman — A strategy that Persons with Disabilities (ITU) (CoNGO) Action Lines in India | transformed the society (UNESCO) | (E/F) Room IX Room IV (India) with e-skilled in less than Room II Room XI fi ve years | Room V Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Thematic Workshop Country Workshop 16:15–16:30 Break 16:30–18:00 AL C7 E-learning AL C6 Enabling Environment Implementation of WSIS New challenges to protect The Al-Shaifa Hospital (UNESCO) | (E/F) (ITU) Action Lines in UAE children online in the era of Information system Room II Room IX (UAE) non-stop connectivity — Universal Health Room XI Room IV Information hand in hand with Universal Health Care (Oman) | Room V Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Country Workshop Thematic Workshop 18:00–20:00 Reception Sponsored by UAE Venue: Restaurant du BIT “Le Morillon”, fl oor R2 NORD International Labour Organization

40 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Agenda WSIS Forum 2011

Time Tuesday, 17 May 2011 09:00–10:30 The Urban Gateway — A global online portal to support Institutional Choice in E-Gov Strategy Mock Botnet Investigation town and city management in a rapidly urbanising world Global Communications (UAE) (World Federation of (UN-HABITAT) Governance Room V Scientists/ITU) Room IV (University of Zurich) Room IX Governing Body Room Thematic Workshop 10:30–11:00 Break 11:00–13:00 WTISD Better Life in Rural World 2011 — Reaching Regional Commissions Sudan and Sudan telecentre Public dialogue on Communities with ICTs Out Room V role in WSIS implementation the impact of the (ITU) | (E/F) (TELECOM) Room IX communication and ITU Premises Governing Body Room information technology (In ILO Premises WTISD transformation and global Overfl ow Room II; Audio) development Room IV WTISD 11:00–12:30 Thematic Workshop Interactive Session Country Workshop Thematic Workshop 13:00–14:00 Lunch Break 14:00–14:30 Publication: Measuring the Brief: Development of Brief: ICT Discovery, UAE Brief: Wireless Networking Training: the ICTP Strategy WSIS targets. A statistical the knowledge base for Room XI Governing Body Room framework | Room V vulnerable children online | Room IX Publication Releases and Briefi ngs 14:45–16:15 AL C8 Culture AL C4 Capacity Building Measuring the ICT Sector Domain name Industry Implementation of WSIS (UNESCO) | (E/F) (ITU/UNESCO/ISOC) for Politial Analysis in UAE, changing the Action lines in Bangladesh Room II Room V (ITU/UNCTAD) landscape (Bangladesh) Room IX (UAE) | Room XI Room IV Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Interactive Session Thematic Workshop Country Workshop 16:15–16:30 Break 16:30–18:00 Child Online Protection in Africa | (ITU) | Room XI Thematic Workshop Measuring the ICT Sector Managing human recourses at national level — How ICT4D Partnership for Political Analysis Oman is managing a huge workforce to supplement its (ICT4D collective) (ITU/UNCTAD) | Room IX own | (Oman) | Room V Room IV Interactive Session Thematic Workshop

Time Wednesday, 18 May 2011 09:00–11:15 HL No 1: Right to Communication: New social media and social HL No 2: Innovation for Digital transformations (E/F) | Room II Inclusion (E/F) | Room V High-Level Dialogues 10:00–13:00 IGF Open Consultation | Governing Body Room IGF 11:15–11:30 Break 11:30–13:00 AL C1/C7e-gov/C11 AL C5 Confi dence Capturing the Impact Role and Responsibility of Internet Pathways to (DESA) and Cybersecurity in of ICT Intermediaries in the Field of Copyright Sustainable Energy Room II Cyberspace (WEF) (WIPO / ISOC) for ALL (ITU) | Room XI Room IV Room IX (ITU) | Room V Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Thematic Workshop 13:00–14:00 Lunch Break 14:00–14:30 Brief: I meet you at Brief: International Telecommunication Brief: UNESCO World Press Freedom Day Publication: WSIS Forum Regulations 2012 Room IV E- Environment Room IX Room XI Room V Publication Releases and Briefi ngs 14:45–16:15 Mainstreaming AL C9 Media AL C7 e-Environment AL C7 AL e-Business Parliamentary Forum IGF Open Consultation Crisis Mappers and (UNESCO) | (E/F) (UNEP) (UNCTAD/ITC) (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) Governing Body Room Social Media in Crisis Room XI Room V Room IX Room II Management (ICT4Peace) | Room IV Thematic Workshop Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Parliamentary Forum IGF 16:15–16:30 Break 16:30–18:00 AL C10 Ethics AL C7 e-Environment AL C7 e-agriculture AL C7 E-health Parliamentary Forum IGF Open Consultation (UNESCO) | (E/F) (ITU/UNEP/WMO) (FAO) (WHO/ITU) (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) Governing Body Room Room XI Room V Room IX Room IV Room II Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Parliamentary Forum IGF

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 41 WSIS Forum 2011 Agenda

Time Thursday, 19 May 2011 09:00–11:15 HL No 3: HL No 4: MAG ICTs as an Enabler for Development of LDCs Building Confi dence and Security in Cyberspace (MAG Members/Open to Observers) | Room IV (E/F) | Room II (E/F) | Governing Body Room High-Level Dialogues IGF 11:15–11:30 Break 11:30–13:00 Greater Government Transparency and Citizen Parliamentary Forum MAG Empowering Community Voices Video Engagement to Promote Effectiveness and (DESA/IPU/ITU) (MAG Members/Open Volunteers Accountability in Public Service Delivery (E/F/S) | Room II to Observers) Governing Body Room (DESA/ITU) | Room IX Room IV Thematic Workshop Parliamentary Forum IGF Thematic Workshop 13:00–14:00 Lunch Break 14:00–14:30 Publication: M-Government: Mobile Publication: Perspectives on Policy Responses to Publication: Technologies for Responsive Government and Online Copyright Infringement —  The Role of ICT in Advancing Growth in Least Connected Societies An Evolving Policy Landscape Developed Countries: Trends, Challenges and Room XI Room IX Opportunities, 2011  ICT and Telecommunications in Least Developed Countries: Review of Progress Made During the Decade 2000–2010 Governing Body Room Publication Releases and Briefi ngs 14:45–16:15 UNGIS Working Level AL C3 Access & AL C7 E-science: Open Access ICT and Road Safety Greater Government Transparency and Citizen Meeting (UNESCO, IFLA and EIFL) (ITU) Engagement to Promote Effectiveness and (UNGIS Members only) (E/F) | Room XI Governing Body Room Accountability in Public Service Delivery (DESA/ITU) | Room IX UNGIS 14:45–18:00 Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting Thematic Workshop Parliamentary Forum MAG (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) | Room II (MAG Members/Open to Observers) | Room IV Parliamentary Forum IGF 16:15–16:30 Break 16:30–18:00 Remote Participation WSIS Stocktaking: MAG Parliamentary Forum Greater Government Transparency and Citizen (ITU/CIVITECH/ WSIS Implementation (MAG Members/Open (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) Engagement to Promote Effectiveness and Partners) Success Stories to Observers) Room II Accountability in Public Service Delivery Governing Body Room Room XI Room IV (DESA/ITU) | Room IX Interactive Session IGF Parliamentary Forum Thematic Workshop

Time Friday, 20 May 2011 09:30–12:30 WSIS Action Line Facilitators Meeting | (E/F) | Governing Body Room Parliamentary Forum | (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) | Room II Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting 09:30–12:30 Parliamentary Forum 09:30–11:00 11:15–13:00 Parliamentary Forum | (DESA/IPU/ITU) | (E/F/S) | Room II Parliamentary Forum 13:00–14:00 Lunch Break 14:30–17:30 UNGIS Open Consultations on overall review of implementation of the WSIS outcomes (WSIS+10) | (E/F) Governing Body Room UNGIS 17:30–18:00 Closing Ceremony Governing Body Room Closing Ceremony

42 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 AFP/ONLYWORLD

ICT in the United Arab Emirates Delivering on WSIS goals

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) WSIS objectives. Much has been achieved and UAE is has sought to encourage governments and their key committed to making progress on the higher objectives stakeholders to work together to create the drivers for of WSIS by 2015. effective public-private partnerships and for sustainable The UAE WSIS National Report, launched at WSIS development by setting development goals through its Forum 2011 is an important reference that documents Action Lines. every step taken by the country in its journey to achieve WSIS Action Line 1 emphasizes the role of govern- WSIS goals. ment in the promotion of information and communi- “WSIS Forum is a unique global platform which cation technologies (ICT) for development. The United provides an opportunity for reviewing and addressing Arab Emirates (UAE) has made signifi cant progress on the critical issues for WSIS implementation. We are very this through a series of innovative programmes, funding grateful to ITU for giving us an opportunity to sponsor opportunities and groundbreaking initiatives. and to be a strategic partner for WSIS Forum 2011 and The UAE’s WSIS National Committee, which in- we are equally honoured to share our successful experi- cludes the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority ence with all the participants through the launching of (TRA), has made impressive efforts to galvanize com- UAE WSIS National Report. The United Arab Emirates munity leaders and government and non-government is committed to WSIS goals and implementation of organizations to commit to the achievement of the its Action Lines,” said Mohamed Nasser Al Ghanim,

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 43 Shutterstock WSIS Forum 2011 44 Infrastructure Regulatory Authority. Director General oftheUAE Telecommunications ITU News economy: higher, upper, mediumandlow. four groups used to describethelevelofICT withinthe report categorizes eachofthe159countriesintoone benchmarking bothonaglobalandregional level.The ite index.TheIDIincludes159countrieswhichenables lated toICT access, useandskillsintoasinglecompos- Information Society2010”,combines11indicatorsre- ally. TheIDI,containedinthereport “Measuringthe Arab States region (seeTable), andranked it29glob- also pro ing totheNetworkReadinessIndex2009–2010. the qualityofitsinfrastructure andconnectivity, accord- ture, UAE isnowranked to developinformationandcommunicationinfrastruc- The ICT Development Index(IDI),developedbyITU, As regards Action Line2,whichfocusesontheneed fi  led UAE asthehighestranked countryinthe 4 |2011 United Arab Emirates  May2011 fi rst amongArab countriesfor access toICT inclusive forminoritiesandsmallsocieties. schools, universitiesandresearch centres; andmaking access; connectingeducationalinstitutionssuchas enhance connectivitybyproviding betterbroadband opment. Governmentsare encouraged tooverseeand infrastructure asakeytosocialandeconomicdevel- a nationwidenetworkbytheendof2011. works. EtisalatplanstospendUSD1.36billionbuild holds andbusinessesconnectedto of the RepublicofKorea andHongKong (China)interms country isnowranked fourthintheworldafterJapan, it uat65 45 52 33 Kuwait SaudiArabia Qatar 29 Fifth Bahrain UnitedArab Emirates IDIrank (global) Fourth Third Second Country First Regional rank fi bre-optic penetration, with30.8percentofhouse- WSIS Action Line2 underlinestheimportanceofICT According totheUAE WSISNationalReport,the fi beotc net- bre-optic United Arab Emirates WSIS Forum 2011 Shutterstock

Promoting competition in the telecommunication will give citizens better picture and sound quality, as sector has also benefi ted the development of ICT infra- well as access to multimedia transmissions. structure. Liberalization began in 2007 with the licens- ing of a second mobile operator Du, and under TRA supervision, there are ambitious plans for network shar- Initiatives ing to benefi t consumers. Sharing networks between A key element in the UAE government strategy has Etisalat and Du means consumers can choose their been to get the legal framework right. The UAE tele- service provider for voice, Internet and television. Such communication market has grown from USD 8.2 billion competition not only encourages development of the in 2005 to USD 13.6 billion in 2011, achieving a 20 per ICT industry, but also acts as a stimulus for overall eco- cent rate of annual growth. Much of this has been due nomic development of the country. to the new legal framework with TRA issuing several In February 2010, TRA licensed satellite services regulations to foster advancements in the ICT sector. to Yahsat to install, operate and manage satellite and An e-commerce law was introduced in 2006 (Federal ground networks in the country. And in July 2010, TRA Law No. 1 pertaining to Electronic Commerce and granted Star Satellite Communications Company (Star) Transactions) under which TRA can license and oversee a ten-year satellite and broadcasting service licence. the activities of e-commerce providers. Etisalat, the na- These developments were aimed at establishing UAE as tional telecommunication provider, has been licensed as a premier telecommunications hub by offering world- a Certifi cation Service Provider under the law. class satellite services. To further drive e-commerce, TRA signed a To further benefi t consumers and improve infrastruc- Memorandum of Understanding with Dubai eGovern- ture, a switchover to digital-only television is planned ment to act as partners on the Trustae Initiative. The for December 2013. TRA has made UAE one of the fi rst award of the Trustae Seal to a company trading online countries in the Middle East to plan a switchover, which protects citizens’ rights and encourages a better quality

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 45 WSIS Forum 2011 United Arab Emirates

of service by guarantee- UAE Connecting ing that online business- with citizens es with such a mark will Mohamed Nasser Perhaps most no- follow a strict code of Al Ghanim table in reviewing the conduct in their e-com- Director General UAE’s progress on WSIS merce dealings. of the UAE Action Line 1, are the Telecommunications As well as creating Regulatory innovations to enhance the legal framework for Authority interaction with citizens ICT development to pros- through ICT services. per, UAE has set up fund- The My Government ing programmes to stim- Initiative, launched by ulate industry growth. His Highness Sheikh The ICT Fund is the fi rst “ Our initiatives along WSIS Action Lines Mohammed bin Rashid of its kind in the Middle have seen considerable progress highlighting Al Maktoum, Vice- East and is designed to our commitment. Industry leaders have been President and Prime support innovative re- encouraged to work with the government to Minister of the UAE and search and development create an effective public-private partnership Ruler of Dubai, is an inte- projects and to provide with the ultimate goal of achieving sustainable grated portal connecting education and training in development. This encourages innovation among people directly with fi ve the fi eld. In terms of re- small and medium businesses and advances federal entities. search and development, research and development activities. ” The initiative aims the fund will support to develop services that start-ups and nurture would ensure improve- business incubators as well as supporting the creation ment in the federal government’s operational and ser- of high-quality research and development institutions. vice effi ciency — one of the main pillars of the UAE For education, the fund will make available scholarships Government Strategy 2011–2013. It also intends to for those keen to work in the ICT sector and it will also improve the quality of life for UAE nationals, as well as provide support to the establishment of institutions of- for expatriates, in line with the country’s Vision 2021. fering ICT-related courses. Sheikh Mohammed launched the portal by sending an There is also the Sheikh Khalifa Fund that has the e-mail message of his appreciation to fi ve federal enti- specifi c goal of supporting small and medium-sized ties for taking the lead in the development of govern- businesses. The fund focuses on the training of UAE na- ment services. tionals so that they can manage projects independently In the fi rst phase, citizens can interact with the as part of a drive to transform Abu Dhabi into an inter- Ministry of Labour, the Electricity and Water Authority, national investment hub. the Sheikh Zayed Housing Program, the National

46 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 United Arab Emirates WSIS Forum 2011 AFP

Transport Authority and the Ministry of the Interior. The been launched at the Khalifa University of Science, aim is to improve the services being delivered by these Technology and Research and allows students and fac- authorities allowing citizens to give feedback to the ser- ulty members to access hundreds of written and audio vice providers and thereby enhancing their own quality books online free-of-charge. In addition, through their of life. smartphones and personal computers, students can ac- Public employees are also benefi tting from the gov- cess lecture notes and laboratory notes. Etisalat plans ernment’s push to use ICT for development. The Sheikh to extend the scheme to other universities in UAE, and Kalifa Government Program, which was introduced in eventually to publishing houses within and outside the 2006, encourages government authorities to promote country, so that students and consumers can access a a culture of creativity, loyalty and excellence among wide spectrum of online content. public employees. The Excellence Program complet- “Our initiatives along WSIS Action Lines have seen ed its fi rst phase in October 2010 by recognizing and considerable progress highlighting our commitment. awarding those models which had demonstrated how Industry leaders have been encouraged to work with to achieve a sustainable information society within the the government to create an effective public-private federal government. partnership with the ultimate goal of achieving sustain- A further example of connecting citizens has able development. This encourages innovation among been an e-books store and e-library scheme, which small and medium businesses and advances research was launched in December 2010 by Etisalat and and development activities,” comments Mr Nasser China’s Huawei Technologies. The pilot project has Al Ghanim.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 47 ITU at a glance ITU/V. Martin ITU/V. Martin ITU/V. Martin ITU/V. © Eric Flogny

Dr Hamadoun I. Touré Houlin Zhao Malcolm Johnson François Rancy Brahima Sanou Secretary-General Deputy Secretary-General Director of the ITU Director of the ITU Director of the ITU of ITU of ITU Telecommunication Radiocommunication Bureau Telecommunication Standardization Bureau Development Bureau

WSIS Forum 2011

Leaders converge on Geneva to re-energize the development agenda

Expectations are running high as world leaders con- country workshops over the fi ve days of WSIS Forum verge on Geneva to work out strategies that will more 2011 (16–20 May). effectively harness the power of information and com- The importance of broadband to national economic munication technologies to accelerate progress to- and social development cannot be overemphasized. wards achievement of the United Nations Millennium “We are all very much aware of how close we are to Development Goals and the connectivity targets of the the 2015 deadline for meeting the WSIS targets and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) — all Millennium Development Goals. We have made quite by 2015. extraordinary progress in terms of connectivity, the WSIS Forum 2011 has a full agenda. The High-Level creation of an enabling environment, and cybersecurity. opening session celebrates the partnerships and col- The next major step must be to repeat the mobile mira- laboration of the WSIS stakeholders working together cle for broadband Internet,” says ITU Secretary-General towards 2015. Remember: WSIS is a multi-stakeholder Dr Hamadoun I. Touré. process and its success in achieving the internationally Innovative broadband models being developed agreed goals depends on successful, win-win partner- jointly by multi-stakeholders across the world will go ships. So the High-Level opening session will set the some way towards providing ICT access to villages, tone for the dialogues and interactive sessions and schools and health centres in remote areas, connecting

48 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 WSIS Forum 2011

ITU at a glance

the unconnected in underserved communities and de- This year’s WSIS Forum programme has been greatly veloping countries. enhanced, thanks to the strategic partnership and con- WSIS Forum 2011 seeks to foster interactive de- tribution of the United Arab Emirates. The Forum has bate and information exchange on a wide range of key also benefi ted from contributions of Oman for the series topics such as rural development, multilingualism, en- of workshops, and Mexico for Spanish interpretation. vironmental sustainability, education, health care and WSIS Forum 2011 is taking place hot on the heels innovation. The right to communicate, social media as a of the fourth United Nations Conference on least devel- tool for development, and cybersecurity, are among the oped countries (UNLDC-IV) that took place in Istanbul, other hot issues on the agenda. Turkey, from 9 to 13 May 2011. Special reports on both events will be published in a future issue of ITU News.

Mobile miracle continues to transform lives in the world’s least developed countries

People living in the poorest countries in the world are connectivity to almost 250 million people in those benefi ting from a mobile cellular miracle which has seen nations. access to voice and simple data connectivity rise from ITU’s latest analysis of strategies to boost ICT pen- an LDC average of 1.2 per cent of the population to etration and leverage this to accelerate development in almost 30 per cent in just ten years, according to fi g- other economic and social sectors was also released at ures released by ITU at the LDC IV conference (Istanbul, the conference, in the form of two new reports: ICTs 9–13 May 2011). and Telecommunications in Least Developed Countries This steep rise in phone connectivity far exceeds and The Role of ICT in Advancing Growth in Least the targets set out in the LDC III Brussels Programme Developed Countries. of Action, which called for average telephone density in ITU fi gures confi rm that while the number of fi xed LDCs to reach 5 per cent by 2011. lines has barely risen in LDCs over the past decade, re- The democratization and rapid spread of mobile fl ecting global trends, mobile access has mushroomed, cellular technology — which, in 2001, was still con- with cumulative annual growth rates over the past fi ve sidered the province of people in wealthy countries years of 42.6 per cent in LDCs compared to just 7.1 per — has transformed the ICT landscape in the world’s cent in developed countries. 48 UN-designated Least Developed Countries, bringing

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 49 ITU at a glance

But still far too few Internet users in LDCs  Assistance in dealing with cybersecurity issues The past decade has also seen signifi cant progress and strategies to build trust and confi dence in ICT in getting people in LDCs online, with 2.5 per cent av- networks. erage Internet penetration by the end of 2010, com-  Assistance in creating and maintaining a propitious pared to under 0.3 per cent in 2001. But that is noth- environment for LDC development through an ena- ing like enough, according to ITU Secretary-General Dr bling policy and regulatory environment. Hamadoun Touré, and remains well below the Brussels Expanded access to ICT is already bringing services III target of 10 per cent. such as mobile banking to tens of millions of people in “People ask me if Internet penetration is really such a the developing world, giving them a level of fi nancial high priority for people who, on a daily basis, face a lack power to manage their lives which they have never be- of safe drinking water, rising food prices, and a chronic fore enjoyed. shortage of health care,” said Dr Touré. “My answer is a “There are many reasons to be optimistic,” said Dr resounding ‘yes’. Because the Internet — and especially Touré. “In the past two years alone we have seen a re- broadband — is an extraordinary enabler which has po- markable surge in national and international bandwidth tential to massively expand the effective delivery of vital in developing countries, with several new submarine services, such as health care and education. Nowhere is cables being landed, and new advanced technologies this more important than in countries where people are which can help affordably bridge the digital divide. chronically deprived of these services.” Some of the world’s most disadvantaged countries are In order to help countries better exploit ICT to drive already showing what can be achieved with the right development, ITU made fi ve key commitments to the combination of political will and innovative public-pri- conference which have been incorporated into the vate partnership.” Istanbul Programme of Action for LDCs 2011–2020. The need to highlight the importance of broadband, In brief, they cover: particularly at the national level, is the main reason  Actions to increase the average phone density in why ITU set up the Broadband Commission for Digital LDCs to 25 lines per 100 inhabitants and the num- Development in 2010, in partnership with UNESCO. ber of Internet connections to 15 per 100 inhabit- Identifying innovative ways to get poorer nations ants by 2020. connected to high-speed networks will be one focus  A comprehensive capacity building and digital inclu- of ITU’s forthcoming Global Broadband Summit, which sion programme. will take place in Geneva, in conjunction with the ITU  Strategies to help LDCs maximize the selection and Telecom 40th anniversary event on 24–27 October use of appropriate new technologies, such as broad- 2011. band, digital broadcasting and next-generation networks.

50 ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 Magazine

Tells you what’s happening in telecommunications around the world

Every time you make a phone call, use a mobile, use e-mail, watch television or access © vario images GmbH & Co.KG/Alamy Philips the Internet, you benefi t from the work of ITU’s mission to connect the world. Stockxpert Fotosearch

For advertising information, contact: International Advertise in ITU News and reach the global market Telecommunication Union ITU News Place des Nations CH–1211 Geneva 20 Switzerland Tel.: +41 22 730 5234 Committed to connecting the world E-mail: [email protected] www.itu.int/itunews BE SEEN. BE HEARD. BE PART OF THE GENEVA, OCTOBER 24-27, 2011 WORLD’S MOST INFLUENTIAL ICT EVENT. ITU Telecom World has changed. More discussion. More debate. More opportunities to network. More forward looking and forward thinking. More influential people. More reasons for you to be there. www.itu.int/world2011