With the potential for changes in the US administration I took the time to stop and consider the global role of technology going forward. My hope is that the positive global potential and promise of ICT will continue to be delivered. I see this not as a faint hope but one likely to be realized. I say this because I have been following the recent work, meetings, and conferences of the United Nations agency specializing in ICT – the ITU.
Regular readers will know of ITU from my earlier posts but for those reading for the first time, the ITU, formed in 1865 is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies and allocates global radio spectrum and satellite orbits, develops the technical standards that ensure networks and technologies seamlessly interconnect, and strives to improve access to ICTs to under served communities worldwide. This group more than any other has guided our use of technology for over 150 years. Its membership includes 193 Member States and approximately 800 public and private sector companies as well as international and regional telecommunication entities, known as Sector Members and Associates, which undertake most of the work of each Sector.
