ITU will meet to discuss global financial crisis

Members of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) will meet in Portugal in April for the World Telecommunication Policy Forum, to discuss major challenges facing the sector.

The meeting, scheduled for the capital Lisbon on April 22, will bring together players in the telecommunications private and public sectors. A key focus area of the meeting will be the impact of the global financial crisis in the industry.

The ITU said in statement: “The high-level strategic dialogue on ‘Confronting the Crisis’ will bring together leaders from government and industry to address the problems facing vendors, operators and governments. The discussion seeks to formulate proactive strategies to help the ICT sector weather the economic storm as well as leverage the power of ICTs to accelerate recovery in other sectors.”

It said other key policy issues up for discussion include internet-related public policy matters, strategies for creating confidence and security in the use of ICTs as well as international telecommunications regulations.

The event is open to ITU Member States and Sector Members, organizations admitted as observers to ITU conferences and meetings, accredited media representatives and the general public.