Indian presides over ITU council

Global telecom regulator, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has appointed an Indian expert, Mr. R.N. Jha as its chairman for the 2010 Council

The Council comprises of 46 Member states, last week held its annual session, six months before the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, which would take place in Guadalajara, Mexico, 4-22 October 2010.

A press statement from the governing body signed by the Chief, Media Relations and Public Information, Mr. Sanjay Acharya, the council would take the opportunity to review the implementation of the union’s strategic and financial plans for the 2008-2011 period as well as the draft plans for 2012-2015.

At the first plenary meeting where India took over the rotating chairmanship from Ghana, Mr. Jha who is also the Deputy Director-General, Department of Telecommunications, Government of India, said in his opening address as Chairman,
“This session of Council is particularly important as this is the year of the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference. Many issues being discussed here will find their way to the Mexico conference.”

Mr. Jha added that as ITU celebrates its 145th anniversary this year, the importance of the Union is increasing as newer technologies, applications and services are introduced that contribute to economic growth worldwide.

In his State of the Union address, ITU Secretary-General Dr. Hamadoun Touré noted some recent landmark achievements, such as new ITU standards for the development of 3D TV and a universal charger solution for mobile phones as well as its timely interventions in restoring communications in the aftermath of the devastating earthquakes in Haiti and Chile earlier this year.

Recognizing the need for broader support to strengthen ITU’s role, Dr Touré said, “As a market-responsive organization in a fast-changing environment, we need to work constantly to continue to increase our relevance,” he said.

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