Caribbean News Now is reporting that The Broadband Commission for Digital Development has issued a report looking at several aspects of broadband and its positive effects on people, environment and society. The task force includes the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and UNESCO. The author of this post writes:
“The report, entitled: ‘Transformative Solutions for 2015 and Beyond: the Report of the Broadband Commission Task force on Sustainable Development’, analyzes national broadband plans for 138 countries and identifies best government practices, urges governments to act now and to include broadband in their national development agenda. It also makes a number of supporting recommendations…”
“Dr. Hamadoun Touré, secretary general of the ITU, said:’Through this work the Broadband Commission would like to encourage the international community to recognize the need for transformative solutions in the post-2015 development agenda; and this report makes the case. The report presents for the first time new research showing how countries around the world use their national broadband plans as key policy instruments to leverage the full potential of broadband as an enabling infrastructure to accelerate sustainable development; yet there are also many missed opportunities, not least within poverty reduction and food security.”‘
Recommendations include making broadband affordable for all and to “deploy national development policies and plans to actively drive cross-sector integration of economic and social outcomes deliverable and scalable through ICT and broadband.”
Best practices were highlighted from several countries including Rwanda.
Rwanda is using its ICT strategy plan to coordinate widespread economic and social transformation. Developing three comprehensive ICT strategy plans known as the National Information Communication Infrastructure (NICI), ICT for development (ICT4D), and Vision2020, all government developmental programs, Rwanda aims to progressively transform the country from a predominantly agricultural economy to a predominantly knowledge-based economy. It has committed itself to implement the envisaged four-staged NICI/ICT4D Plans over the next 20-year life-span of Vision2020 and the ICT4D Policy, as complementary policies.
Read the full report here. Read this article in its entirety at Caribbean News Now.
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