 | Issue: | Latin America IV 2001 |
| Article no.: | 3 | |
| Topic: | Building a Bridge to the Future – A Connectivity Agenda for the Americas | |
| Author: | Clovis Baptista Neto | |
| Title: | Executive Secretary | |
| Organisation: | CITEL | |
| PDF size: | 16KB |
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Article abstract
The heads of state and government of the Americas gathered in Quebec City, Canada, for the Third Summit of the Americas, held from 20 to 22 April 2001 to renew their commitment to hemispheric integration, sustainable economic growth and greater social development, with a strong emphasis on the overarching objective of poverty reduction in our region. The heads of state and government proclaimed in the Declaration of Quebec City:
Full Article
“Our collective hemispheric efforts will be more effective through innovative uses of information and communication technologies to connect our governments and our people and to share knowledge and ideas. Our statement, ‘Connecting the Americas’, underscores this conviction.” The statement ‘Connecting the Americas’ recognises that a technological revolution is unfolding and that our region is entering a new economy, one defined by a vastly enhanced capacity to access knowledge and to improve flows of information. It underscores the need to promote the beneficial integration of the hemisphere into an increasingly knowledge-based society. To help advance this initiative, these leaders have made a commitment to promote the development of the telecommunications infrastructure needed to support and enhance all sectors of society and the economy, seeking among other things to provide affordable universal access to ICTs, noting the leading role of the private sector in deploying infrastructure and services. The Summit also adopted a comprehensive Plan of Action providing a set of mandates. The Plan of Action, in particular, spells out in more detail the guidelines for initiatives over the next four years that will have an impact on the goals and activities of the inter-American Telecommunication Commission-CITEL. CITEL is the telecommunications advisory body of the Organisation of American States, which provides the pre-eminent forum in the hemisphere. At CITEL governments and the private sector meet to co-ordinate regional efforts to pave the way towards the Global Information Society. Besides assuming with great enthusiasm its renewed mission and the specific responsibilities mandated by the Summit, CITEL has taken the initiative to significantly advance the response to the sixth action item in the ‘Telecommunications’ section of the Action Plan. This states: “Instruct, as appropriate, our telecommunications authorities and our relevant regulatory bodies, working within our regional and sub-regional agencies and organisations to develop and implement before the next Summit of the Americas a cooperative and collaborative programme to support a Connectivity Agenda for the Hemisphere.” A comprehensive work plan for building an Agenda on Connectivity for the Americas and an associated Action Plan has been agreed by CITEL member states and is being implemented expeditiously. It is intended to have those documents prepared, in final form, for discussion at the March 2002 CITEL Assembly, during a special meeting of Senior Government Officials and hemisphere industry leaders, and to have it adopted by the Assembly. This proposal shall identify and recommend appropriate strategies to foster the development of the infrastructure and the essential applications required by the information-based society. While recognising that telecommunications authorities and regulatory bodies play a significant role in encouraging the development of the infrastructure and services to enable connectivity, CITEL also recognises that other government departments and agencies, and the civil society, must be actively engaged in the development and implementation of a connectivity agenda for the hemisphere. Conclusion A co-ordinated and collaborative approach on the part of all involved actors is essentially required for building a new future for the Americas region.
