Ghana Elected Chair of the Commonwealth ITU Group

The Republic of Ghana, on 25th September, 2022, was elected Chair of the Commonwealth ITU Group (CIG) for a four-year term in Bucharest, Romania.

The CIG which is made up of fifty-four (54) Commonwealth countries meets periodically to establish a set of objectives to be achieved at various conferences and meetings of the ITU on a myriad of subjects including International Telecom Regulation, Policy, Radio Spectrum and its related matters, type approval and standardisation.

The goal of the objectives are to address the concerns of member-states in all aspects of telecommunications development and implementation.

this marks Ghana’s first time serving on the Group as its Chair; Ghana co-chaired the Group with the United Kingdom for the just-ended tenure. United Kingdom is now the Vice Chair responsible for the Europe while India, Trinidad and Tobago were also elected the Vice-Chairs responsible for Asia and the Americas respectively.

Ghana, represented by the Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, will lead the team to achieve its objectives at various WTSA, ITU Plenipotentiary, WTDC and WRC conferences within the next four years.
In a statement on the occasion, the Hon. Minister expressed Ghana’s appreciation to the Group for the confidence placed in Ghana. She indicated that in a spirit of continuity and efficiency, Ghana will continue to serve the Group to ensure the achievement of its objectives.

The Commonwealth ITU Group was established during the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in September 2002.

Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful Presents WTPF-21 Report at the On-Going ITU PP-22, as the Chair of the sixth World Telecommunication/ICT Policy Forum (WTPF-21), the Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful presented a Report on the WTPF-21 to participants at the ongoing Plenipotentiary ​Conference(PP-22).

The Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful presenting the report
The report which was presented on 28th September, 2022 summarises the preparatory process, roll-out and outcome of the WTPF-21. The report, as presented by the Minister, covers five thematic areas as listed below:
Enabling environment for the development and deployment of new and emerging telecommunication/ICT services and technologies to advance sustainable development
Affordable and secure connectivity in mobilising new and emerging telecommunications/ICTs for sustainable development
Digital literacy and skills for inclusive access
New and emerging technologies and services to facilitate the use of telecommunications/ICTs for sustainable development
Use of telecommunications/ICTs in COVID-19 and future pandemic and epidemic preparedness and response
The 2022 Session of Council, the World Telecommunication Standardisation Assembly as well as the World Telecommunication Development Conference have all applauded the outcomes of WTPF-21.

Participants at the plenary

The Plenipotentiary Conference (PP) is ITU’s highest policy-making body which meets once every four years to set the Union’s general policies, adopt the four-year strategic and financial plans, as well as elect the senior management team of the organization, the Member States of the Council, and the members of the Radio Regulations Board. This year’s conference dubbed PP-22 will be held in Bucharest, Romania, from 26 September to 14 October, 2022.