The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has declared plans to invest $4.8 billion to promote worldwide connectivity.
During the plenary session of the 2024 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS+20) meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday, the UN Agency for Digital Technologies made this announcement.
The announcement, according to the Agency, raises the total amount pledged through ITU’s Partner2Connect Digital Coalition (P2C) to $50.96 billion to close the digital divide.
The ITU stated that with the most recent addition, the overall commitments made towards global connection now exceed the $100 billion target that was set for 2026.
According to ITU, among the new commitments made public at the WSIS Forum event were promises to use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve inclusiveness, adoption, and access to digital technology.
Doreen Bogdan-Martin, the Secretary-General of the ITU, commented on the new investment, saying,
“Together, we can close the digital divide, and today’s achievement for global connectivity is truly remarkable. I am overjoyed to see these incredible new pledges and that P2C and WSIS have come together to help us surpass the halfway mark in our mission to assist in bringing the advantages of digital connectivity to everyone, everywhere.”
“Thanks to the leadership, vision, and ambition of P2C’s pledgers, millions of people will have access to more accessible, more cheap digital technologies for socioeconomic progress, enhanced health, and everything else that makes connectivity important. It’s extremely exciting to see new pledges start to leverage the power of artificial intelligence to transform the inclusive digital societies we all want to build,” Bogdan-Martin remarked.
According to the ITU, investors in the most recent funding pledge include the $3 billion promise made by American telecom giant AT&T, which will assist 25 million Americans living in the country’s hardest-to-connect areas in becoming and becoming connected by 2030.
This puts AT&T’s overall contribution to closing the digital gap since 2021 to $5 billion, according to the ITU.
One of the newest investors in global connectivity is the Canadian government. Through the CAD 2 billion (USD 1.46 billion) AI Compute Access Fund, the government is investing in computer infrastructure to promote AI enterprises and researchers in Canada, according to ITU.
The article went on to say that Canada is also investing an additional CAD 400 million ($292 million) in the adoption of AI throughout the country’s economy, assisting small and medium-sized businesses in implementing AI, providing skill development for workers, and founding the Canadian AI Safe Institute to better understand and guard against the risks associated with advanced AI systems.
According to reports, Microsoft has also promised to support new initiatives and give partnerships top priority to quickly advance the inclusion and representation of persons with disabilities in technology, including AI, systems, designs, and features.
From May 27 to May 31, the WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event will convene to discuss obstacles and record accomplishments in the twenty years since the multi-stakeholder WSIS initiative was founded.
Government ministers and officials from more than 160 nations, along with representatives from business, academia, civil society, the technical community, the UN System, and intergovernmental organizations, are analyzing major global trends at the WSIS Forum event. These trends include artificial intelligence, the potential for sustainable development, and other rapidly advancing subjects.
Nigeria is represented at the current Forum by Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy.
