ENTEBBE — The second regional preparatory meeting for the World Telecommunications Standards Assembly (WTSA-20) hosted by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has opened at the Imperial Golf View Hotel in Entebbe.
WTSA is one of the structures of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), a specialized United Nations Agency responsible for Information and Communication Technology related matters.
The weeklong meeting at Imperial Golf View Hotel has brought together African stakeholders in the telecommunications industry, including government representatives, experts, private sector players and academia, to brainstorm on matters of interest ahead of the WTSA 2020 in Hyderabad, India, November 2020.
Key stakeholders including fintech experts, digital security, banking sector experts will also take part in the high-level discussion
For more than 150 years, the ITU has worked with stakeholders around the world to forge co-operation in the global communications eco-system, telecommunications infrastructure development and radio frequency allocation.
In performing this role, ITU works through three sectors; Radio-communication (ITU-R); Telecommunication Development (ITU-D); and Telecommunication Standardization (ITU-T).
WTSA sets the agenda of the International Telecommunications Union – Standardization Sector (ITU – T) and is held every four years.
The last Assembly was held in Yasmine Hammamet, Tunisia, in 2016.
To generate common positions on critical issues ahead of every WTSA, regional preparatory meetings are held across the world. Uganda and Morocco were selected to host the regional preparatory meetings in Africa.
Morocco hosted the first in March 2019 and Uganda is hosting the second in Entebbe this week.
Telecommunications standards are necessary to facilitate global communications by ensuring that whether we exchange voice, video or data messages, different countries’ ICT networks and devices are speaking the same language.
As such, Uganda’s participation enables UCC, the local standardization body, to align to the latest priority sector areas in standardization while ensuring that Uganda’s needs and interests as a developing country are taken into account in the development of global telecommunications standards.
