Secretary General of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO), Shola Taylor, and Hon. Afamasaga Rico Tupa’i, Minister of Communication & Information Technology (ICT), Samoa, have signed the formal agreement for Samoa to host the Commonwealth Broadband Pacific Forum 2017. The signing ceremony took place during the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth ICT Investment Forum in Dubai recently.
The Commonwealth Broadband Pacific Forum will take place on 25 – 27 July 2017 at the Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Efi (“TATTE”) Convention Center, Apia, Samoa.
Explaining more, Taylor said “Broadband plays a key role in socio-economic development.” “The CTO has established this important conference series to assist Commonwealth communities to harness the power of broadband to transform community life and we are delighted that this year’s broadband forum will inform, and be informed by, the countries of the Pacific and beyond.”
The Commonwealth Broadband Pacific Forum will consider the possibilities for social and economic development by exploring the role of broadband in areas such as finance, education, health broadcasting, entrepreneurship and social inclusion. Previous events have taken place in Kenya, Nigeria and Malaysia with participation from policymakers, regulators, industry leaders and civil society from across the Commonwealth.
Afamasaga noted that “The Commonwealth Broadband Pacific Forum will enable Samoa to showcase our progress in connecting our citizens and enabling them to access the benefits of the Internet,” saying “It is also an opportunity for us to bring together colleagues from the Pacific to examine the particular challenges facing broadband in our region, and discuss with our peers from the international community the future for broadband development across the Commonwealth.”
Business Hilights recalls that Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) is the oldest and largest Commonwealth intergovernmental organisation in the field of information and communication technologies.
