ITU Director-BDT Opens Global Symposium for Regulators (GSR 2021) and Highlights the Need for 5th Generation Regulation for Fostering Sustainable Growth of the ICT Ecosystem
Director, Telecommunication Development Bureau of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin, opened the core program of the GSR-21 sessions yesterday, with a strong message signifying the importance of digital technologies and emphasizing the criticality of a new wave of policy and regulatory leadership required to implement people-centered connectivity initiatives.
Acknowledging the contributions and collaboration demonstrated by the regulatory authorities and the private sector over the last year, particularly telecom operators, including measures taken such as expanding access to spectrum resources from the regulatory front to unbuckling usage limits at the user end, Director BDT drew attention to the prevailing climate of global uncertainty and how the role of policymakers and regulators to empower, to enable, and to connect is now ever more important to contend with digital divides. Director BDT linked the way forward to closer collaboration - collaboration among countries and regions, among public-sector entities, telecom operators, and digital platform providers, as well as among other digital space players.
Doreen Bogdan-Martin defined the role of the new or fifth generation of regulators as that of architects who can enable "fit-for-purpose, collaborative regulation", helping shape and optimize the functioning of the digital markets that are now so vital to every segment of our economies, and our societies. Ms. Bogdan-Martin emphasized that regulators require relevant tools that ensure protection of citizen interests while also ensuring predictability and business protection for the ICT ecosystem players. It is the principles of ensuring protection of interests at both ends and to put in place future-proof regulatory frameworks, which should be flexible enough to respond to the challenges of digital transformation requirements of the evolving digital economies, which lie at the foundation of the 5th generation of regulation and it is this next generation of regulatory approaches, combined with customized approaches which should reflect the enormous diversity of our six global regions, that would help mitigate global crises situations of the future.
In order to move forward, stakeholder priorities should be aligned, with the willingness that old rules that are no longer relevant should be revoked. Moreover, new strategic priorities should be carefully set on addressing the short-to-medium term outlook for national and global markets, complemented by longer-term strategies that are aligned with relevant national policies, and help ensure a coordinated approach to advancing regional development priorities. The importance of multi-stakeholder coordination and consultation, regulatory adjustments through an iterative process were also highlighted in the Director BDT's address.
Since 2000, the Global Symposium for Regulators (GSR) brings together heads of national telecom/ICT regulatory authorities from around the world and has earned a reputation as the global annual venue for regulators to share their views and experiences on the most pressing regulatory issues they have identified.
GSR also fosters a dynamic global industry regulators dialogue, between regulators, policy makers, industry leaders and other key ICT stakeholders. GSR’s Global Dialogue provides a neutral platform for ITU-D Sector Members to share their views on major issues facing the ICT sector. GSR concludes with the adoption by regulators of a set of regulatory best practice guidelines.
Over the next three days the GSR program will seek to address many of the most pressing issues facing regulators working within today’s complex and inter-dependent digital ecosystem. GSR-21 will also showcase the ITU's new G5 Accelerator Platform, which brings together new ICT Regulatory Tracker, ICT Policy Impact Lab, and, soon, the new G5 Benchmark, in which SAMENA Council also has had the opportunity to contribute.
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Source: SAMENA Press release