In a Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) meeting in London, Commonwealth ICT ministers have unanimously endorsed the Strategic Plan of the CTO for 2016-2020 and the appointment of Dr Emmanuel Mallia, Minister for Competitiveness and Digital, Maritime and Services Economy as Chairman of the CTO for the next two years.

The CTO is an intergovernmental Commonwealth Organisation mandated in the field of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). The CTO 2016-2020 Strategic Plan focuses on ICT regulation, affordable and universal broadband, cyber security, ICT applications and the coordination of the Commonwealth in the Global ICT Agenda.

Addressing the ministers at the opening of the meeting, Baroness Scotland, the newly-elected Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, stressed on the importance of the Governments’ role in fostering ICT innovation and the sharing of experiences and lessons learnt within Commonwealth, with the aim to improve access and connectivity to ICT.

Minister Mallia underlined the importance of placing ICT at the centre of the development agenda and highlighted the way ICT is driving transformations across distinct industry verticals including health, education, financial services, transport, utilities, and more. Minister Mallia took the opportunity to share Malta’s achievements in ICT and connectivity and invited ministers to use the CTO as a collaborative platform to promote the exchange of experiences in ICT to the benefit of governments, civil society and the private sector.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews